Digital and Smart Technology for People with Disability in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry

In the last five decades, especially since 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic acting as an accelerator phenomenon, digital and smart technologies have been affecting both businesses management and customer experience in the tourism and hospitality industries. These businesses are also paying increasing attention to people with disabilities (PwD) trying to meet specific needs through suitable accommodation and accessible and usable in practice facilities and services. This chapter consists of a conceptual study which provides a bibliometric analysis of the main contributions in the literature (period 2008–2022) regarding the relationship between digital and smart technologies and disability in the tourism and hospitality industry. The conducted literature review aims to explore and outline the main contributions in the academic and industry research focused on the topic, that it the degree of technological innovativeness, accessibility and usability of tourism and hospitality facilities and services, specifically hotels. This chapter investigates the concept of “smart and inclusive hotels”, that is hotels as accessible and inclusive and satisfying hotels for all customers through technology. The primary results, although show a growing attention paid by scholars to technology innovation linked to disability in the tourism and hospitality, outline the need to still investigate the phenomenon considering also some other specific variables, such as the environmental uncertainty, organizational culture, or the size of the hotels—thus also factoring in the perspective of sustainability.