TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

Jake Steinman

Announcing TravelAbility Tampa: In-Person & Virtual

by

TravelAbility Summit logo.

We are delighted to announce that TravelAbility will be held live at the Tampa Bay Convention Center, August 30-31st co-located with Connect Mega event, which brings together meeting planners and travel suppliers looking to build up their business following covid. We are also offering a virtual option for those who aren’t ready to attend in-person or who are located outside North America.    

The program for TravelAbility Tampa is chock full of accessible travel experts who have lived experiences that can help the tour and travel industry learn how they can make travel easier and more enjoyable for people with both seen and unseen disabilities.  View the Agenda for the Tampa event

We are excited to welcome the sponsors/partners that will help us take accessibility to yet another level of awareness: Google, Design Sensory, Travel Oregon, Visit Mesa, Expedia and AccessiBe.

We are also pleased to welcome three new sponsors:

Simpleview logo.

Simpleview, based in Tucson, Arizona, is a trusted vendor to over 900 destinations as their technology powers CVB/DMO websites and CRM initiatives. They were a charter sponsor for the first TravelAbility Summit in 2019.

Miles Partnership logo.

Miles Partnership, is a strategic marketing company that works with more than 100 destinations and hospitality businesses on web development and digital marketing campaigns.

Threshold 360 logo.

Threshold 360, with over 100,000 locations and 2 million daily views, is the leading provider of interactive 360 videos for the travel industry. Our partnership will include links to their videos on TravelAbility’s Accessible Destinations page.

Flying with a Disability During the Pandemic

by

John Morris wearing a mask on an airplane.

As more people are vaccinated and governments ease restrictions on travel, disabled people are among those taking to the skies.

One such traveler is TravelAbility Advisory Board member and the founder of WheelchairTravel.org, John Morris. He’s masked-up and been flying since October, traveling to places like Las Vegas, Salt Lake City and even Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In a recent blog post, John shared what it’s been like to fly during the pandemic as a wheelchair user.

To learn more about John’s experiences and to read his tips for traveling safely in the midst of the coronavirus, check out his article on flying with a disability during the pandemic.

LaunchPad: Curated Barrier-Breaking Ideas and Products available now or Coming Soon to the Phone in your Hand.

by

Prior to the launch of TravelAbility I, like many people, mistakenly believed that the world of People with Disabilities (PwD) was one filled with dire pronouncements and woe, but the innovative solutions presented at Launchpad brought just the opposite by showing how much entrepreneurial energy and creativity is being directed at solutions that will help disabled travelers adapt to a world that has never been adaptable to them.

TravelAbility’s LaunchPad, was held virtually April 1st and featured 15 innovators selected following a review and vetting process that began back in June of 2020. 

One person I spoke with after the event even used the word “sexy,” to describe the products and, while that may have been a stretch, they were definitely cool and inspiring for me to see so many organizations working to help make travel easier for people with a variety of disabilities.

Each company made a 3-minute pitch to a panel of judges that represented members of the travel industry, the disability community as well as impact investors.

Kate Farbo, from Visit Lancaster, wrote in an e-mail: “I attended TravelAbility’s Launchpad and was really blown away. It was an incredible experience watching so many talented, intelligent and passionate people sharing their ideas to improve the world of accessible travel.”

This year’s judges included: Charles Hammerman, CEO of the Disability Opportunity Fund; Ron Pettit, Head of Accessibility, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines; Zach Curry, Director of Guest Experience and Accessiblity at Marriott; Toby Willis, Product Manager and president of accessibility club at Expedia; Jay Cardinali, former Head of Global Accessibility, Disney Parks and Resorts; Betty Adams, Head, Investment committee, Disability Investment Fund.

Srin Madipalli, former head of Accessibility for Airbnb, and now an angel investor in 16 start-ups, who founded the widely acclaimed Accessible Travel Club group on Facebook, served as our guest emcee and moderator.

JUDGES CHOICE.

1st Place  Vispero  JAWS Kiosk a, text to speech software than enable people who are blind or who have low vision to use self-service kiosks in airports, hotels and visitor centers. Presenter: Laura Miller, Corporate Business Development Manager

2nd Place: Mobi-Mat makes a slip-free rollout mat for beaches and uneven surfaces as well as floating wheelchairs for beach and pool use.  Presenters: Sandrine Carpenter-Bernard, CEO/Greg Scull, Area Sales Manager

3rd Place: SATS: Service Animal Travel Solutions. A one-stop central database for service animal verification recently launched with Alaska Airlines as their first airline partner. Presenter: Gina Emrich, Co-Founder

“This recognition of the JAWS Kiosk screen reader as the TravelAbility LaunchPad Judge’s Choice is a great sign of how the travel industry is embracing this tool for making their kiosks accessible for users with disabilities. We look forward to seeing more of the many accessible solutions featured in the LaunchPad event.” Matt Ater, Vice President of Business Development, Vispero.

You may view the 3-minute presentations here.

1st .This is Vispero

2nd. This is Mobi Mat

3rd. This is Service Animal Training Solutions

NEW THIS YEAR: PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS. This year we added the “People’s Choice” award, in which attendees were polled to name their favorite presentations.

PEOPLE’S CHOICE:

1st Place: Revolve Air Wheelchair.  A high-tech wheelchair that folds up to fit as airline carry-on. Andrea Mocellin, Founder

2nd Place: Alinker. A Walking Bike. A non-motorized “walking-bike” designed for people with mobility challenges has evolved into a wellness ecosystem that includes Alinker yoga classes, nutrition programs and is supplemented by a produce farm in Kentucky that employs disabled workers. Presenter: BE ALink, Founder

3rd Place: Omeo Technologies. Hands-free electric wheelchair that uses Active Seat Control technology user’s core muscles to control movement.  Presenter: Spring Adamo, North American Representative

These are their 3 minute presentations

1st. This is Revolve Air Wheelchair

2nd.This is ALinker.

3rd. This is the Omeo Wheelchair

“Winning the people’s choice award gives me the incentive to keep working with this amazing network to advance technology and user experience for active wheelchair users.” Andrea Mocellini, Founder, Revolve.

While the judges selected innovations based on their practical applicability for travel industry suppliers along the chain of travel, attendee choices tended to mostly benefit users.  In the end, it was a reflection of the best of both worlds.

LAUNCHPAD RECORDING AVAILABLE:

For those who were not able to attend, the full four-hour recording can be purchased from our website here for $49 until May 15. 

REGISTER FOR the second session of TravelAbilty 2021 “The (Rocky) Road to Recovery” to be held on JUNE 24th.  A conversational format that includes briefs from Google, Disney, Marriott, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, and 14 others.  See the Agenda here. 

Finally, I would like to thank my wonderful team of Katie Philson and Tricia Roth, both of whom helped produce the first TravelAbility Summit in San Francisco, and Laura Erskine, a former television news producer who helped coordinate the videos so that the technical glitches were kept to a minimum.

Jake Steinman

Wheelchair Accessible Travel Guide to the Nation’s Capital

by

Aerial view of national mall in Washington, D.C.

TravelAbility Advisory Board member John Morris operates the web’s largest accessible travel website, Wheelchair Travel. There, he shares information and tips on traveling with a disability, as well as detailed accessible travel guides to destinations in the United States and abroad.

One of the website’s most popular travel guides helps readers navigate with a wheelchair in Washington, D.C. The capital city of the United States receives praise for its wheelchair-friendly public transportation system, which includes an underground metro, city buses and even a street car. Many of the most popular D.C. tourist attractions, including the Smithsonian Museums, are wheelchair-friendly and offer free admission!

The travel guide contains detailed information on accessible attractions, hotels and transportation services in the District of Columbia – resources disabled travelers need to confidently explore new destinations. The Washington, D.C. wheelchair travel guide is one of more than 50 accessible travel guides on the Wheelchair Travel website and can be accessed by clicking here.

Alaska Airlines Launches “Fly for All” App for Neurodivergent Passengers

by

Alaska Airlines planes parked at airport gates.

In 2020, Alaska Airlines launched a free app in the Apple App Store and Google Play called Fly for All. Designed for first-time flyers and those with cognitive and developmental disabilities, including autism, the app will help ease the anxiety of air travel by walking guests through the steps they’ll follow during the air travel journey.

Screenshot of Fly For All application.

Recently, we caught up with Ray Prentice, Director of Customer Advocacy for Alaska Airlines, for the full story behind this groundbreaking app and his efforts.           

What’s your background as an advocate for accessibility in the aviation industry? 

RP: I’ve been with Alaska for over 32 years in a number of roles. As Director of Customer Advocacy here at Alaska Airlines, my primary and favorite role is helping promote and sustain accessible and inclusive products and services for our customers. I’ve been involved in this arena for over 20 years, supported and inspired by employees and customers with disabilities who want to travel independently.

Where did the idea for Fly for All come from?

RP: Pre-Covid we hosted a number of practice sessions for families and individuals who have autism: Giving the opportunity, in a supporting environment and at no cost, to come to the airport, check-in, go through security, get on a plane, and taxi around the airport. We were hosting up to six events a year and within 45 minutes many of these flight opportunities would be filled up. So we saw incredible pent-up demand for these individuals and their family members to get more comfortable with that air travel experience. That’s when we learned about a company called Infiniteach at an Open Doors conference and immediately jumped on the opportunity to work with them. We’ve received great feedback from our customers about this app and we want to continue to get the word out so everybody knows about it.  I feel like this app will benefit any customer regardless of whether they are flying on Alaska Airlines or not. And unlike our practice flights that fill up quickly – this application can be used anytime – it is free of charge.

How were you able to find funding for the project?

RP: Funny you asked.  At the time were IT resources constrained at the time, which is not unusual for any large company. So an advocate/colleague of mine in another department and I, scraped up the money from each of our budgets to get this project off the ground. We also grabbed a friend who is a voice talent for Alaska Airlines and she volunteered her time as well. So we frankly just figured a way to get it done. 😎

How does Alaska Air measure the ROI for this? P.R., Downloads, etc?

RP: This is a really good question and the best way we can ROI to date is downloads.  Just prior to Covid we had 20,000 downloads which we think is good. But again, I think we see a great opportunity to more broadly make this app available to our customers, which is why I’m so happy you reached out to me. Personally, my view is that if we have one family that downloaded the app — and found it helpful for them to make a journey with less stress and anxiety – I feel like it was a win. So we’ve had 20,000 wins thus far. Down the road we would like to add this app as a feature of our Alaska Airlines travel app, which would give it much broader visibility. 

OUR TAKE: Alaska’s innovative Fly for All app is making it easier for people with cognitive and developmental disabilities to plan and prepare for air travel. By helping to make disabled customers more comfortable, Alaska is bringing the possibility of travel to many more people and families – perhaps up to 20,000 thus far!