Accessible Travel and Tourism

Anna Price is a senior leader with over 20 years of experience in marketing, brand, and customer experience strategy. With a career spanning both agency and client-side roles, she specialises in applying customer insight and data to propositions and experiences that genuinely meet customer needs and in turn drive great business performance.

Anna spent 15 years at British Airways in a range of customer leadership roles including accessibility before joining Heathrow, where she has spent the last three years leading the customer experience agenda. Anna is passionate about creating inclusive, accessible experiences and ensuring every customer has an easy, enjoyable, and dignified journey through the airport. 

Neil Barnfather is passionate about making the world more accessible for everyone. As Chief Commercial Officer at GoodMaps – a provider of innovative, AI-powered indoor navigation – he helps create new possibilities for people of all abilities. Drawing on more than twenty years’ experience and his own journey as a blind entrepreneur, Neil was honored with an MBE for his work advancing accessibility and inclusion. He shares his perspective as part of British Airways’ Customer Access Advisory Board, where he advocates for smoother, friendlier travel experiences for passengers with disabilities. Neil’s humor, insight, and determination inspire others and help ensure technology serves all of us, not just some.

Victoria joined RNID in 2023 with a track record in developing social policy research teams at Macmillan Cancer Support, Ofgem and at The Young Foundation. Her career has focused on issues of inclusion and social justice, with an emphasis on how placing the voices and experiences of those with lived experience at the heart of research and policy can create meaningful social change. She also draws on her time in consultancy and innovation organisations to identify new approaches to tackling the issues that face our communities.

With a career in the travel industry that began at the age of 16, Nicki has built a wealth of experience in Sales and Customer Service, with a strong focus on the cruise sector. Nicki’s journey in the cruise industry began in 1995 with P&O Cruises, where she took on her first cruise-focused role.

Over the years, she’s worked in a variety of sales and customer service roles with cruise specialists, moving into management positions where she focused on developing teams, improving service and making sure customers had the best possible experience.

In May 2022, she joined Ambassador Cruise Line as Guest Relations Manager, where she leads the Guest Relations team, handles escalated complaints and looks after the admin side of legal and personal injury claims.

Friendly and approachable, Matt is part of the leadership team at Travlaw. His day-to-day work see Matt proud to serve a vast array of tour operators, travel agents, trade associations, insurers and their underwriters. His skill-set encompasses all levels of work, not only the complex multi-track matters which he attracts so many instructions for, but also various other civil litigation cases which clients trust in the firm to handle. His well-established defendant personal injury practice revolves around two main aspects. Firstly, single party claims for trips, slips and more complex cases such as serious and fatal injuries. Secondly he has a long history or successfully dealing with illness cases. Examples of such cases are legionnaire’s outbreaks as well illness group and class actions involving norovirus, salmonella, cryptosporidium and other types of food poisoning. Long before the infamous rise in illness claims in the ‘tweens, Matt was dealing with gastric cases! His work in this area has seen Matt ranked as a leading travel lawyer in Chambers & Partners for a number of years now.

Matt has contributed to various publications including Travel Law Quarterly and Solicitors Journal. He has blogged on various issues, featured in various newsletters and has commented on industry issues in leading trade press publications Travel Weekly and Travel Trade Gazette as well as national and global media such as BBC News. A popular trainer and speaker, Matt is often asked to deliver in-house seminars, appear on panel debates and has also spoken many times in the UK and abroad at conferences. These include speaking at The ABTA Legal Seminar, ABTOT, PEOPIL, ECC-NET, AGTO, AITO, UKInbound, the Clarity Travel Management conference, BTA conferences as well as at various Travlaw events.

More recently Matt has headed up Travlaw’s “Brexit” team, advising the travel & leisure industry on the various potential issues arising from everybody’s favourite referendum and also helped lead the firms advice and support to travel businesses following Covid-19.

Angie Hills MBE is the Head of Destinations at ABTA – The Travel Association, where she leads on destination operations, health, safety and security, crisis and incident management. She serves as a primary liaison for UK and international government representatives, as well as destination tourism authorities, on a wide range of destination related initiatives.

Angie is a respected voice in the travel industry, regularly speaking at UK and international conferences. She delivers training on destination health and safety, operational and crisis response, to suppliers and government bodies in destinations. She also represents the industry on international committees focused on destination health, safety and security matters.

At ABTA, Angie chairs the Health & Safety and Operational Committees—key forums where members collaborate to address and resolve destination related challenges. Her leadership in this area has been widely recognised: she received a police commendation from New Scotland Yard for her contributions to counter-terrorism efforts and was awarded an MBE in the King’s New Year Honours List for her services to improving health, safety, and security standards for British travellers abroad.

With over 35 years of experience in the travel industry, Angie began her career in 1988, holding various management roles both in the UK and overseas for a major UK tour operator. In 1998, she was appointed Head of Health and Safety and Operational Support for the Federation of Tour Operators (FTO) and the International Federation of Tour Operators (IFTO). Since the merger of FTO with ABTA in 2008, Angie has continued to lead destination operations and safety initiatives with dedication and expertise.

Sarah has a long career at Eurostar spanning 28 years. This started in the contact centre environment where over time Sarah managed the Groups team and then the teams responsible for booking customers' assistance requests and the team managing complaints. This gave a good base understanding of the needs of customers with accessibility requirements and also the impact if the service breaks down.

Sarah has always been passionate about customer care excellence and when the opportunity to join the Customer Experience team arose Sarah jumped at the chance to be able to actively improve the customer proposition and continuous improvement at Eurostar. In 2023, Eurostar merged with another high-speed rail company called Thalys. This meant that Eurostar now served Customers over five countries and the complexity that brings.  As Senior Customer Policy Lead Sarah is responsible for the Accessibility strategy and vision at Eurostar and has two Accessibility Managers that focus on the delivery of improvements. In 2024 Eurostar were proud to be the official carrier for Paralympic Team GB as well as the Belgium and Dutch teams travelling to the Paris games. This enabled Eurostar to showcase the service as well as inform the future legacy of continuous improvement of Accessibility at Eurostar. 
 

Clive Loseby is the founder of Access by Design and a recognised authority on digital accessibility. He works with organisations to ensure their websites and digital services are usable by everyone, including people with disabilities.

His TED Talk on website accessibility has been viewed by over 1 million people worldwide and explains in simple terms how inaccessible digital design excludes customers without organisations realising it.

Clive works with public and private sector organisations whose digital services are critical to trust, clarity and inclusion, including sectors where users rely on clear accessible information to plan and book with confidence. His work focuses on specialist accessibility practice, risk reduction, and helping senior teams understand their responsibilities and options without needing to become technical experts themselves.

Sara Piana is a tourism professional with an academic background in Planning and Management of Tourism Systems and experience in project development and training within the field of accessible tourism. She currently works as a Junior Project Manager at IsITT – Istituto Italiano per il Turismo per Tutti, where she contributes to the design and implementation of projects and delivers training activities aimed at promoting accessibility, inclusion, and sustainable tourism practices.  

Pedro Medina is a senior official of the Spanish administration with extensive international experience. In his second stage in London, he works as Deputy Director of the Spanish Office of Tourism in London, developing a strategy to promote British tourism to Spain based on triple sustainability, economic, social and environmental.

Alison Smith always specialised in customer service but was introduced to the world of accessibility by joining Renta Scoota in 2010, developing mobility product rentals. Alison quickly recognised the opportunity to offer broader mobility solutions for clients who expressed the desire to expand their horizons and focused on the cruise industry from the Ports of Southampton. This shift has not only transformed the company's direction but has also positioned Mobility at Sea as a leader in accessible travel, renowned globally for quality of service and exceptional customer service.

Alison and her team have had a profound impact on disabled travellers, enhancing their holiday experiences and empowering them to explore the world. Her work has driven positive change, proving that accessible travel can become the norm when supported by strong leadership and innovation.

Believing everyone deserves to travel without limitations, Alison has championed the development of tailored mobility solutions for disabled passengers. Through Mobility at Sea, she has created seamless travel experiences that allow individuals to regain their independence and confidence while traveling.

Under her guidance, Mobility at Sea has become a symbol of accessibility and inclusivity in the cruise industry. Alison’s dedication to creating a barrier-free environment has inspired countless individuals to embark on journeys they once thought impossible.

Alison has also focused on raising awareness about the importance of accessibility in travel. She has built strong partnerships with cruise operators and travel agents, advocating for better onboard facilities and services. Her efforts have led to changes in accessible policies to better accommodate disabled passengers, setting new standards for inclusivity in the industry.

A key aspect of Alison’s work is her commitment to education and empowerment. Recognising that many disabled individuals and their families may feel anxious about traveling, she has established a support system that includes pre-cruise consultations, equipment demonstrations, and a 24-hour helpline. This proactive approach ensures clients feel prepared and supported throughout their journey.

Beyond the business, Alison is an outspoken advocate for disability inclusion. She frequently speaks at industry conferences, sharing insights and encouraging others to prioritise accessibility. Her leadership has sparked important discussions about the challenges disabled travellers face and how to address them.

The impact of Alison’s efforts is evident in the heartfelt testimonials from clients. Many have expressed their gratitude for the freedom Mobility at Sea has provided. One client shared, "Without the equipment hired from Mobility at Sea, I wouldn’t have been able to enjoy my holiday." Such feedback highlights the transformative effect of Alison’s work.

Looking ahead, Alison is committed to expanding Mobility at Sea’s reach and services. She aims to inspire more businesses to embrace inclusivity and ensure that disabled individuals can access the same travel opportunities as others. Through her dedication, Alison continues to break down barriers and create a more inclusive world for all.

Marina Snellenberg is the Accessibility Manager for TUI UK & Ireland, the UK’s largest tour operator with key brands including TUI, First Choice, Crystal Ski Holidays and Marella Cruises. TUI Airways is the country's third largest airline with 62 aircraft operating to over 88 destinations in 30 countries. TUI UK&I has a team of more than 10,000 employees serving 6 million customers each year.

Marina drives the integration of accessibility into the overall business strategy, progressing key initiatives that enhance the experience for all customers, whilst delivering capabilities that are essential for some. She manages a rolling program of projects designed to enhance the service TUI offers to customers with access needs, making holidays as accessible to many customers as possible.

Marina works in the Customer Experience Delivery Team, which is focussed on increasing levels of satisfaction and advocacy amongst customers, driving repeat bookings and word-of-mouth customer recommendations. The team is closely linked to both Group Customer Experience and Customer Insight teams to ensure that there is synergy across all TUI Group.

Dr Belinda Stuart-Moonlight cut her teeth as an EHO in Central London and went on to conduct food and microbiology research at King’s College University of London. She began consultancy work in the late 1990s and established Moonlight Environmental in 2001.

One of her early clients was the iconic Borough Market, now well known as ‘ foodie heaven ’ to connoisseurs but then very much in its infancy as a fine food market. Moonlight Environmental grew up with the market and still retains the pick of those start-up stallholders, some of whom have become multi-million pound traders.

As growers and producers, they were largely unaware of a need for advice and certification. Belinda, engaged by the Trustees of Borough Market as trader auditor and workplace safety adviser, was soon regarded by those ambitious businesses as indispensable.

With her roots still in consultancy, auditing and training, she is never out of touch with the day-to-day business of best practice and problem prevention. This means her expert witness work is informed by current industry practice, in addition to considerable experience, knowledge and wisdom.

With over a decade of experience in Aviation Accessibility, Steve has worked across the sector — from in-airport assistance service providers to leading accessibility operations at major UK airports. Steve currently leads the Accessibility & Assisted Travel team at Jet2.com and Jet2holidays and his role involves overseeing the customer Accessibility journey — from pre-travel booking, in-airport assistance both in the UK and overseas to onboard services, and accessible transfers and accommodation