European Accessibility Act for hotels and accommodation
The European Accessibility Act (EU Directive 2019/882) has been fully applicable since 28 June 2025 and covers hotels and accommodation as well. Here's what it means in practice and how to check your site right away.
Why it concerns you too
Online bookings with payment are e-commerce services covered by the European Accessibility Act. For hotels there is a double incentive: accessible tourism is a steadily growing segment, and anyone who cannot book on your site books through a portal (paying commissions instead of you).
The obligation comes from EU Directive 2019/882 (European Accessibility Act), fully applicable since 28 June 2025. Non-compliance risks administrative fines, consumer complaints and remediation orders. Only service microenterprises are exempt: fewer than 10 employees and less than €2 million turnover.
The issues we find most often in this sector
Mouse-only booking calendars
Date pickers that neither open nor navigate by keyboard: the booking stalls at the first step.
Non-compliant third-party booking engine
The embedded booking widget often fails WCAG — but to the customer, you are the one responsible for the service.
Room galleries without descriptions
Photos are the only way to assess the property: without alt text a blind guest gets no information at all.
These are recurring examples found in scans of sites in this sector: your site may have others (or none at all). The only way to know is to check.
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Analyse your site for freeFrequently asked questions
- Does the European Accessibility Act apply to hotels and accommodation?
- Online bookings with payment are e-commerce services covered by the European Accessibility Act. For hotels there is a double incentive: accessible tourism is a steadily growing segment, and anyone who cannot book on your site books through a portal (paying commissions instead of you).
- Which accessibility issues are typical for hotels and accommodation?
- The three we find most often: Mouse-only booking calendars; Non-compliant third-party booking engine; Room galleries without descriptions.
- How do I check whether my site is compliant?
- Start with the free EAA Sentinel scan: a real browser analyses up to 3 pages of your site and returns a 0-100 score with the most severe issues in about a minute. The full report (€49 one-time) extends the analysis to up to 50 pages, with every issue and fix instructions. Automated analysis detects 30-40% of WCAG issues — the machine-verifiable ones: full compliance also requires manual checks.
Prefer to start from the technical check? Accessibility check for hotels and accommodation