TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

Denise Brodey

The Key To Making (Almost) Any Public Space More Accessible

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two seniors walk along a leafy park trail Thanks to the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), there is now a Best Practices guide for inclusive streets, parks, playgrounds and more, according to Curbed.com. The guide was written based on Universal Design Principles (universal design is another way of saying design created with truly everyone in mind.) Instead of building spaces that cater to specific disabilities or meet quantifiable requirements, the ASLA recommends broadening the definition of accessible design to the point where a spaces account for all possible use cases. And it’s not always as complicated as it sounds, according to this piece by writer Lisa Stinson.

Our Take: Although the concept of universal design has been around for a long time in certain sectors, it is becoming more common to see this type of thinking used to create buildings and public spaces that are accessible to everyone. Designing for everyone—particularly early on in product development—makes for a smoother (less costly) process and ultimately, a superior product, say experts. 

Is Fear Keeping You From Tackling Accessibility Challenges?

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mom and dad hug their grown son who is smiling. son has Down's syndrome.Apart from the obvious moral arguments, people with disabilities comprise a huge and growing market, explains Catherine Roberts in a piece for Travel Mole. She writes that while people working in the travel industry love to share that passion for travel with other people—and hopefully inspire them to travel, too—the industry still has a way to go when it comes to accessibility needs. Roberts comments make sense: “One of the reasons is fear. But we don’t have to be perfect straight away. We just have to start a dialogue with travelers who live with disabilities – and be willing to say yes, we’ll try to help. We can ask openly about holiday requirements, as we would with any client.” Read more of her insightful comments, here.

Our take: Many people fear that their attempt to become accessible will fall short. Every disability has a spectrum and it’s almost impossible to be 100% accessible. The goal is trying and making it known that you are. 

 

 

Autism & Travel Index

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young girl in green tee shirt plays with a tablet device Are you or a colleague looking for information on one topic in particular? Our newsletter is now indexed, so you can find all of our stories in one place. Try it out! Use the link to autism-related products and services here.

Two Companies Disrupting the Wheelchair Rental Market for Good

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woman looks at art in museum while sitting in a mobility device by Whill/ScootaroundPeople that rely on mobility devices will no longer have to stress about having to travel with a wheelchair because they will be able to rent a personal EV (through an app) at the airport and/or final destination, thanks to the merger of two cutting-edge companies. WHILL – makers of the cutting-edge Model Ci and Model A Intelligent Personal Electric Vehicles (EVs), which won the CES Innovation Award at the Computer Electronics Show in 2018, and Scootaround a leading wheelchair and scooter rentals solutions company servicing 2500 locations in North America. Together, they will be the first to provide a worldwide Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) model. “This will improve the current travel landscape for mobility device users by increasing their freedom and independence,” says Justin Gagnon, vice president of sales and marketing for WHILL/Scootaround. Gagnon offered TravelAbility Insider some interesting insights about the market:

  • Currently, the company is piloting six trials worldwide, two of which, Dallas and Winnipeg, are in North America. In Winnipeg, Delta Airline agents offer disabled passengers who are awaiting connections the opportunity to test drive a WHILL Ci so they can maneuver around the airport independently.
  • WHILL wheelchairs appeal to cruise line companies as they are smaller, sleeker and designed to maneuver around small spaces, which means they may also be used in non-ADA staterooms.

Our take: Vertical integration comes to the airport wheelchair rental market as the demand for motorized wheelchair rentals rises significantly. This disruption will not only require less staff but will also give travelers who need mobility options more independence.

photo courtesy WHILL/Scootaround

Let A Travel Pro Design Accessible Itineraries For Your Destination

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meet the TravelAbility itinerary design teamIf you are looking for an accessible itinerary to post on your site or offer as a service to the burgeoning group of travelers who need some accessibility built into their stay, where do you start?

You could go with what comes up on Google (meh) or you could trust five of the most curious, experienced and trustworthy pros in disability tourism (yes!) Imagine: Signed, sealed, delivered, it’s yours to publicize on your website and share through your social media channels.

Niche travel is sold through itineraries that include attractions, tours, and sites that cater to a specific audience,” stated Jake Steinman, founder of TravelAbility Summit. “We brought them together to help destinations add authenticity to their accessible itineraries by having them created by actual travelers with different disabilities who are prominent professionals in the industry.

“Once these itineraries are designed, DMO’s can promote the fact that they were designed by disability travel thought-leaders, all of whom have their own extensive following and can offer cross-promotion opportunities as well as consultation advice.”

Here is some background information on each itinerary design team member.

head shot of Cory Lee smiling wearing t shirt. He has eyeglasses and is sitting in his wheelchairCory Lee Woodard writes a travel blog Curb Free with Cory Lee and recently started his own travel agency. On his blog, full of detailed itineraries from around the globe, his mission is to show readers how, where and why to travel as a person with a disability. If you’ve got questions—what city is the most wheelchair-friendly? to what’s the best way to determine if a hotel has a roll-in shower? Cory Lee has answers.

sid in a black hat and olive green sweater


Sid Marcos is a business developer from San Diego, California. She is the former director of development for Outlandish Travel, where she produced accessible destination guides around fun themes such as pub tours. She is a founding member of the National Startup League and director of an incubator for social entrepreneurs. Learn more on her blog.

sue Slater head shot she has red hair and is smiling wearing a jacket and black topSue Slater, the founder of Presto Magic Travel, is a cruise and groups specialist who will soon be celebrating her 20th year in the travel industry creating accessible itineraries. She’s sent thousands of people on cruises all over the world, including cruise destination weddings. Accessibility is a personal passion and a necessity. Sue is blind and her husband has a chronic disability that requires him to use a wheelchair. Both travel extensively, hence she can find a work-around for pretty much any travel need you might have. Learn more, here.

upper body shot of John wearing a navy jacket and blue shirt sitting inside a plane smiling, wearing glasses John Morris approaches travel from a critical angle—in a good way. His fact-checking and reporting on the latest news in accessible travel is unrivaled. That’s probably because he’s traveling the world an average of 310 days a year as a triple amputee with one hand, a passport and a power wheelchair, writing about his travels and adventures—and asking crucial accessibility questions along the way. Read his blog, wheelchairtravel.org.

All five experts will be on-site at TravelAbility Summit, November 12-13 in San Francisco. The team will be given designated “office hours” at the end of each day to talk with you about creating authentic accessible itineraries