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Best Practices and up to the minute news on Customer Experience Management and Service Excellence
More than 57 million people in the United States are living with some form of a disability, according to the ADA national network, which provides guidance and training to businesses and people with disabilities.
Many guests who book rooms, check in, visit your restaurant and navigate your hotel hallways and grounds may have a disability that impairs certain abilities in some way. The last thing a person with a disability needs while traveling is unnecessary stressors when it comes to accommodations and customer service from hotel staff.
“Travel is an enriching experience for everyone. But for many, obstacles abound at every corner,” says property management system provider WebRezPro. “From inaccessible accommodations and transportation to ignorant customer service personnel, traveling with a disability is hard.”
That’s why hotels must take into account and eliminate obstacles that can ruin a guest’s stay. Often, obstacles are rooted in poor customer service due to lack of staff training on people with disabilities. Sometimes, obstacles are located in the rooms themselves.
Read on for five ways to ensure that guests with disabilities feel like they’re valued and respected.
Train hotel staff to treat a person with a disability with dignity and respect, says ADA National Network, Educate staff members on ADA rules for allowing service animals, including questions they are legally allowed to ask or banned from asking about the person and animal.
Provide staff with information on accessibility features at your property and train them on how to present it to guests. Staff should never just assume that a guest with a disability needs assistance getting around. Train them to offer assistance but wait for the guest to express whether they need help or are fine on their own.
“It’s important that staff know how to offer their assistance to disabled guests,” says EuansGuide.com, a disabled access website where disabled people, their families, friends and caregivers share accessibility of venues and hotels in the UK and other countries.
“This could involve identifying the best room for easy access and knowing where to locate large print information and portable ramps, to name a few examples.”
If guests with disabilities can’t find accessibility information on your website, they may head to your competitors.
“Have a dedicated page on your website that tells people what your disabled access is like and who they can contact to find out more specific information,” says Euan’s Guide. “Don’t forget to describe details such as door widths and bed heights.”
A person with a disability may not be able to book a room over the phone. Make sure your hotel allows potential guests to book accessible rooms directly on your website.
It may seem to make sense to locate designated accessible rooms on the ground floor. However, many guests prefer a room with a view, says Euan’s Guide:
“Rooms on higher levels are best located near lifts and not at the end of long corridors. It’s great if guests can choose between a variety of rooms and aren’t restricted to one part of the hotel.”
Guests with disabilities shouldn’t have to pay for transportation using another service when your hotel offers free airport transportation, says WebRezPro. Make sure your van is wheelchair accessible and has seat belts, tie-down straps, a lift and room to accommodate medical equipment, which some guests with disabilities may need to bring.
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