Assessing the access and inclusion of Midwest Victoria region and businesses
Tourism Midwest Victoria | Accessible Tourism Audit and Accessible Business Uplift Program | Midwest Victoria, Australia | 2025
Regional accessible tourism audit and industry uplift program
Assessment of businesses, attractions and destination assets
Development of a bespoke Accessible Tourism Indicator and findings reports
Mentoring and accessible communications workshop to support implementation
The Challenge
Tourism Midwest Victoria sought to understand how welcoming and accessible the region was for visitors with disability. While many businesses were making improvements, there was no clear baseline, shared understanding or practical roadmap to support inclusive visitor experiences across the region.
Key challenges included
Limited understanding of accessibility beyond compliance requirements
Inconsistent digital and physical accessibility across the visitor journey
Business uncertainty about where to start and what improvements mattered most
A need to align accessibility improvements with destination development and itineraries
Our Approach
We developed the Accessible Business Uplift Program to build confidence, understanding and momentum across industry. The approach was two-fold to identify and support businesses on their access and inclusion journey, while also undertaking a destination place-based review and analysis. A key focus was in creating a buzz for access and inclusion with businesses, encouraging progress over perfection for those early on in their journey.
Our methodology included
Stakeholder engagement with local government, disability advisory groups and industry leaders
Development of a bespoke Accessible Tourism Indicator assessing digital and physical access and inclusion
Site visits and walkthroughs of businesses, attractions and visitor precincts
Bespoke reports delivered for each business and a destination-wide report and roadmap
Delivery of an Accessible Communications Workshop to support implementation
Outcomes and Impact
Key Outcomes
5 local government areas, 25 businesses, 3 attractions and 15 destination assets assessed
Businesses gained practical tools and confidence to improve accessibility
Clear staged action plan delivered for destination-wide improvements
Industry engagement increased awareness and commitment to inclusion
Economic and Social Impact
Strengthened accessibility improves visitor participation and destination reputation
Businesses are better equipped to serve diverse visitor needs
Enhanced inclusive experiences support longer stays and broader market reach
Accessibility improvements inform itinerary development and future industry programming
Services Delivered
“Accessibility is a priority for Tourism Midwest Victoria, and over the past three years our region has seen strong growth and innovation in accessible hero experiences and products. Despite this progress, like many regional destinations we continue to face broader challenges driven by limited industry awareness, inconsistent information, and a lack of confidence among businesses to support visitors with diverse access needs”
