Accessibility

Dublin Horse Show Accessibility Policy:

The RDS is mindful of issues of accessibility, and we aim to provide the best possible experience for all visitors to the Dublin Horse Show. Visitors with additional needs can speak to a member of our team at the information stand located at the front of Hall 1. We also have a dedicated Accessibility Map available at the information stand and online to help you plan your trip.  

 

Site Accessibility

The Dublin Horse Show takes place on 8 show rings across a 43 acre site. While we make every effort to make the site as accessible as possible for everyone, visitors should expect to travel some distances during their visit. Visitors should also note that the majority of the Show takes place outside and ground conditions can change depending on the weather.   

 

Wheelchair Hire

There are 10 wheelchairs available to hire from the cloakroom in Hall 1 for a refundable deposit of €20. These are hired on a first come, first served basis.

 

Accessible Parking

There are a limited number of accessible parking spaces available in the Merrion Road car park. These spaces are reserved for people with disabled parking permits and are filled on a first come, first served basis.

There is additional accessible public parking available in UCD with an accessible park and ride coach running directly to The RDS. All spaces are charged at €18 per day.

 

Ticketing & Accessible Viewing

There is a covered wheelchair platform located underneath the Anglesea Stand in the Main Arena. Wheelchair spaces and companion tickets can be purchased on Ticketmaster.

There is additional allocated seating for those with mobility issues located by the Grandstand. These tickets can be purchased through RDS ticketing.

There are wheelchair accessible viewing platforms located beside Rings 1, 2 and 8. These are available to general admission ticket holders on a first come, first served basis.

 

Mobility Scooters

Mobility scooters are allowed within the Show grounds but for safety reasons, we do not offer mobility scooter rentals. We have a dedicated and manned mobility scooter park located at the back of the Grandstand for visitors with seated Arena tickets. 

 

Accessible Toilets

The RDS have a number of permanent accessible toilets on site and these are supplemented during the Dublin Horse Show. The location of these facilities are marked on the Accessibility Map and are clearly marked with signage throughout the venue. 

 

Service Animals

Guide dogs and service animals are welcome in all areas. Pets are not allowed in the Show grounds.

 

Quiet Area

There is a Quiet Area available beside the Kids’ Zone for any visitors with sensory access requirements who need a calm and secure space during the Show. The Quiet Area is marked on the Accessibility Map.

 

Nursing Room

There is a Nursing Room available for mothers located in the toilets at the rear of Hall 4. The Nursing Room is marked on the Accessibility Map.

 

Dietary Requirements & Dining

There are a wide range of accessible dining options available at the Show. Please contact a member of the RDS team at the information stand located at the front of Hall 1 for a list of accessible dining options.

Dietary requirements are catered for across the site. Please make your server aware of any allergies before you order.

An accessibility map can be viewed below.

 

 

 

Standards compliance

1. The Royal Dublin Society site is WCAG AA approved, complying with all priority 2 guidelines of the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. (http://www.w3.org/WAI/). All manual checks have been tested and verified.
2. All pages on this site comply with the Irish National Disability Authority IT Accessibility Guidelines. (https://nda.ie/accessibility)
3. All pages on this site are Section 508 approved, complying with all of the U.S. Federal Government Section 508 Guidelines. (http://www.section508.gov/)
4. All pages on this site validate as XHTML 1.0 Transitional
5. All pages on this site validate as CSS Level 2.1
6. All pages on this site use structured semantic markup. H1 tags are used for main titles, H2 tags for subtitles.

NOTE: We try to make sure that our website meets the highest standard of accessibility. If you have any difficulties, please contact us.

Images

All content images used in this site include descriptive ALT or LONGDESC tag. Purely decorative graphics include null ALT attributes.

Visual design

1. This site uses cascading style sheets for visual layout.

2. This site uses only relative font sizes, compatible with the user-specified "text size" option in visual browsers.

Accessibility references

1. W3 accessibility guidelines, which explains the reasons behind each guideline.

2. W3 accessibility techniques, which explains how to implement each guideline.
3. W3 accessibility checklist, a busy developer's guide to accessibility.
4. Irish National Disability Authority IT accessibility guidelines.

Accessibility software

1. JAWS, a screen reader for Windows. A time-limited, downloadable demo is available.

2. Home Page Reader, a screen reader for Windows. A downloadable demo is available.
3. Lynx, a free text-only web browser for blind users with refreshable Braille displays.
4. Links, a free text-only web browser for visual users with low bandwidth.

Requirements

The browsers recommended for optimum use of this site are as follows:

• Internet Explorer 6.0 upwards.
• Firefox 2.0 upwards. 
• Safari 4.0 upwards.