The team at LanzAbility – a tour operator that provides bespoke accessible holidays to Lanzarote – has started working on a special Sensory Programme for holiday guests who are blind and visually impaired.
Its founder Crazy David shares more about the new project and how one guest with sight loss benefited from its services, which included interacting with dolphins and horses.
Naturally, taking blind or visually impaired guests on a sightseeing tour doesn’t make sense. That’s why, in the spirit of LanzAbility, we focus on their abilities, not their disabilities. In this case, we concentrate on their other four intact senses – hearing, touch, smell, and taste.
How to shake hands with a dolphin
A few weeks ago, the team and I took Maša – who is blind and has cerebral palsy – out for a very special experience. The 28-year-old from Ljubljana, Slovenia, came to spend several days here in Lanzarote.
Although her other senses are perfectly intact, some experiences here on the island simply wouldn’t have the same appeal to her. This is why my team member Sina and I put our heads together to come up with unique things to do, smell, taste, and feel on the island, specifically tailored to people who are visually impaired or blind.
One particularly exciting activity in the Sensory Programme is an interactive swim with dolphins at Rancho Texas in Lanzarote.
It is known that interacting with animals, especially dolphins, can offer various therapeutic benefits as well as sensory stimulation. The water movement and the gentle touch of these fascinating mammals definitely create an experience to remember.
For Maša, the soft handshake and kisses from the dolphin were one of the highlights of her stay.
The most magical moments are felt, not seen
On this special occasion, we also took Maša to a stable to go horse riding. But what happened was truly magical.
Maša walked straight towards a horse named Espurna without even seeing it. Espurna is Catalan for “spark” and that’s exactly what happened when Maša slowly touched its head and hugged it. Even as an observer, you could feel that the two connected in a way that cannot be explained with words. ✨
It was as if the horse knew that Maša was blind and needed to feel that she could trust it.
This small moment of magic, followed by the actual horse riding experience together with our trusted riding instructor Donna, exceeded Maša’s expectations and made her stay on Lanzarote unforgettable.
LanzAbility Sensory Programme for blind and visually impaired guests
Sina and I are now working on a special Sensory Programme including unique activities like horse riding and swimming with dolphins for visually impaired holiday guests. More information coming soon!
For further information, please visit lanzability.com.
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