TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

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News from the TravelAbility Community:

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Triumphs of our own – How the TravelAbility Community is Leading Accessibility Innovators in Transforming Travel and Tourism Worldwide.

Fort Wayne International Airport Unveils Accessibility, Universal Design in Renovations

Accessibility is a positive for those with disabilities, but standards are designed to target only the middle 50% of people.

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The Palm Beaches: An Autism-Friendly Summer Destination

Not all beaches are created equally. Discover what makes The Palm Beaches the most autism friendly beach destination.

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Crayola Experience Mall of America® Becomes a Certified Autism Center™, Enhancing Accessibility for All Guests

What makes the nation’s most colorful interactive fun even better? Making it a welcoming experience for all!

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Sunflower Program Works to Make Airport More Accessible

Richmond, VA travelers with invisible disabilities will have a significantly simplified airport experience, thanks to the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower program.

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Inside Google’s Process To Creating Newly-Announced Maps Accessibility Features

How does a map app make navigation more accessible for mobility challenged, vision impaired, and hearing impaired? Updates like these!

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Airbnb, United Spinal Association Executives Discuss ‘First-Of-Its-Kind’ Academy, Accessible Travel In Interview

What does economic inclusion look like? Find out through Airbnb’s groundbreaking partnership with United Spinal – empowering hosts with mobility needs to tap into the $24 billion hosting market.

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San Diego’s Accessibility Shines in a Tour by Mobility Scooter

Lived experience is the only accurate accessibility review. Here’s how San Diego did.

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A Grand Adventure – The Grand Canyon

Divergent Adventures is creating a new kind of adventure experience – one that welcomes the neurodivergent.

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AdvenChair Teams up with Wanderlust Tours for AdvenTours

Oregon leads the way in new levels of accessibility and inclusion with outings that allow people with disabilities to explore Central Oregon’s most iconic places with expert guidance.

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Collins Aerospace Joins Race to Add Wheelchair Space to Airplane

The space race has begun! The space for wheelchairs on planes, that is. Who’s going to lead the way in accessible flights?

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Disabled Disney Guests Told to Ask for Callback Times at Each Ride & Practice Waiting in Line Instead of Getting DAS

So much for the happiest place on earth. Updates to Disney’s accessibility pass may leave some behind.

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Jen Roth Serving Entrepreneurs’ Organization-Minnesota While Building Travel Accessibility Website, Wise Blue Yonder

Fully curated travel experiences designed for people of all abilities bring inclusion to new areas of the travel space.

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Reno’s Adaptive Cycling Center Blazes a Trail for  Outdoor Fun

Adaptive bikes and David’s Chair are just part of what’s making Reno an adaptive adventure destination.

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News from the TravelAbility Community

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Triumphs of our own – How the TravelAbility Community is leading Accessibility Innovators in Transforming Travel and Tourism Worldwide.

Wheel the World founder Wins Entrepreneur of the Year at annual EDDY Awards in Atlanta.

Winners of the second annual EDDIE awards, short for Entrepreneurs Dedicated to Diverse and Inclusive Excellence, are “not scared of breaking down doors, actually, demolishing doors.” Read about Silberstein and the other nominees, here.

IBCCES Announces Certifications of Dubai and Orlando Airports.

Our partners at IBCCES, the only credentialing organization in the autism field, have had a very busy quarter.  Recently, they’ve announced certifications including Dubai Airport, Orlando airport authority, our first Certified attractions in Korea and Macau, just to name a few.  You can read about more of their partners, here.

Ed Harris, Lancaster’s Tourism Maestro, Turns Crisis into Triumph.

Discover Lancaster’s CEO took tourism to the next level, driving record growth and setting a new standard for marketing innovation, even in the midst of a pandemic. Read how, here.

Jupiter Rebuilds Beach Walkovers to Help People in Wheelchairs.

Palm Beaches is making waves and redefining shorelines with their inclusivity movement. Find out how, here.

National Parks Becoming More Autism Friendly.

Customized Itineraries, visual schedules, sensory guides, quiet rooms, and sensory-friendly days are a great starting place for welcoming the neurodiverse into the great outdoors. Read how national parks are embracing inclusivity, here.

Accessibility at Vancouver Airport.

YVR is the first airport to receive an ‘Accessibility Certified Gold’ rating under the Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certification™ (RHFAC) program. Read about their commitment to exceeding standards, here.

Wheel The World, Easy Access Travel and Tapooz Recommended by AARP as Top Tour Companies for Travelers with Physical Challenges.

AARP knows what travelers with mobility issues need to explore the world, and the TravelAbility community is bridging the gap. Learn how, here.

New on Accessible DMO Landing Pages:

San Francisco Travel has organized their accessibility feature in a unique and creative way. See it here.

Best of the Web: News, Info and Inspiration

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A roundup of the best articles and resources we found in the past month related to disability and accessible travel.

The back of a child on a pier in New York Harbor looking at the NYC skyline through binoculars.

Neuro diversity:

Accessible NYC: Travel Tips for Neurodiverse Families | Free Autism Resources by InfiniTeach – FreeAutismResources.org

There’s Finally a Travel Group for Neurodiverse Young Adults – Thrillist

Wheelchair Accessible Tours:

2023 Accessible Travel Award Winners – Wonders Within Reach

20 of the Best Wheelchair Accessible Beaches in California

Accessible Beach Opens in Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coast

Blind and Low Vision:

8 Trip-Planning Tips for Blind or Visually Impaired Travelers

All the Light We Cannot See star Aria Mia Loberti strolls Golden Globes red carpet with guide dog

Deaf and Hard of Hearing:

Meet an Alaska Airlines leader with a disability who says he is doing what he was meant to do

Disability Resources:

Travel Genius Introduces Geni-us: An AI Map For Travellers, Enabling Inclusive Journeys

Air Time for Autism Expert Alan Day on “Good Morning America”

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Two men wearing Autism Flies T-shirts stand at the entrance to an airplane. Alan Day, one of the men, talks on the airplane's phone.

TraveAbility Advisory Board Member Alan Day, a former travel agent who has an autistic son, continues to raise awareness of the challenges facing travelers on the spectrum. Day co-founded Autism Double-Checked to educate airlines, hotels and other travel businesses on ways to remove  or reduce the obstacles confronting autistic travelers. 

In addition to identifying the obstacles, Autism Double-Checked is creating innovative solutions, such as a practice run for getting through security at Bradley Airport in Connecticut as featured in a recent spot on ABC News and Good Morning America. The program is designed to help young flyers on the spectrum get more accustomed to the protocols at their own pace.

“They’re going to come in. They’re going to check in. They will get a gate pass just like a boarding pass for a real flight that will go through an actual TSA line. They will have to be screened, go through the metal detector, then they’ll come to the gate, they’ll wait at the gate and they will be called,” Day said. Read more

Related Video:  Easterseals launched a campaign in December calling for improvements in air travel for individuals with disabilities. The story includes a good video interview with Easterseals President and CEO, Kendra Davenport (scroll down the page to the extended interview; it’s about 11 minutes long.)

TravelAbility TakeAway: Alan Day and Autism Double-Check are doing an amazing job drawing attention to the challenges facing travelers with autism and to innovative solutions. The TSA practice run isn’t just good TV, it’s an excellent resource for families with children on the spectrum.

Tips on Accessible Solo Travel by Chelsea Bear, a TravelAbility Board Member

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Woman wearing sunglasses and smiling as she stands in front of a body of water

Research. Planning. More research. Repeat.

That’s the message threaded through Chelsea Bear’s Trip Advisor article on solo travel for people with disabilities: You can’t be overprepared.

Chelsea confesses that as a person with cerebral palsy who uses an electric scooter, she used to think that solo travel was not an option for her.  Now, she writes, “at age 30, I can happily say that my younger self’s beliefs and fears were completely wrong—I’ve traveled to 10 countries outside of the United States and dozens of states domestically.” In addition to tapping her own experience, Chelsea shares tips from leading travel influencers including Corey Lee, Sylvia Longmire, and Houston Vandergriff. Tips range from zip ties to extra batteries to mapping every conceivable destination and resource ahead of time. Read more.