Hotel chain H10 Hotels has become the first hotel chain to sign up to AccessAllRooms.com (AAR), joining the likes of Preferred Hotel Group and Small Luxury Hotels of the World who have an ever growing inventory on AAR.
AAR is a hotel booking website that specialises in allowing both disabled and non-disabled customers to search globally for all available room types including accessible rooms. The site is the first to incorporate a free online access rating scheme, the Global Access Award Scheme (GAAS Ltd), which provides information on accessible rooms and hotels, allowing everyone to find accommodation suitable for them.
Established in the early 1980s, H10 Hotels started small operating in Spain’s main holiday destinations. Today, they have over 40 hotels in 16 destinations and are continuing to expand across Europe and the Caribbean. This new partnership with AAR has already confirmed the following H10 Hotels; H10 Casanova, H10 Berlin Ku’damm, H10 Roma Città, H10 London Waterloo, H10 Art Gallery and H10 Andalucia Plaza and they are looking to expand this with more hotels in the future.
The Courtyard Garden at dusk of H10 Art Gallery, Barcelona
Belen Naranjo from H10 Hotels commented: “We are really excited to start working with AAR and collaborating with them to provide customers with our range of accessible rooms. Initially we will be offering hotels in Barcelona, Berlin, London, Rome and Marbella, but we hope to increase our participating hotels as we continue to work with AAR.”
James Price, Founder and Managing Director of Access All Rooms, commented: “We are very excited about H10 Hotels joining Access All Rooms and are delighted that this prestigious company has recognised the importance of marketing and selling their accessible product. We are thrilled that we are now able to offer our customers rooms within H10 Hotels and we look forward to working together.”
James adds, “AccessAllRooms.com is devoted to helping those with extra requirements retain their independence and enjoy choosing and booking a hotel as stress free as possible, as it is for those without extra requirements. I’m overjoyed with the partnership and I am excited for what the future holds.
AccessAllRooms.com and the GAAS scheme will eventually allow travellers access to a huge online database of hotels displaying extra access information, accessible rooms and the ability to book them in real time. AAR does not think having to go through lots of extra hassle to find information or reserve an accessible room is in any way fair, or indeed a good business model for online sales.
The GAAS rating scheme is the first of its kind, giving customers the chance to see hotels with an access quality rating of five tiers. A hotel achieving a level 5 rating will have excellent facilities including wider doors and corridors, accessible light switches, power sockets, alarms, hoists and a fully adapted bathroom. Lower grades imply narrower doors and corridors, fewer facilities and limited access but may still be suitable for many travellers. In addition to the five tier rating, there are three colours which determine ease of access around a resort. GAAS logo also provides facility adaption information for those with audio-visual impairments by showing an ear or an eye as part of the logo.
“My favourite thing about AAR’s integral GAAS system is that it allows hotels of all access levels to display extra information to those that need it, allowing TIME travellers to view not just the hotels but book bedrooms they never before thought even existed, no other hotel booking website has that ability”, adds James.
The system opens hotels to an underserved group of holidaymakers known as TIME travellers (Tourism Industry Markets in Equality) who could be disabled, ageing persons, mobility, sensory and temporarily impaired guests along with their family, friends and carers. Undoubtedly this is a huge group of people and therefore the partnership with AAR will create a smooth and hassle-free way to book accommodation in line with individual needs. The disabled market in America alone is estimated at spending an average of $13.6 billion a year on travel, TIME travellers in Europe over €89 billion.
AccessAllRooms.com and GAAS is the brainchild of 2012 Paralympic Torch Bearer, James Price. After breaking his neck in 1999 & becoming two thirds paralysed & wheelchair dependant, James soon became aware of the challenges faced by those with disabilities in everyday life. As a sportsman in wheelchair rugby and athletics, James has been lucky enough to travel the world, giving him the knowledge and understanding of the travel segment and how those with extra requirements can be unappreciated. As former GB wheelchair Rugby Development Director and elite athlete in wheelchair rugby, James competed at the 2006 wheelchair rugby world championships in New Zealand and is the current Leicester Tigers Wheelchair Rugby team’s captain, former BBC Holiday Show presenter and BBC Beijing Paralympic wheelchair rugby expert.
