TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

Denise Brodey

Now You Can See What I’m Talking About, Right? Inclusivity!

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two women in t shirts in back of a sewing machine wearing masks they made with clear plastic near the mouth

These masks were made for “For anyone who uses speech reading, lip reading, anybody like that,” Ashley Lawrence a senior studying education for the deaf and hard of hearing said in a Lex18 news report. “Also these are for people who are profoundly deaf who use ASL as their primary mode of communication. She and her mom are now making variations for people with hearing aids and over-the-ear fit concerns. 

OUR TAKE: There are so many ways to be accessible and so much time. Making good use of your ‘pause’ can actually be a pleasure.  

3 WAYS TO ACHIEVE A CLEAN NEW DEAL

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two hands waving with blue rubber gloves on

Ahhh, cleanliness, everyone’s favorite new word. If our industry follows the trends, it will go from a deal-breaker to a deal maker in the future. Start by learning the latest news, below.

  1. New Airline Regulations For COVID-19 and Beyond In a survey of aviation executives by consulting group ICF, 92 percent of respondents said 1. they expect to see enhanced aircraft hygiene requirements post-COVID-19. At least one U.S. airline—Delta—has said it plans to use its new extensive sanitizing procedures for the foreseeable future. Other carriers are likely to follow suit as a response to the crisis, according to CNTRAVELER.

    OUR TAKE: Who knew sanitizing procedures would be the new sexy must-have?  We joke, but we’re also pleased to see the level to which companies have promised to rise for safety’s sake. 

2. New Cleaning Protocols, New Cleanliness Advisory Council 
“We are living in a new age, with COVID-19 front and center for our guests and our associates,” said Arne Sorenson, Marriott’s president/CEO. “We are grateful for the trust our guests have shown us through the years. We want our guests to understand what we are doing today and planning for in the near future in the areas of cleanliness, hygiene, and social distancing, he told HotelManagement.net.

OUR TAKE: Trust is what will bring back travelers. That’s why the council is focused on developing global hospitality cleanliness standards, norms, and behaviors that are designed to minimize risk and enhance safety.

3. Learn What Is Level 3 Cleaning Entails  They tossed, bedding, mattresses, kitchen utensils, and hundreds and hundreds of towels. Then they barricaded each area to assure it remained uncontaminated. That’s only part of what a Level 3 cleaning requires, Shelden Yellen of  CEO of BELFOR Property Restoration told Travelpulse.com He was in charge of cleaning the Diamond Princess cruise ship, where 697 passengers tested positive and seven died. (The cruise had 2,666  guests and  1,045 crew on board, according to Reuters.) He spoke about the cleaning process of the ships in a Q&A with Fox News. A full write-up on Yellen from TravelPulse.com appears here.  

OUR TAKE: This particular cleaning job is called a Level 3, the highest standard there is. The company used all  Level 3 protocols to protect themselves and eradicate the virus. Such attention to detail will likely be on the minds of devoted cruise passengers when (not if) these beautiful boats sail again. 

PLUS: Cleanliness Standards All In One Place!
Sector-by-Sector COVID-19 Protocols and How Effective They Were

Covid-19 cleanliness protocols must be at a standard that meets the needs of our most vulnerable travelers: those with a disability or aging baby boomers (who now control over 70% of the discretionary income in the U.S.) At TravelAbility 2020 (virtual) Presenters from each of the following industry sectors will share their post- COVID-19 cleanliness protocols, how they were promoted, and how effective they were in attracting business.

  • Destination Marketing Organizations: State and CVB 
  • Hotels: Guests, staff, F&B and social distancing for meetings
  • Convention Centers: Cleaning and Social distancing protocols 
  • Airports: Cleaning & concessions protocols for disabled
  • Attractions: Cleaning and social distancing
  • Cruise Lines: Cleaning, food preparation, and social distancing
  • Rental Car: Cleaning and social distancing
  • Amtrak: Cleaning and social distancing
  • Airlines: Cleaning, boarding process, and distancing
  • Escorted Tours: Social Distancing

Free and Easy: The DIY Hotel Accessible Landing Page of the Future

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A screenshot of a hotel website with the words 'hotel accessibility. The photo shows a lobby with large chairs and lots of space and windows.

TravelAbility Insider caught up Pam Wright, COO of Point Hospitality which manages six hotels in California, Arizona, and Utah, including the Holiday Inn Santa Maria, who generously agreed to collaborate with TravelAbility to create a model accessibility landing page. The goal of the page is to help prospective guests with a disability to determine if the hotel meets their specific needs, while also dramatically reducing the likelihood of ADA litigation.  The concept was an Accessibility FAQ page focusing on the hotel entrance, bathroom, and sleeping rooms.  You can see it here.

Q: Tell us a little about your hotel? (number of rooms, target market audience) 
A: We are a 207-room hotel on the Central Coast of California with an outdoor pool, hot tub, fully equipped fitness room, full-service restaurant, and meeting space. Our typical guests range from leisure travelers, wholesale groups, corporate individuals, and group and government (due to our proximity to Vandenberg Air Force Base.)

pam wright, long grey hair glasses and smiling in headshot

“It was very easy to add this section to our accessible page and we feel really good about providing such detailed information so potential guests can be sure our facilities will meet their needs.”

Pam Wright, COO of Point Hospitality

Q: Does the brand’s corporate parent, IHG, have contractual restrictions about individual properties adding accessible room images or content to their website?
 A: We don’t control the Holiday Inn corporate site where we are displayed, but like almost all hotels I know, we have a mirrored “vanity” site to which we refer all direct bookings from our own marketing where we can include more robust information and, since we are generating the booking through our marketing efforts, we are not required to pay a commission.

Q. Would it be helpful for your local DMO to promote your accessible page on their accessible page? 
A: Yes. We would love the direct booking referrals coming to our own website.

Q: What staff member was used to complete the FAQ? 
A: Sales, Engineering, and GM, many of the FAQ’s were easy to answer.

Q. How much time was required? 
A: The FAQ Section took about 2 hours to gather all of the information

Q. What camera was used for photography?
A: An iPhone camera…and I think you’ll agree that photos are quite clear. We wanted to understand the effort, cost, and manpower needed so any hotel can replicate this using any smartphone camera, minimal staff time, and prepare themselves for the 75 million baby boomers who will be aging into disability in the near future.

Again, here’s the landing page. 

Which of These Videos Inspire You to Travel?

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A video camera faced at a subject with the words fb live

DMO’s are creating more and more 30-60 second videos, offering hope and musings to inspire future visitors. Watch a few of our picks, below, to find the one that resonates most with you. Plus, a tutorial on adding captions to videos.

a. Niagara Falls, NY, “A DESTINATION OF HOPE” 

b. Long Island, NY’, “#HOLDFAST”  

Valley Forge, PA: “We’re #MONTCO Strong” 

c. North Dakota: “BE LEGENDARY”  

d. Virginia Beach, VA: The Magic of Virginia Beach

Note: Not all videos have captions. This important addition is pretty easy to learn on YouTube,

Post-COVID-19 Travel Trend Forecast: Where Do We Go From Here?

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Trend: The Great outdoors is looking greater.

Here’s a little something to brighten your week. Predictions on the future of travel, both optimistic and realistic (and, of course, deep-cleaned!) from the TravelAbility community:

It Will Be All About the Deep Clean—and Proving It!  The way I believe it will unfold is with an initial reluctance on the part of the consumer to travel for fear of being safe from either catching the virus or spreading it.  The challenge will be how hotels communicate the cleanliness protocols they are putting in place without scaring people off.  In order to get people’s attention, the GM of a hotel may be able to cut through the clutter by using humor. Perhaps proclaiming that they’ve done a personal inspection and now their hotel is so clean you can eat off the floor.  And to prove it, will have someone video him as he enjoys an un-plated bacon and egg breakfast from the lobby floor.—Name withheld by request

This Will Be A Rebuilding Period We think travel will rebound and since there has been strong growth in the movement over the past decade…we believe that in no way will a few months of this stop travel. However, we do understand there will be a rebuilding period, but we will not lose our seat at the table.—Eric Lipp, Open Doors Organization

Demand For RV’s Will Rise My sense from listening to some people in the disability community is that there is definitely trepidation towards getting on a plane or cruise any time in the near future. I think we will see more people traveling by vehicle and there will be a demand for accessible RVs. Also, I believe that National & State Parks will see an increase in visitor’s because people can more easily keep their distance from others and during the lockdown, more people discovered the joys of being out in nature and will seek it out more.—Bonnie Lewkowicz, former travel agent and accessibility trainer

Opting for Optimism As somebody who travels 50% of my time, I will celebrate the first flight as soon as it is safe. When we were first locked down, I canceled six flights and I have not booked any new ones including two trips to Europe that were on my schedule. I definitely feel pangs of pent-up travel requirements for both business and personal needs. I choose to be optimistic and think that the airlines and hotels are going to be so vigilant in there cleaning that things will be even better than before this mess. I will be extra loyal to the companies which have shown compassion to their customers and to their staff. —Mike May, Head Evangelist, Access Explorer

Making Trust Priority #1 Airports will conduct temperature checks at all TSA checkpoints to restore confidence in the safety of air travel and there will be widespread testing cruise ports. I think you’ll see something similar in hotel rooms that you see in airport bathrooms: a clipboard hanging from the door with the time and initials of the last person that cleaned—or deep cleaned. Airlines may institute distance protocols by blocking center seats—or selling only center seats. Destinations will busy forming cooperative advertising programs selling packages at outlandishly low prices to lure the least paranoid consumers.  In order to generate cash flow, hotels will offer flash sales where consumers can pre-buy up to X number of room nights at 4-star hotels at a 2-star price with the flexibility to use the rooms anytime within a 12 month period. Groupon, a dead horse, will make a comeback. —Jake Steinman, founder, TravelAbility Summit

The Great Outdoors Will Be Looking Even Greater I think there will be a gradual opening of the travel market and visitors will look for drive markets and small rural getaways. I think disability travel will return but maybe at a slower pace. Outdoor destinations with camping, hiking, biking and water activities will be at the top of the list.— Mary Kay Vrba, CEO, Dutchess County Tourism, NY

Knowledge Will Equal Power Destination will have highly trained and knowledgeable staff and there will also be a shift towards transparency in cleanliness and health. In general, I think the travel market will bounce back but it will look a lot different in the future.  —Myron Pincomb, chairman, IBCCES

Cleanliness Education Will Help Mitigate Risk Disabled travelers are eager to reengage with the world and I anticipate a resurgence in demand as the public health situation stabilizes. In this new chapter, the disability community will seek out vacation destinations that prioritize accessibility and work to educate businesses and travel providers on cleanliness and risk mitigation. Destinations that use this time to develop accessibility guides and information for disabled travelers will be better positioned to attract the fastest-growing segment of travelers.—John Morris, CEO, WheelchairTravel.com

Home Rentals Will Be Preferred Over Hotels We predict there will be a larger emphasis on outdoor, open-air attractions and destinations as social distancing phases out slowly. Also, private, stand-alone accommodations and entire home rental will be preferred over hotels.” —Lisa Burns, executive director, Finger Lakes Regional Tourism Council of New York

Free and Easy Escapes Will Rule We anticipate that drive markets and Fort Worth’s free activities will be big parts of the destination’s story when people are ready to travel. We’re a great value for people who need an easy escape.” — Mitch Whitten, executive VP, marketing and strategy, Visit Fort Worth

Trips Down Memory Lane Will Have New Appeal  …Following this long period of social distancing, we’ll find many people revisiting the places and experiences that fill them with joy. However, after being cooped up, people will start to put plans in place for destinations that have always been on their bucket list, and they may even be more apt to try adventure-filled experiences with their renewed sense of freedom. We’re preparing for the many ways travelers may choose to travel moving forward – and are putting our efforts and initiatives together that beckon them back.” —Mary Quinn Ramer, president, VisitLEX 

See more prediction in this Forbes.com post. For our specials on COVID-19 planning, find them here.