Just Released: “Portrait of Travelers with Disabilities” Report by MMGY Global

According to the newly published “Portrait of Travelers with Disabilities” Mobility and Accessibility survey from MMGY Global, every industry should act now to better understand and meet the needs of individuals who use mobility aids and their traveling companions. This survey discovered that accessibility for lodging and transportation is the greatest barrier to travel for those with mobility issues. Nearly all respondents (96%) experienced a lodging problem on their most recent trip. 86% reported flight problems and 79% experienced transportation issues in their local market. In addition to these difficulties, 79% of respondents had in-market transportation problems and 86% had flight issues.

Across the hospitality, travel, and tourism industries, travelers with mobility issues should be granted the same experiences as those without. $58.2 billion is spent annually on travel by those with mobility disabilities. They take an average of 3.4 leisure trips in the past 12 months and spend an average of $3,546 on leisure travel.

Our take: While the results that over 80% of accessible hotel bathrooms are unusable for wheelchair users is hardly surprising (see our original article about hotel showers here), the fact that such a highly respected organization such as MMGY Global Intelligence, has added accessibility to their research portfolio, will add further validation and generate new attention from DMO’s and hotel companies. For more about this survey, read the MMGY Global article.