At the Louvre in Paris, 18 elevators and 20 wheelchair lifts stand ready to welcome visitors who might otherwise find its vast halls daunting.
For many travelers with disabilities or other specific needs, however, the bigger challenge comes even before arrival: knowing which destinations can accommodate them, and how to arrange a hassle-free visit.
Tech companies are stepping up to bridge that gap. One in particular, Tiqets, has made it its mission to eliminate barriers and ensure that global tourism truly is open to everyone.
A Mission to Include Everyone
Accessibility in tourism is about far more than ramps and elevators. According to the European Network for Accessible Tourism, accessible tourism means “tourism and travel that is accessible to all people, with disabilities or not – including those with mobility, hearing, sight, cognitive, or intellectual and psychosocial disabilities, older persons, and those with temporary disabilities”.
In other words, it encompasses a wide range of human experiences and challenges. If an attraction seems inhospitable to nearly one in three people, that venue is missing out on a rich audience (and those travelers are missing out on the experience).
Tiqets, a digital ticketing platform for museums and attractions, has embraced this broad vision of inclusion. From the start, the company’s mission has been clear: to make culture and experiences “accessible and enjoyable for people everywhere”.
This ethos recognizes that accessibility isn’t only about wheelchairs or braille signage – it’s also about welcoming older travelers, neurodivergent visitors, people with sensory impairments, and anyone with invisible conditions who might experience travel differently.
By acknowledging the full spectrum of needs – from a grandfather who worries a museum visit might entail too much walking, to a dyslexic traveler anxious about text-heavy exhibits – Tiqets and its partners aim to create a space where everyone feels invited.
Showcasing Inclusive Attractions Worldwide
Central to Tiqets’ approach is its collaboration with cultural institutions committed to inclusive access. These partnerships span the globe and highlight how thoughtful accommodations can transform the visitor experience:
Wheelchair Access at Iconic Sites
Historic landmarks can pose physical hurdles, but many have invested in accessibility. For instance, the Louvre in Paris – housed in a former palace – has installed dozens of elevators and lifts, making it one of Europe’s most accessible museums.
By working with Tiqets, the Louvre makes sure that prospective visitors know in advance that step-free routes are available throughout the museum.
Likewise, Las Vegas’s Big Bus tours clearly advertise that their buses are equipped with wheelchair lifts, though noting the upper deck may not be accessible. Communicating these details up front allows travelers with mobility impairments to plan outings with confidence.
Sensory-Friendly Museum Sessions
An increasing number of museums offer special sessions for those who might be overwhelmed by crowds, noise, or lighting. In the Netherlands, the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam periodically reserves specific evenings with fewer visitors, dimmed lights, and trained staff on hand – a gentler environment tailored for visitors with autism or sensory processing differences.
Over in the United States, Philadelphia’s Please Touch Museum hosts “Play Without Boundaries” events where lighting and sound are adjusted, quiet zones are provided, and families receive pre-visit guides to know what to expect.
These kinds of accommodations, often publicized through Tiqets’ platform, are a lifeline for neurodiverse travelers and those with sensory sensitivities. They turn an outing that might have been stressful into a positive, even empowering experience.
Adapted Tours and Communication
Many top cultural institutions now provide tours and materials for visitors with hearing or visual impairments – and Tiqets helps spotlight these options.
In Washington, D.C., the Smithsonian Museums have long been leaders in accessibility, offering American Sign Language (ASL) guided tours for deaf visitors, as well as tactile exhibits and audio-description tours for those who are blind or low-vision.
They even carve out “Morning at the Museum” times dedicated to families with neurodiverse children who may need a quieter, less crowded visit. By partnering with such venues, Tiqets ensures that a traveler browsing its site will see notes about these ASL tours or tactile experiences and can book them directly when available.
In Barcelona, to give another example, attractions like the Sagrada Família and Park Güell have introduced tactile models and audio guides for blind visitors – initiatives in line with the global push for multi-sensory inclusion.
Each of these efforts signals to travelers with specific needs that yes, you belong here too, and the information is surfaced at the point of ticket purchase.
These case studies from North America and Europe are part of a larger worldwide movement. From Singapore’s barrier-free gardens to adaptive tours in Sydney, awareness of inclusive tourism is spreading.
Tiqets leverages its international reach to share such best practices across regions, encouraging venues everywhere to adopt a mindset that every visitor counts.
Removing Barriers and Queues
For travelers with physical disabilities, one of the simplest yet most impactful innovations has been mobile ticketing. The Tiqets app and website deliver instant, paper-free tickets that can be scanned from a phone.
This seemingly small convenience can make a huge difference: it spares travelers the need to stand in long lines at ticket counters or navigate unfamiliar will-call booths. Instead, visitors can often use a dedicated accessible entrance or skip the main queue, reducing fatigue and stress.
As one accessibility expert put it, if you build “accessible online ticketing” systems, all customers have equal access from the start.
Tiqets takes this a step further by embedding accessibility information into the ticket-buying process. Each attraction page details essential amenities – often flagged with intuitive icons or notes – so users know what to expect before they book. A visitor using a wheelchair, for example, can see at a glance if a venue is marked “Wheelchair accessible.”
When browsing tickets for San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral, Tiqets informs users that there is an accessible entrance directly from the sidewalk. Checking out the Centraal Museum in Utrecht? The listing mentions that most parts of the museum are accessible to those with mobility challenges.
This transparency is crucial. It not only saves travelers from unpleasant surprises, but also normalizes the inclusion of such details for all users. Even those without disabilities become more aware of accessibility features when they see them listed on every museum or tour description.
Moreover, Tiqets’ mobile platform supports 18 languages, allowing travelers to navigate the app or website in their preferred language. For a tourist who is deaf and relies on reading, having information in their native language (be it Dutch, Japanese, Italian, or others) can be the difference between a smooth booking and a frustrating one.
Multilingual, easy-to-use design is part of an inclusive user experience – recognizing that language itself can be a barrier. Tiqets also offers 24/7 customer support via chat, email, and even WhatsApp, so if a user with a specific need has a question (for example, about reserving a wheelchair or an interpreter at a venue), help is always at hand.
The overall design of the app emphasizes clarity: high-contrast text options, straightforward navigation, and compatibility with screen readers all align with best practices in accessible UX.
In fact, new regulations like the European Accessibility Act (EAA) are coming into force to ensure all travel websites and apps meet such standards by mid-2025 – and Tiqets has been ahead of the curve in adapting to these requirements.
By partnering with an OTA like Tiqets, venues benefit from a platform that is “up to speed” on digital accessibility laws across all regions , from ADA rules in the United States to the EAA in Europe. In essence, Tiqets’ technology takes care of the compliance and inclusive design on the ticketing side, so attractions can focus on improving on-site accessibility.
Beyond Ramps
Physical accessibility is only one piece of the puzzle. Travelers with cognitive differences, autism, PTSD, or sensory sensitivities face a different set of challenges when touring a busy attraction.
Loud noises, chaotic crowds, unstructured information – these can turn what should be a joyful outing into an overwhelming ordeal. Here too, Tiqets helps by highlighting places that have innovative programs for neurodivergent guests and by encouraging others to follow suit.
Consider the experience of a family with an autistic child planning a trip. In the past, they might not even attempt a popular science museum, fearing it would be too stimulating. But if they learn that the museum offers a low-sensory session on Tuesday afternoons – and they see tickets for that specific session available on Tiqets – suddenly the trip feels possible.
Initiatives like quiet hours, “sensory Sundays,” or early openings for neurodiverse visitors are becoming more common. The Rijksmuseum’s calm evenings and the Please Touch Museum’s adjusted play hours mentioned earlier are prime examples.
These special slots typically feature: reduced noise (volume turned down on exhibits), softer or natural lighting, limited visitor capacity to prevent crowding, and designated quiet rooms where anyone feeling overwhelmed can take a break.
Crucially, they often come with pre-visit materials – like social stories or visual guides – so visitors know exactly what to expect, easing anxiety about the unknown.
Tiqets amplifies the impact of these programs by making sure they’re visible to the public. Someone browsing the site can filter for family-friendly activities and might discover a note about a museum’s “autism-friendly morning” or an event labeled “sensory-friendly”. Just seeing that terminology in a mainstream booking platform sends a welcoming message.
It says: this experience was designed with you in mind. And because Tiqets operates globally, a traveler in London can learn about a similar inclusive program in New York or Tokyo, planting the seed that such accommodations are increasingly available worldwide.
The platform also encourages attractions to be upfront about other sensory and cognitive supports. Are there quiet corners or rest areas on the premises? Are audio guides available (and can they double as descriptive guides for blind visitors)? Is there an option to borrow a noise-cancelling headset at the front desk? All this information can be listed on Tiqets.
One recommendation for venues has been to create detailed mobility or sensory maps of their space – marking everything from accessible toilets to silent zones – and provide these to visitors in advance. When such a map or guide exists, Tiqets makes it downloadable alongside the ticket, or emails it to the ticket-holders.
This level of preparation can be game-changing for someone with autism or anxiety, who might otherwise avoid the trip entirely. It transforms an unknown environment into a navigable one, where the person feels more in control.
Towards a Truly Inclusive Journey
Tourism professionals often point out that making travel more accessible isn’t just a moral imperative – it’s smart from a business perspective too. There are hundreds of millions of potential travelers worldwide who have some form of disability or limitation, not to mention the rapidly growing demographic of older adults.
When those individuals feel welcome, entire new markets open up. Tiqets’ leadership recognizes this. “Our mission from day one has been clear: to make culture and experiences accessible and enjoyable for people everywhere,” says Laurens Leurink, CEO of Tiqets.
That isn’t just a slogan – it’s backed by action on multiple fronts, from product design to partner outreach. In 2025, as Tiqets celebrated serving its 50-millionth customer, the company reiterated its vision of a future “where everyone can seamlessly access the cultural landmarks they aspire to visit”.
Achieving that vision will require continued collaboration across the travel industry. It means more museums adding ramps and braille labels, more tour operators training their staff in disability awareness, more theaters offering captioned performances and relaxed shows.
It means governments pushing for compliance with accessibility laws, and companies like Tiqets pushing just as hard for innovation beyond the minimum requirements. The Italian Minister of Tourism, in a recent partnership announcement with Tiqets, summed it up well: digital services are “a key lever to make tourism more accessible, sustainable, and inclusive”.
In practice, that translates to tools like mobile ticketing platforms raising the bar for inclusion worldwide.
For travelers like you and me, the impact of these changes can be profound. A decade ago, a wheelchair user might have hesitated to book a dream vacation, unsure which attractions could accommodate them.
Today, with a few taps on an app, they can not only purchase tickets but also clearly see which art museum has step-free galleries and which theme park offers a free companion pass for caregivers. A family with special-needs children can identify attractions with sensory-friendly hours and plan their itinerary accordingly.
A blind traveler can read about which historic sites have tactile exhibits or pick an audio-described tour, knowing that their experience will be enriching rather than frustrating.
There is, of course, more work ahead to make all of travel fully accessible. But the momentum is undeniable. With each new partnership, Tiqets and its peers are chipping away at the barriers – whether physical, informational, or attitudinal – that have long stood between travelers with specific needs and the wonders of the world.
The message is resounding: travel belongs to everyone. And from Europe to Asia, that ideal is becoming reality.