TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

Mobility

Fora Travel Sparks Accessibility Movement for Travel Advisors

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By Jennifer Allen

Booking a luxury vacation should be a seamless process. Unfortunately, for those with accessibility needs, even the most high-end experiences can fall short in ways that make travel unnecessarily difficult—or even impossible. Karen Morales, a seasoned traveler, was shocked by the gap in accessible travel options when she became a wheelchair user in 2020. “I had already been to 45 countries before using a wheelchair,” she shares. “What I found really quickly was that even if I was booking the Four Seasons, I would show up and something would be hugely wrong—like a suite with a full staircase.”

The system, as she puts it, is inherently broken. But instead of accepting the status quo, Morales set out to change it.

Building a Program to Fill the Gap

“I needed to find a way to have influence, so I started interviewing with host agencies to see how I could disrupt and improve travel planning.” When she met with Fora in 2023, the company was still a startup—but they shared her vision. Within weeks, she was in conversations with the executive team, who immediately saw the need for a structured approach to accessible travel planning. Together, they built a certification and training program designed to educate travel agents, improve industry standards, and ultimately create better experiences for travelers with accessibility needs.

The Missing Market: Luxury Without Limitations

A common misconception in the travel industry is that accessibility equates to a clinical or downgraded experience. But, as Morales points out, travelers with disabilities don’t want to compromise on quality.

People don’t want to downgrade—they want luxury. I’m a person who wants a luxury trip, and I happen to use a wheelchair. Don’t make me feel like ‘other’ or less.”

The demand is there. As more travelers age into disability, the need for accessible, high-end experiences will only grow. “There’s a self fulfilling loop where destinations don’t market what they have, so people don’t know about accessible offerings, so they don’t ask, so there’s no perceived demand.” Fora’s program seeks to break that cycle by equipping travel agents with the knowledge to both advocate for and book truly accessible experiences.

Training and Certification: Raising the Bar

The Fora accessibility training program is built on the expertise of travelers who have firsthand experience navigating the challenges of accessible travel. “We’re recruiting and training existing employees with experience traveling with a disability—whether it be hidden, mobility-related, or neurodivergent, food allergies, etc.,” Morales explains. “We’re sharing our black book and slowly building training with travel agents, ensuring we meet the needs of travelers while influencing the supplier level.” There are so many nuances in disability travel, and agents need to be prepared for the types of requests that might come up, and how to find answers. Where can a guest with innumerable food allergies go and have the chef create a custom menu? Will they have to remove their orthotics to enter the temples in Thailand?

The program is open to all travel agents, with certification requiring multiple steps: attending accessibility trainings, passing an exam, and creating a portfolio that includes successful bookings for travelers with accessibility needs. Agents must also complete property reviews to demonstrate that they can apply their knowledge in real-world scenarios.

Beyond the training, Fora is embedding accessibility into its broader operations. Accessibility information is now a required part of all FAM (familiarization) trips. Fora’s Friday destination trainings on social media now feature accessibility as a core component.

Transforming the Travel Industry

Fora’s impact extends beyond just training agents; it’s influencing suppliers and destinations as well. “Suppliers are now sending their own offerings to us,” Morales notes. The program encourages accommodations and tour operators to rethink how they cater to travelers with accessibility needs with a focus on scaling and providing better value. A free upgrade is worthless to guests who need an accessible room. What can you offer instead? They’re teaching ways to be proactive – like offering in-room breakfast or providing beach wheelchairs. “You have a family coming who needs a beach wheelchair? Don’t make them rent one. Buy one,” she says. “They did—and they thought it was beautiful to see me playing with my kids.”

The approach is working. Suppliers are seeing the return on investment as demand for accessible travel services becomes more visible. 

A Future Without Barriers

For Morales, this initiative is deeply personal. “Having a degenerative disease, being in a wheelchair was my worst-case scenario. I thought I wouldn’t be independent or free—that my life would get smaller. But without my wheelchair, that was my reality. I was too afraid to go anywhere because of falling. The chair is how I became unlimited.”

Her hope is that the Fora training program will ensure that no one has to choose between a love of travel and accessibility. “Everything is possible,” she says. “People who love to travel should be able to continue doing that through the trajectory of their life—no matter what nuances pop up along the way. And our operators, who are dedicated to this, will make travel happen for everyone, no matter what’s going on.”

At its core, the program isn’t just about logistics—it’s about joy. “You don’t get anywhere by constantly fighting,” Morales says. “No one wins that way.

We spend endless hours talking about people who want to travel and what we need to do to make it work. Let’s shift the conversation. How can we make the joy erupt?”

With the Fora accessibility training and certification program, that joy is finally within reach for more travelers than ever before.

Ambassador Report: On the Road with Kristy Durso

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TravelAbility Ambassador Kristy Durso is having a banner year — and it’s only June. While she humbly admits, “There’s so much going on, but not that much,” the list of events, projects, and possibilities she’s involved in says otherwise.

Here’s what she’s been up to — and what the TravelAbility community has to look forward to:

Reimagining Accessibility in Oregon

Kristy joined TravelAbility founder Jake Steinman at the Oregon Governor’s Conference on Tourism for a powerful session designed to spark progress. TravelAbility hosted an accessibility shark tank, pitching adaptive innovations as an invitation to reimagine Oregon’s destinations with these tools in place. Kristy asked the room to close their eyes and picture a local favorite destination and what it could look like if every visitor, regardless of ability, felt welcome. Kristy had just visited with her Firefly, and realized how much she would’ve missed without the innovative chair’s assistance. She led the audience through a mental tour of the venue, adding in each of the pitched innovations, showing what a difference it would make.

“They had appropriate ramps and all these things, but they didn’t have door openers on anything, so having the door opener available on those old buildings would’ve changed the area completely and then as you’re getting together and doing all these neat things, imagine if you had a child who’s hard of hearing and they wanted to go do something. If they had the use of the Aira app, they could just go and do it. Or imagine a family was planning on spending the day but their child who’s neurodivergent starts getting overwhelmed and they’ve got a place to go because Kulture City has come in and worked on that area, so now you don’t have to leave to avoid the meltdown.”

The pitch culminated in tears and applause, proving once again that accessibility isn’t just practical — it’s powerful.

Sharing the Stage and Spotlight

At the Accent West conference in Arizona, Kristy shared the stage with Alison Brooks from Visit Mesa to highlight Mesa’s leadership in inclusive tourism. The pair fielded questions from destinations eager to learn how to follow Mesa’s example.

That same week, Kristy previewed a new presidential library slated to open in North Dakota and is in early conversations about shaping its accessibility before doors open to the public.

Kristy served as keynote speaker and visited what she describes as the most food-inclusive conference she’s attended at Travel Nevada’s Rural RoundUp. Her time included a stop at an accessible dude ranch.

She led a fashion show in San Antonio as MC and she’s going to be a guest speaker at another fashion show in Oregon.

Other speaking roles on the horizon include:

  • Destinations International in July, where Kristy will be part of a panel on accessibility in travel.
  • A one-day Accessibility Summit for destinations in Kissimmee, Florida, this September — the first of three such events planned.

Writing New Stories — Literally

Kristy is also stepping into the world of storytelling in new ways. She’s written a children’s book titled Sarah and the Magical Shoes — a heartfelt narrative inspired by her own life. The story centers around a girl whose world changes with a new pair of shoes — not because of the shoes themselves, but what they represent: freedom, self-worth, and possibility. If you’ve ever interacted with Kristy, you’ll appreciate her shoe analogy.

From helping shape national attractions to crafting stories that reshape mindsets, Kristy continues to make sure accessibility isn’t an afterthought — it’s center stage. Whether she’s keynoting a summit, writing a children’s book, or reminding an audience to dream bigger, Kristy’s impact continues to ripple far beyond the spotlight.

Stay tuned. There’s much more to come.

Kristy Durso is sitting in her wheelchair on the beach, smiling over her shoulder with the beautiful turquoise ocean in the background.

Meet Kristy: Kristy is a writer, speaker, and disability travel advisor. She has experience across multiple disabilities traveling as a wheelchair user with a pace-maker along with her children with intellectual disabilities, autism, ADHD, and over 30 food allergies. 

As TravelAbility’s ambassador, she networks and speaks around the globe to promote accessibility and inclusion in the travel space.

Wanderlust and AdvenChair Scale Mountains Together 

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A collaboration between two outdoor industry pioneers that launched in 2024 yielded a prestigious award last week, even as they were building on the foundation of their teamwork this year.  

Thanks to a grant from Visit Central Oregon’s Future Fund, AdvenChair, an innovative leader in all-terrain wheelchairs, and Wanderlust Tours, Central Oregon’s trailblazer in naturalist-guided adventures, combined to offer a successful series of “AdvenTours” last year.

AdvenTours gave people of all ages with mobility challenges the chance to experience some of Oregon’s most inspiring natural places matching AdvenChair’s unmatched durability, safety, and comfort with Wanderlust’s unique style of education, interpretation, and environmental appreciation. 

At the 2025 Oregon Governor’s Conference on Tourism held at the Portland Convention Center last week, AdvenChair and Wanderlust Tours were honored with the Partnership Award, which recognizes that leveraging traditional and non-traditional partnerships enables organizations and businesses to maximize their budgets, employee capacity, and skill sets to create an increase in efficiencies and a higher-level of aligned outcome. 

According to an announcement from the Oregon Tourism Commission (dba Travel Oregon):

“Wanderlust Tours and AdvenChair won the Oregon Partnership Award for their innovative collaboration to enhance accessibility to Central Oregon’s outdoor experiences for individuals with mobility challenges. By combining Wanderlust Tours’ expertise in guided outdoor adventures with AdvenChair’s all-terrain adaptive wheelchairs, the partnership has created inclusive, immersive tours that allow individuals with mobility issues to explore iconic locations such as Smith Rock State Park and Lava Lands National Monument. This initiative, supported by tourism grants, not only promotes Central Oregon as an accessible, inclusive destination and improves visitor experiences, but also fosters community engagement and exemplifies how creative collaborations can drive positive change.”

Courtney Braun, Owner of Wanderlust Tours, was naturally excited and honored to receive the Partnership Award.

“What started as a great partnership idea from Geoff Babb [AdvenChair’s Chairman] has blossomed into something big and meaningful,” said Braun. “We’re proud to be seen by the tourism community for making the outdoors accessible in Central Oregon. It means that there is great support and momentum for ensuring that all those who desire to adventure are able to do so, regardless of their age or ability.”

AdvenTours begin where the pavement ends.

For Lincoln Foreman, a geologist and stroke survivor, and frequent AdvenTour participant, the appeal of the AdvenChair/Wanderlust partnership is threefold. Not only does the AdvenChair enable him to access the trails of places like Smith Rock State Park where he can actually touch the volcanic tuff, it allows him to enjoy the experience with his wife Cathy and interact with other individuals who share his love for natural sciences, as well as to learn about local history, geology and culture from Wanderlust’s engaging guides. 

“Being able to access nature beyond the pavement – actually way past the pavement – together is something we’ve never been able to do since Lincoln’s stroke 15 years ago,” said Cathy Foreman. “So having these opportunities is really important to both of us.”

Get close to nature, as well as friends and family.

In addition to the pre-arranged AdvenTours, AdvenChair is also available to Wanderlust for special custom tours with advanced reservations. Last year, AdvenTour guests ranged from a six-year-old girl with Down’s Syndrome visiting Crater Lake National Park for the first time to a grandfather who got to explore Smith Rock State Park with more than three dozen family members.

AdvenChair’s Geoff Babb was equally delighted with the growing relationship with Wanderlust Tours and for the recognition they’ve received.

“I’ve witnessed the smiles from so many people who wouldn’t be out in the wilderness without the AdvenChair,” said Babb. “Whether it’s a family with a child who is disabled or a grandparent who can be with their grandkids on their favorite trail as they pass the love of the outdoors on to future generations, it’s very heartwarming to see. We are just so grateful to collaborate with a group like Wanderlust Tours who love the outdoors as much as we do and know how to share it.”

About AdvenChair:

AdvenChair is an all-terrain wheelchair designed for people with mobility challenges who want to venture off the beaten path and experience the grandeur of the wilderness. It is the brainchild of Geoff Babb, a fire ecologist and avid outdoorsman from Bend, Oregon, who loved to ski, mountain bike and backpack with his wife and twin boys until a near-fatal brain stem stroke on November 10, 2005 forced him to use a wheelchair.  

While the stroke forever changed his ability to move, Babb soon discovered that the biggest obstacle to experiencing a simple outing on local trails with his family again was not so much his body, but the frailties of common wheelchairs. Rather than lobbying for wheelchair-accessible wilderness trails, Babb chose to develop a wheelchair capable of adapting to the trails, and the AdvenChair was born.

On November 10, 2017, exactly 12 years to the day after his stroke, Babb survived a second brain stem stroke, which was a major setback. Yet it made him more determined than ever to share his all-terrain chair with other people dealing with permanent or temporary limited mobility. While developing the first AdvenChair, Babb also launched The Onward Project, LLC, to inspire, encourage and enable outdoor adventures for people of all abilities.

To learn more about AdvenChair and follow its journeys on social media, visit advenchair.com.

About Wanderlust Tours:

Since 1993, Wanderlust Tours has welcomed guests to vibrantly share the natural and cultural history of Oregon in order to instill appreciation and protection of the environment. We hold great respect for the natural surroundings of our beautiful central Oregon landscape and hope to introduce people to these delicate ecosystems while maintaining a low impact on the environment. Wanderlust Tours is made up of people who are passionate about the intricacies of nature. We thrive on sharing our knowledge and passion for the natural world with those who join our tours!

We are so excited to be partnering with AdvenChair and to help those with mobility challenges get into the outdoors and explore beautiful areas that initially may not seem accessible. With the AdvenChair off-road wheelchair, we can empower every member of our community in their quest for adventure!

Disabled Travelers Share The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

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The sometimes shocking experiences of real disabled travelers.

At the TravelAbility Summit, disability advocates and travel and hospitality professionals come together to reimagine what inclusive travel can truly look like. The event blends practical workshops, expert panels, and meaningful conversations that empower destinations, brands, and organizations to create more accessible experiences for all.

At last year’s summit, a panel of disabled travelers shared their firsthand experiences—the good, the bad, and the eye-opening. Lived experience remains the most powerful measure of true inclusion. We’re excited to keep the conversation going at our 2025 Summit in Sunriver, Oregon, taking place October 13–15th. Learn more and register today!

Watch the video below and explore the timestamped summary. How does your destination measure up?

At the 2024 TravelAbility Summit: Kristy Durso (TravelAbility, Incredible Memories Travel), Jessica Jordan Ping (The Rolling Explorer), Craig Radford (360 Direct Video), Sassy Wyatt (Blind Girl Adventures), and Talia Salem (Marriott).

Summary

  • Opening with Vulnerability – A wheelchair user shares a deeply personal and emotional experience of inaccessibility in Vancouver’s airport restrooms, transforming a humiliating moment into a story of compassion and advocacy.
    ➤ Restroom Accessibility Issue
  • Fairmont Hotel’s Kindness – The Fairmont Hotel provided sanctuary and dignity, reinforcing the power of empathy in service and influencing future travel recommendations.
    ➤ Fairmont’s Response
  • Denied Experiences on Honeymoon – Jessica recounts being refused full participation in a planned ATV adventure due to assumptions about her limb differences, underscoring the need for autonomy and transparency.
    ➤ Adventure Denied
  • Advocacy for Honest Accessibility Info – The discussion emphasizes how honesty about accessibility levels is more beneficial than misleading claims.
    ➤ Transparency in Accessibility
  • Communication Barriers for Deaf Travelers – Craig details a disappointing hotel and theatre experience where inadequate communication efforts highlighted systemic gaps in serving deaf guests.
    ➤ Lack of Accessibility for Deaf Guests
  • Navigational Struggles for Blind Travelers – Sassy shares multiple challenges at airports and train stations, from forced wheelchair use to being abandoned without communication or support.
    ➤ Travel Disorientation for Blind Travelers
  • Train Access Without Support – Despite being in a wheelchair and having heavy luggage, Sassy was left alone to navigate a train station without announcements or assistance.
    ➤ Abandoned at the Train Station

Insights Based on Numbers

  • While this session is anecdotal, the stories reflect pervasive issues affecting millions, particularly the frequent failures in communication and physical accessibility at transport and hospitality venues.
  • Real-time lived experience remains the most powerful metric for evaluating accessibility.

Lived Experience: Sylvia Longmire’s high-flying Hawaiian experience

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By Jennifer Allen

Sylvia Longmire is the accessible travel writer behind Spin the Globe. She’s also a filmmaker and producer, bilingual voice actor, media personality, and disability rights advocate. 

Sylvia has been on a handful of helicopter tours around the globe, but her experience in Honolulu, Hawaii stands out in accessibility. Blue Hawaiian Helicopters has an innovative way to make helicopter rides accessible to all. Sylvia Longmire shares her experience here.