Visit Fort Wayne’s Accessibility Maps Let You Know Before You Go

Planning an accessible trip often comes down to one deceptively simple question: What will I find when I get there?

Will there be an accessible entrance? What about parking? Is there a quiet space? Are there features for visitors who are blind or have low vision? What can someone with sensory or cognitive needs expect?

Visit Fort Wayne is making those questions a whole lot easier to answer.

In honor of Disability Pride Month in July, Visit Fort Wayne launched a collection of new accessibility maps designed to help visitors and residents navigate Fort Wayne and Allen County with greater confidence. Rather than leaving guests to track down accessibility information one venue at a time, the maps put important details in one place and make those features easy to identify.

Rather than leaving guests to track down accessibility information one venue at a time, the maps put important details in one place and make those features easy to identify.

Accessibility You Can See Before You Arrive

The new maps use easy-to-understand icons to identify accessibility features across several different areas of access, including mobility, hearing, vision, sensory, and cognitive needs.

A wheelchair user may need to know about accessible entrances and routes. A visitor who is Deaf or hard of hearing may be looking for completely different information. Someone with sensory sensitivities may want to know what environments to expect before committing to an attraction.

The maps are designed to give visitors a better sense of those details ahead of time, helping families, individuals, and groups make decisions based on their own needs.

16 Places, One Easier Way to Plan

The accessibility maps are currently available for 16 Fort Wayne-area attractions and venues, including some of the destination’s most popular places to visit.

The maps are available online, so visitors can pull them up from a phone, tablet, or computer while planning a trip. Printed copies are also available at the Fort Wayne Visitors Center.

This Is What Better Accessibility Planning Looks Like

This is a practical tool that’s going to benefit tourists, residents, and the DMO. The ability to plan ahead is a gift of confidence that enables people with disabilities to go. Information is the biggest gap in accessibility–and this is a powerful bridge. In the visitor experience, a DMO partner collaboration like this translates into the difference between going or staying home. Physical access matters, but it means little when no one knows about it.

Visit Fort Wayne’s new maps are part of the destination’s broader commitment to accessibility and Universal Design, and the project was made possible with support from Greater Fort Wayne’s Leadership Fort Wayne Program and the WindSwell Foundation.

Check out what this kind of welcome looks like at VisitFortWayne.com/Accessibility/Maps