How should concessionary pricing and admission to attractions and activities work?

Ana Crome, Tourism for All’s Administration Manager, looks at the question of concessionary pricing and admission to attractions and activities from the visitor’s point of view.

How should concessionary pricing and admission to attractions and activities work?

My condition means that, whenever I visit an attraction or activity, I need to have a companion with me to provide me with practical support. I really appreciate the concessionary pricing and admission that many attractions and activities offer. It really helps with the additional costs that I – like so many disabled people – face in my everyday life.

Of course, I realise that I am in a fortunate position. For me, concessionary pricing and admission to attractions and activities is really helpful, but it is not critical. That’s why I don’t always take advantage of pricing and admission concessions when they are available. If my carer is accompanying me - and the only reason they are there is to provide me with support - then I will generally use any pricing and admission concession that is available. On the other hand, if, say, my partner and I are going to the cinema to see a film we both want to see - so he would be going anyway - then we will often not use any pricing and admission concession, even though my partner will need to provide me with the same practical support as my carer.

I know from the people I talk to and hear from, though, that many disabled visitors - and those who accompany them to provide them with support – are not as fortunate as me. For them, concessionary pricing and admission to attractions and activities can be a real lifeline. It can mean the difference between having a much needed day out and not being able to afford to.

So I am really concerned that some attraction and activities operators report that they are experiencing issues with the numbers and the behaviour of visitors who are claiming concessionary pricing and admission. If these issues result in attraction and activities operators changing – or even withdrawing – their concessionary pricing and admission policies, then this could make attractions and activities less accessible for disabled visitors – and the effect would be felt most by those people who most need these concessions.

Tourism for All really wants to understand better the issues that are faced, both by attraction and activities operators and by visitors, with pricing and admission for disabled visitors and those companions who accompany them to provide them with support – and we are including both human and canine companions in this, because the welcoming of assistance dogs to attractions and activities is another area where there is uncertainty and which we know can cause confusion or distress for visitors and attraction / activity staff. If we can understand these issues better, we can help attraction and activities operators to identify and adopt concessionary pricing and admission policies which will benefit both individual visitors and the attractions / activities themselves, and which can be applied consistently and fairly to avoid misunderstandings or even conflict between visitors and attraction / activity staff.

Tourism for All is surveying individual visitors and attraction and activities operators across the UK. From visitors, we want to understand their experiences and the concession policies they believe would work well for both visitors and attractions / activities. From attraction and activities operators, we want to understand the concession policies they offer, how these work and their experiences with them.

Will you help us to understand the issues by completing our survey?

Take our Attraction and Activities Visitors Pricing & Admission Survey