Malta looks to boost low season tourism

Malta will be trying to lure elderly tourists and people with disabilities from European countries to boost the tourism low season between November and March. Social tourism – a concept which aims to entice the young, the elderly, people with reduced mobility and no-income families – is the focus of an EU-funded project called Accessible Culture For All. Undertaken by the Malta Tourism Authority, it will raise awareness and identify ways how to help the tourism industry to target the social tourist. “There is an opportunity for social tourism on our shores. The aim is to attract more people with access needs to choose Malta as their holiday destination,” Tourism Minister Mario de Marco said. Generally, people with needs of access did not travel alone, were big spenders and were more likely to return again, he said during a seminar, entitled Growth Opportunities For Tourism In The Low Season, in Valletta. Demographics indicate an ageing population and increasing access needs. Statistics show that more than eight million citizens in Europe have long-standing health problems and disabilities. “Therefore, accessibility should be the norm rather than the exception,” Dr de Marco...