Adapting Aotearoa
Join the Inclusive Tourism Revolution
The access market is one of the fastest-growing sectors in tourism, and it is reshaping how our industry must respond. Travellers today are more diverse than ever. Younger generations are increasingly neurodiverse. Older visitors are active but less physically able. People with disabilities are travelling in greater numbers, with higher expectations and clearer decision-making needs.
Inclusion is no longer a “nice to have.”
It is a core part of good tourism design.
Yet accessible tourism remains widely misunderstood. Operators are asking for clearer guidance, practical education, and tools that work in the real world. Adapting Aotearoa exists to meet that need.
Adapting Aotearoa is a national platform designed to help tourism businesses embed access and inclusion across every part of their operation — from physical environments and communication to staff confidence and visitor experience. At the centre of the platform are Access Guides: clear, trusted resources that give visitors the confidence to choose, book, and participate.
The platform combines practical education with hands-on support. Over 20 short training modules, grounded in lived experience and research, build real industry knowledge, identify existing strengths and barriers, and support businesses to move beyond compliance toward genuine inclusion. Alongside this, step-by-step Access Guide modules support operators to create accurate, meaningful guides that reflect their experience and function as genuine marketing assets — not tick-box exercises.
Membership unlocks MakingTrax Advisory - inclusive tourism is a journey, we are there to lead you to best practice.
Adapting Aotearoa is part of a nationwide commitment to position Aotearoa New Zealand as the Accessible Adventure Capital of the World. Once live, your Access Guide connects your business with a high-value, fast-growing visitor market actively seeking inclusive operators, while strengthening credibility and trust across the wider industry.
Flexible Education Pathways
Not every organisation is ready for full platform participation. Adapting Aotearoa offers flexible pathways to meet different needs and stages of readiness.
Adapting Aotearoa Commitment
$250 per experience, per year
For businesses ready to lead, this pathway offers an ongoing partnership focused on continuous improvement and best-practice delivery. It includes full platform access, development and publication of your Access Guide, regular expert advisory support, tailored feedback and annual appraisal, use of the Adapting Aotearoa endorsement logo, and promotion through Makingtrax, Regional Tourism Organisations, and Tourism New Zealand.
This is where education, accountability, and visibility come together — supporting operators to deliver consistent, credible, inclusive experiences.
Training Modules — Foundation Learning
$150 one-time payment
A practical, non-commitment option for building knowledge and confidence. Ideal for international businesses, students and educators, new tourism and outdoor education operators, or organisations at the early stages of their accessibility journey.
Includes full access to training modules, foundations of inclusive practice and experience design, and a one-off advisory meeting. No ongoing costs or annual commitment.
Adapting Aotearoa gives the tourism industry the knowledge it needs, and the tools it has been missing, to move from intention to best practice — and from best practice to leadership.
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