Survey of 25 Hotels Reveals that ADA Room Bed Height and Toilet Seat Height can vary by as much as 14 inches.
TravelAbility has announced the launch of a pioneering initiative to map hotel bed heights, addressing the primary concern for wheelchair travelers: the unpredictability of bed heights in hotel accommodations.
For individuals who use wheelchairs, traveling can often feel like a gamble due to the lack of standardized information on hotel accessibility. While their homes are tailored to their needs, and they are familiar with accessible local businesses, the same cannot be said for hotels they may visit. Images of hotel amenities abound, yet details on ADA-compliant rooms are scarce, leaving wheelchair users without the necessary information to plan their travels.
The Challenge: The ADA, which was passed in 1990, took over a year to write after back-and-forth from advocates, architects, business leaders, disability groups, and, of course, lawyers. The result was that it was written for the median which means it works for half the people and doesn’t work for the other half. For wheelchair users, since there’s no clear ADA for information, its like “accessibility roulette: they don’t know which half they’re in until they arrive.
The Pilot Program: In collaboration with four members of TravelAbility’s Destination A11Y Club, TravelAbility developed a pilot program in which essential data on the accessibility of hotel sleeping rooms and bathrooms. You’ll find the variations for bed height, distance between bed and floor and toilet seat height for hotels in four destinations. Below you’ll find the results just for bed and toilet seat height.
| Destination Ally Club members | # Participating Hotels | Bed Height-Hi-low-Range | Variance | Toilet Seat Height | Variance |
| Alexandria VA | 8 | 24”-38” | 14” | 15.5”-17.5 | 2” |
| Tampa FL | 7 | 18’-30” | 12” | 17”-30” | 13” |
| Lexington, KY | 7 | 24”-29” | 4” | 17”-18.5” | 1.5” |
Imagine, if you will, three different wheelchairs users researching a hotel in Alexandria, VA. As you can see from the table below, there was 14-inch variation in bed height from just eight properties.
| Hotel | Bed Height | Space under Bed | Toilet Height |
| Hotel Indigo | 24.5 in. | 4 in. | 16 in |
| Westin Alexandra | 28 in. | 7 in. | 17 ¾ in |
| Hotel Heron | 26 in. | 4.5 in. | 17 in |
| Hyatt Centric | 25 in. | 0* | 17.5 in |
| Hotel AKA Alexandria | 24 in. | 0* | 18 in |
| Sheraton Suites | 28 in. | 11.5 in | 17 in |
| Hilton Alexandria | 26 in. | 0* | 17.5 in |
| Hilton Garden Inn | 38 in. | 7 in | 15.5 in |
| *Platform beds |
The following are three wheelchair users who are prominent members of the disability community. If there were accessibility pages on the websites of each of the hotels,
Cory Lee, founder of Curb Free with Cory Lee, is a power chair user who may find the Westin, Sheraton, or Hilton Garden Inn most suitable as the they have the most space under the bed for a Hoyer lift.
Kristy Durso, 2023 Miss Wheelchair Texas and owner of Incredible Memories Travel, uses a manual chair, and the Indigo or AKA hotels may work best for her as their beds are lower and easier to transfer into.
Chelsea Bear, a content creator with nearly 800k followers is a member of the Travelability Advisory Board. She has Cerebral Palsy and although she uses a scooter name Scootz, she can walk short distances but may have difficulty transitioning from sitting to standing. The Westin Alexandria highest toilet seat would be a good selection.
This information will be made available on the dedicated accessibility page on each DMO’s website, ensuring that wheelchair users—as well as locals hosting visitors with mobility challenges—have access to the information they need to make informed travel decisions. But hotels should include an accessibility page on their website that also includes photos of accessible rooms as well as descriptions. Every image and data point sends a welcoming message to travelers with disabilities.
We’d like to thank the accessibility leaders of the four destinations for being part of this groundbreaking pilot program. Claire Mouledoux, Visit Alexandria (VA), Patrick Harrison, Visit Tampa Bay(FL), Arin Arnold, Visit Lexington (KY).
About TravelAbility: TravelAbility is committed to making travel more accessible for everyone. By providing crucial information and resources, TravelAbility empowers individuals with mobility challenges to explore the world with confidence.
For 29 low cost/no cost accessibility fixes for hotels, click here.
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