ADE ADEPITAN APPOINTED AS AMBASSADOR FOR SPAIN FOR ALL

THE SPANISH TOURIST OFFICE APPOINTS ADE ADEPITAN AS AMBASSADOR FOR “SPAIN FOR ALL” CAMPAIGN

• Ade Adepitan, British television presenter and wheelchair basketball player, has been confirmed as the ambassador for the Spanish Tourist Office’s latest #SpainforAll campaign.
• (Industry peers that would like to like to share any insight or consider joining the ‘Spain for All’ campaign on an advisory panel can register their interest here)

Ade Adepitan has been confirmed as the official ambassador for ‘Spain for All’, a campaign from the Spanish Tourist Office underlining the country’s commitment to improving accessibility and social inclusivity within the travel and tourism sector.

‘Spain for All’ comprises of a number of different initiatives aimed at creating dialogue, sharing key learnings, and building a roadmap for better tourism inclusivity from a social and accessibility standpoint. The campaign includes a travel industry advisory panel with the aim of collating feedback to identify key challenges and opportunities and help build a roadmap towards positive progress.

Adepitan has spent significant time in Spain having lived in Zaragoza and has travelled the length and breadth of the country both personally and professionally. His ambassadorship role includes consultancy services for the advisory panel, personal feedback on his own experiences of travelling around the country as a wheelchair user, and endorsement of the campaign. He is also playing a role at Spain Sustainability Day taking place on 17 April 2024, with a part of the day dedicated to social sustainability and accessibility.

Ade Adepitan says:

“I am ecstatic to work alongside the Spanish Tourist Office on the ‘Spain for All’ campaign.  This type of campaign can truly have a life changing impact on one of the most neglected communities in the world. The disabled community!

Overall, I already rank Spain highly when it comes to accessibility provisions and infrastructure, but we need to educate everyone who works in the tourism industry about how to cater for people with disabilities. We should not be seen as a burden and should be treated with the same respect as all paying customers.  When you are dealing with a person with a disability, you should not make assumptions about what they can and can’t do.  Ask them what they need and listen to them, listen to hear and not to challenge, and always have a can-do attitude.

I believe this campaign could be one of the most important moments in the history of Spanish tourism. The disabled community has billions of pounds of spending power, but until now nobody has ever taken a serious look at how to give us that 5-star service experience.”

This campaign follows a UK survey conducted by Opinium on behalf of the Spanish Tourist Office in December 2023 which asked 1800 UK adults for their thoughts on how accessible Spain is as a travel destination with 86 percent of respondents considering Spain to be ‘very or quite’ accessible.

“Manuel Butler, director of the Spanish Tourist Office (UK), says:

“We are delighted to have Ade Adepitan on board as the ambassador for ‘Spain for All’.  Having spent time all over Spain, from Zaragoza to Ibiza, Ade is the perfect champion to support the Spanish Tourist Office’s objective of making Spain accessible to all. We hope to learn from Mr Adepitan and our peers in the travel industry to better understand the challenges people with accessibility needs face as we continue to advocate for a more inclusive travel sector.”