In order to achieve your goal of getting beyond compliance to creating a more accessible and disability-friendly destination, we’ve outlined the baby steps you and your colleagues can take to get started. And surprise! Many are free or will have a minimal impact on your budget.
Step 1: Convince the Unconvinced: How to Make The Case for Accessibility
- Join the mainstream. Making the world accessible for people with disabilities is gradually becoming a mainstream trend. To bolster this argument consider forwarding “10 Signs Accessibility Is Going Mainstream” and “20 Accessibility Travel Predictions for 2020” to your management, board members and your industry.
- Look to Baby Boomers who have 70% of the disposable income in the U.S. (Average household net worth: $1.2 million) and will inherit $14 trillion globally in the years ahead that can be used for travel.
- Learn from your peers. Share presentations from TravelAbility Summit 2019. Each issue of the Insider newsletter offers a link to a different presentation from the 2019 event, which can be used to help educate your industry. See Baby Boomer Travel research from AARP here.
- Roll a mile in my chair. Watch this superb video and distribute it to hotel GM’s. It’s called the “Hotel Manager in Wheelchair” video and was created by Sylvia Longmire.
Step 2: Research & Development
- Research accessibility assets beginning with museums and attractions. Work with the ADA coordinator in the City Manager’s office to find the latest accessibility information about beaches, parks and outdoor hiking trails. Example: Here’s NYC & Co’s Accessibility page.
- Research hotels that will be undergoing a renovation in the next three years. Make a list of local experts and disability organizations who might attend a meeting and share knowledge with hotels while they’re in the renovation planning stage.
- Convene a meeting comprised of local people who can speak to travel issues around autism, mobility, and vision at your destination. Research shows these are top concerns for Americans
Step 3: Take Action
- Check if your website is accessible. Enter your website’s URL into www.wave.com to assess its accessibility. If it’s not, check out www.accessibe.com, which uses AI to convert websites to compliance standards for as little as $495/year.
- Introduce an accessibility/inclusion “Pledge” (TAS can provide you with one) that can be signed by industry partners, presented to local elected officials and shared with your community to underline your commitment to making your destination accessible.
- Include a panel about accessibility and travel at your next industry event
- Meet with your City Manager’s ADA Coordinator to learn about outdoor and nature accessible assets for future possible collaboration.
- Use the Fabulous 50 list on the TAS website to Introduce your industry partners to apps and products, everything from BeMyEyes to portable ramps, that ease the transition to greater accessibility.
- Keep asking—and answering questions. Work with forward-thinking hoteliers to develop an Accessibility FAQ page with images of the bathroom, entryway, and sleeping rooms.
- Offer awareness training: Create a “Welcome to Accessibility 101” Seminar for your local industry partners.
- Add your Accessibility page to your website. Organize the research into an easily updatable product page similar to what Valley Forge did after TravelAbility Summit.
Final Note: To find trustworthy resources. Browse by topic on the TravelAbilityInsider.com website. (Topics include Autism, Hotels, Expert Opinions and more.) Sign up for our newsletter here to keep up to date with resources, new ideas and find personal stories
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