A family with a wheelchair user plans an afternoon out. They need to know whether there are steps, whether the toilet is accessible, how far it is from parking and whether the floor is even.
The website says everybody is welcome. That is kind and it tells them nothing, so they go somewhere that published a paragraph of detail.
The checklist
Publish these and people can decide before they travel.
1. Step free access
Whether there is any, to which areas, and where there is not. Working buildings frequently have a mix and visitors need the specifics.
2. The ground surface
Gravel, cobbles, concrete, uneven yards and thresholds. It is what actually determines whether a wheelchair or a pushchair works.
3. The toilet arrangement
Whether there is an accessible toilet, where it is and whether it requires crossing anything difficult. It decides the visit for many people.
4. Parking
How close, whether there are accessible spaces, the surface and the distance to the entrance. Measured in metres rather than described as nearby.
5. Seating
Whether there is any, whether it is fixed benches, whether there is somewhere with back support and whether a table can be reached in a wheelchair.
6. The tour route
Steps, stairs, narrow passages, standing time and whether any part can be skipped. Tours are frequently the inaccessible part of an accessible venue.
7. Noise and sensory information
Machinery, echo, lighting and whether quieter times exist. It matters for a group of people who rarely see it addressed anywhere.
8. Whether children are welcome
In which areas, until what time and any conditions. Families plan a day around it, which is the ground in dog and family policy enquiries before booking.
9. What there is for children
Space, soft drinks, food, highchairs and whether a pushchair fits through. Families judge a venue on these before anything else.
10. Baby changing
Whether it exists and where. A venue without it should say so rather than letting a family discover it.
11. Whether dogs are welcome
In which areas, on leads, and whether water is available. Rural venues gain a great deal from a clear answer, alongside taproom opening and event questions visitors ask.
12. Non alcoholic options
For drivers, for people not drinking and for children. Every group has somebody and a venue with nothing loses the group.
12b. Say whether somebody can help
A venue that cannot be made step free can still have a member of staff who will meet people at the gate, bring drinks out or find a workable table. Saying that help is available, and how to ask for it without making an occasion of it, frequently matters more than the physical arrangements themselves.
12c. Publish the quieter times
Visitors who need space, a calmer room or a table they can reach easily would rather come on a Thursday afternoon than fight through a Saturday. Naming the quiet periods lets people choose a visit that works for them instead of deciding the venue is not for them at all.
13. Be honest about what you cannot offer
A listed building with no step free access should say so plainly. People appreciate honesty far more than a wasted journey, and it is the tone in how to handle sensitive questions in your chatbot.
14. Answer specific questions at any hour
Because visitors with particular needs ask specific things in the evening, and they book wherever somebody answers, which also serves club membership and subscription questions for wineries.
Getting started
Publish access, surfaces, toilets, parking distances and the family position specifically, then answer detailed questions at any hour. SpideyChat for hospitality businesses answers from your published pages. Try SpideyChat on your own site, or read about answers on the features page.