Kimpton Charlotte Square has joined Accessible Hospitality Alliance (aha) as an operator member, adding one of Edinburgh’s leading lifestyle hotels to the alliance’s growing operator community.
The hotel’s membership strengthens aha’s growing presence in Scotland and brings a distinct city-centre perspective to the alliance’s work. Located on Charlotte Square, on the edge of Edinburgh’s New Town, Kimpton Charlotte Square operates from a series of interconnected Georgian townhouses, combining heritage, contemporary hospitality, destination dining, spa and wellness, meetings, events and private dining.
That breadth matters. Accessibility in a hotel of this nature is not confined to bedrooms, entrances or compliance-led adjustments. It reaches across the full commercial and human experience of the property: how guests arrive, move through the building, dine, relax, meet, celebrate, work and interact with the team.
It is this wider perspective of accessibility that sits at the centre of aha’s work. The alliance is advancing accessibility beyond compliance, recognising it as an investment in business performance and human capital. For operators, the question is no longer whether accessibility belongs in the conversation. It is how quickly it becomes embedded in the way hospitality businesses think, operate and grow.
Mary Mant, General Manager, Kimpton Charlotte Square said: “Joining Accessible Hospitality Alliance (aha) reflects something we care deeply about at Kimpton Charlotte Square, Edinburgh. Accessibility shouldn’t stop at the entrance or the adapted bedroom, it should be felt across every part of a guest’s stay, from how they dine and relax to how they celebrate and connect with our team. Being part of aha gives us the structure, the peer community and the accountability to keep improving.”
As an aha operator member, Kimpton Charlotte Square will take part in the alliance’s forums, shared learning and operator-led conversations, where hospitality businesses exchange practical experience with people who have lived experience of barriers to hospitality.
The hotel will also appoint an Access Champion, a named individual responsible for ensuring accessibility remains visible, discussed, measured and progressed. That individual will join The Access Champions Collective, the peer group created by aha to help operators learn from one another and turn shared experience into practical action.
Charlotte Evans, Group Partnerships Director, Accessible Hospitality Alliance said: “We’re delighted to welcome Kimpton Charlotte Square to the alliance. Their commitment to advancing accessibility for both guests and colleagues reflects a deeper understanding of inclusion as a driver of excellence, where thoughtful design and considered practice strengthen both guest experience and long-term performance.”
Kimpton Charlotte Square’s membership adds further weight to a growing group of hospitality operators recognising accessibility as part of long-term business performance, not a peripheral issue.
It also reinforces one of aha’s central principles: collective shared working enables action and change. For the hospitality industry, this shift is not simply happening, it’s increasingly unavoidable.