TOURISM service providers should focus on visitor experience and investigate procedural changes to improve access for disabled people, says a new research study by the College of Estate Management. It shows that insufficient progress has been made in facilitating disabled access to historic sites and listed buildings in the UK, including visitor attractions and guest accommodation. Small hotels and guesthouses seem particularly unaware and slow to adjust, says the College in a weighty 110-page report to improve access for the disabled in the tourism industry, and this is significant because 99 percent of hotel and restaurant enterprises are small businesses. "Historic attractions currently generate an estimated 320 million pounds annually in ticket sales," says Dr Tim Dixon, the College's director of research, "and places open to the public should be equally accessible to the UK's 8.5 million disabled people.
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