Disabled Travelers Are Often Ignored. Ras Al Khaimah Hopes to Change That

Ras Al Khaimah's tourism authority wants to pitch the emirate as a world-leader in accessible tourism. The first step towards that is much, much better marketing.

The Ras Al Khaimah government has partnered with Sage Inclusion, a global provider of accessible tourism consulting, to position the emirate as the world’s first certified destination for travelers with disabilities. Together with the Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority, Sage has developed a certification process that aims to pitch the once lesser-known emirate as a hub for inclusive travel.

“We’re just about to become the first Sage-accredited destination in the world. We see that as the beginning of the journey,” said Emil Petrov, Vice President of Strategy and Insights at tourism authority, during a recent panel discussion moderated by Skift.

John Sage, founder and CEO of Sage Inclusion, said the sector’s biggest challenge is communication.

“The industry as a whole is not doing a very good job of marketing to people with disabilities,” said Sage. “We are very thirsty for accessible information. But I’ll tell you how overlooked this is — I’m a manual wheelchair user, CEO of three accessible travel companies, I travel constantly, and I receive no ads f