Practical, lived-experience-led training delivered by the Malta Visual Non-Visual Network (VNVN), in collaboration with the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA), is offering a clear example of how inclusive hospitality can move from intention into action.
As reported by The Malta Independent, the initiative is equipping tourism and hospitality professionals with the skills and confidence needed to create welcoming, dignified experiences for guests who are blind or have low vision. Rather than relying on theory, the training places real human interaction at its centre, allowing learning to be shaped directly by lived experience.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Ian Borg, presented training certificates to staff at ME Melia in St Julian’s, one of the first hotels to engage with the programme, alongside The Preluna Hotel in Sliema and Euro Club Hotel in Qawra. Their participation reflects a willingness within Malta’s hotel community to embed accessibility into everyday service delivery, not treat it as a peripheral consideration.
VNVN, a voluntary organisation committed to advancing inclusion for people who are blind or have low vision, delivers the training through its Meet and Greet Compliments initiative, supported by the MTA. Sessions bring hospitality workers together with VNVN members, creating space for mutual understanding and practical learning. Guidance covers tangible service improvements, from offering clear verbal descriptions to the use of tactile maps, room markers, and service adaptations that enable guests to navigate hospitality spaces with confidence.
Deputy Prime Minister Borg commended the collaboration between VNVN and the MTA, while thanking the businesses choosing to participate. He highlighted the value of shared learning environments where hospitality teams and people with lived experience can identify meaningful, achievable improvements that make hotels and catering establishments more inclusive for residents and visitors alike.
Bridget Micallef, International Secretary of VNVN, thanked the hotels providing training to their employees, noting that blind guests expect hospitality environments where they are treated with respect and awareness. She pointed out that certain service models, such as self-service dining, can present barriers without appropriate assistance.
Programmes such as this reflect a shift within Maltese hospitality, one that closely aligns with the themes emerging around the forthcoming aha Forum Malta. While entirely distinct, both emphasise the same fundamentals: listening to lived experience, embedding accessibility into daily operations, and recognising inclusion as a marker of professional excellence rather than a compliance exercise.
