TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

Denise Brodey

More Travel Options! Six Flags Becomes ‘First Family of Autism-Certified Parks’

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schoolage boy and girl in different seats on a ride with big yellow headlights
Photo Courtesy Six Flags

Many of the country’s largest family-friendly attractions have trained staff to be knowledgeable and sensitive to the needs of autistic travelers. Six Flags can now proudly say they are autism certified and in fact, they are the first family of parks to earn the designation. The accomplishment was proudly reported on by their hometown news station. See the full story, here. 

OUR TAKE: What a difference a year makes! More and more attractions are now Autism Certified Centers where a majority of staff are trained to fully interact with visitors and appreciate neurodiversity. They follow a trend TravelAbility Insider saw last year in which everything from marketing agencies to Mall of America adopted the training. 

See our archive of autism-related industry posts, here.

Also have a look at this new post from TravelAge West, titled “More Options for Autism Families”, here.

Inside Look at ‘Business Unusual’ Workdays with Neurodiverse Employees During COVID-19

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an infinity sign for neurodiversity in rainbow colors
The rainbow infinity sign is a symbol for the neuro-diversity movement in general.

Overwhelmed, scared, but also relieved—that’s how Zeinab Ali said he felt when he began to work at home during the pandemic. Zeinab, who prefers to be referred to as #actuallyautistic, gave tips and coping strategies to make the transition easier for everyone on the Inclusive Employers blog, here.

OUR TAKE: It’s interesting to note that this company (and hundreds more) has  taken on a new symbol (the infinity symbol) and do not prefer person-first language. A new generation of disability activism, in which people refer to themselves as autistic versus “living with autism” is emerging in the workplace. 

Wondering about the reasoning behind the Infinity symbol? We were too. Fun fact: the rainbow-colored Infinity symbol represents the diversity of the autism spectrum as well as the greater neurodiversity movement. For the travel industry, So what language is best and where? Ask your customers in the autism community—they are the real experts. 

To find more stories about autism and family travel visit our archive.

This Cruise Line Is Totally On Board With Inclusive Travel Needs

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a boy water slides through a red tube on a float
Carnival Horizon is certified sensory-inclusive. ANDY NEWMAN/CARNIVAL CRUISE LINE

Families that have a child diagnosed with autism or ADHD look for people who ‘get’ what their kids need—and increasingly, they’re finding like minds. Writer Judy Koutsky praises Carnival Cruise lines for prioritizing inclusivity. Find out how Carnival became “certified sensory-inclusive” and why they will appeal to the rising number of families with kids who have autism and ADHD that are interested in future travel, here.

OUR TAKE: There are multiple ways to train your staff to be autism-friendly and to design spaces that offer the best possible experience for children on the spectrum. Carnival Cruise Line’s Horizon worked with  KultureCity to become the first ship to be certified “sensory inclusive”.

But with the world on pause, there’s no rush to be the first. More important is the desire to offer the best experience and the willingness to dive in and learn what inclusive means and why it is so helpful.

What Does Autism Accessibility in the Arts Actually Look Like? Stunning!

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colorful hand drawn peacock silhouette
Photo credit: Malachi Schmidt, The Peacock. Courtesy of the Art of Autism.

Accessibility in the arts looks absolutely stunning—and we know that thanks to Apple’s partnership with Art of Autism in honor of Autism Awareness Month. To spotlight how easy it is to promote creativity if you look in the right places, Apple gave iPads to 15 autism spectrum artists across the U.S. and Canada. The submissions were curated by the nonprofit. Read more at ArtNet.com

OUR TAKE: The word accessibility is one that somehow confers a complicatedness and difficulty. Apple, not surprisingly, makes programs that are inclusive much simpler. That approach, basic and beautiful, is something the travel industry at large can use as inspiration when designing almost any program with disability in mind. Keep it simple. 

Looking for more information about autism? Search our archives, here.

Expert Q&A: DMO’s Bringing Tele-therapy Opportunities To Communities In Crisis

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man with dark hair looks at Mac screen sitting at table with headphones on
DMOs can connect with the community by passing along information on a new autism training certification.

TravelAbility Insider spoke with Myron Pincomb, CEO of IBCCES about how tele-training and therapy are becoming the new normal for individuals with cognitive disorders and how learning more about them is a chance for DMOs to practice shared community values:

In a nutshell, what training/education services does IBCCES offer for the travel industry?

IBCCES is the global leader in training and certification for professionals who work with individuals with cognitive disorders. Our programs give professionals the knowledge and confidence they need to better serve guest and patients with autism and other cognitive disorders.  

Tell us about the new teletherapy training certification you were planning to unveil later and are moving up the launch to address the Covid-19 crisis?

On May 1st we will be launching IBCCES Teletherapy Facilitator Certificate™ (TFC)

We have two programs, one is the TFC you mentioned but the flagship one is the Board Certified Tele-practice Specialist (BCTS). This is the program for therapists and other professionals who deliver professional services. Certificate level program is for facilitators, para-professionals, parents, and others who may be assisting the therapist or special educator in the delivery of services online.  A TFC is exposed to best practices and expectations for their role in an online setting.  

Can you describe some trends or advances in teletherapy for behavioral?

In the past 30 days our country has gone from 12% of services for special needs students being delivered online to over 97%.  While the technology to implement teletherapy —and the research to support its effectiveness have been in place for quite some time, studies show that less than 5% of therapists and special educators have been properly trained on how to deliver services virtually. 

Why is it important for a destination?

Due to the COVID-19 remote learning requirements placed on schools there are approximately 4.3 million special education students (US Department of Education) in the US that are sitting at home and receiving either no services or very limited services.  The primary reason for the lack of virtual services is that most schools were not prepared to shift to a 100% virtual delivery model and less than 5% of special education teachers and therapists have received formal training on delivering virtual services  

How do you want DMO’s to become involved?  

We originally planned to launch the program in Fall 2020. With the recent changes imposed by COVID-19, our team has been working 24/7 to get the training complete so we can help get these students needed services. 

The program is now ready, and IBCCES is willing to give this program to schools for FREE or at deeply discounted rates with the goal of helping children to get the services they need.  

What would you like destinations to do, and what is the benefit for them?

DMO’s can help us get the message in front of local school superintendents or special education directors, directors of healthcare clinics and therapy centers, community health center directors and more. 

If DMO’s can help the community to get these services restored for all the special needs kids in their area, it would have a lasting impact locally on community as well as those who visit your area in the future. The clear benefit is that a destination will be connecting with locals , increasing their relevancy to the local community. This program also exposes local professionals to virtual training that will help  in the future education of people with autism or cognitive disabilities. And this corresponds to new research findings that reveal a  need to demonstrate “shared values” in the form of  marketing initiatives  appeal to locals as well as visitors. 

Another perk: for our low-cost paid programs DMO will receive a referral fee for each sale that can be used for post-COVID marketing to bring back tourism revenues. For more information please contact Myron Pincomb myron@ibcces.org.

To find more stories about autism and family travel visit our archive.