Tourist accessibility in a beach circuit: Is tourism for all really for all?

In Peru, tourism accessibility regulations promote best practices for the development and adaptation of accessible tourism services at the national level. This study aimed to compare the regulatory framework on accessibility with actual accessibility practices in the external areas of tourism services offered along the Piura beach circuit. A quantitative approach was employed, utilizing a non-experimental cross-sectional design with non-probabilistic convenience sampling. The sample consisted of 124 tourism establishments, distributed among 42 hotels, 63 restaurants, and 19 travel agencies located in Los Órganos, El Ñuro, Vichayito, and Máncora beaches. Data were collected using a checklist based on the Accessibility Guide: Tourism for All, developed by the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism -MINCETUR. The results revealed a heterogeneous level of accessibility. In hotels, physical accessibility reached 45.2 %, while the implementation of ICTs was limited (25.4 %). In restaurants, common areas performed better (median = 2.45) than external areas (median = 1.98). Only 36.8 % of travel agencies offered adapted packages for persons with disabilities. The study concludes that tourism accessibility in this area of Piura remains at an early stage and requires significant improvements in infrastructure, staff training, and the adoption of adaptive technologies. Strengthening public-private collaboration and promoting universal design policies in tourism services are recommended to enhance both inclusion and destination competitiveness.