Travel Industry People

Thirty Speakers have already been confirmed for TravelAbility Summit in Savannah!

recently added SESSIONS include:

Breaking Down Accessible Barriers with AI and ChatGPT. “Not everything that counts can be counted and not everything that can be counted counts.” –Albert Einstein.  ChatGPT can be used to make your organization more accessible-friendly by improving website content, uncovering unknown accessibility features, helping to develop a search strategy and completing specific boilerplate sections of grant applications.

The Four Pillars of Developing any Accessibility Strategic Plan. Instead of an ad hoc approach to becoming an accessible destination, we’ve assigned a former destination strategist. This strategist spent nine years with the acclaimed Coraggio Group and now heads his own practice, developing key guiding principles for developing strategic plans around accessibility.

Confessions of an Early Adopter. Diving into accessibility head first, Visit Mesa, was the world’s first autism-certified destination, the first to deploy Aira’s on-demand visual interpreters for blind visitors and residents, the first to use Wheel the World for accessibility hotel assessments, the first DMO to join Travelability’s Destination Ally Club, the first to add an “A” to their DE&I initiative (which is now, DEI and A,) and the first to collaborate on a craft beer with one of their breweries to raise awareness and funds for their foundation. What can we learn from them?

Confessions of a Late Bloomer. Two organizations that have recently embraced inclusivity as one of their core values discuss the external and internal factors that brought them to their decision and how they plan to execute it.

Presenters:
Patrick Lennon, Director of Marketing, Visit Fairfax;
Arin Arnold-Davis, Administrative Project Manager, Visit Lexington.

Can the impact of DEI & Accessibility Be Measured? Tourism for All, a pilot project between Visit Charlottesville, Destinations International and TripAdvisor was designed to assess the impact that three years of outreach, stakeholder and visitor education had on TripAdvisor comments and reviews. Mallory Smith, Sr. Digital Marketing, TripAdvisor, Courtney Cacatian, CEO, Visit Charlottesville, and Sophia Hyder Hoch, Chief Diversity Officer, Destinations International.

How Destination Sustainability Can Power Tourism and Win Over Locals. Many believe sustainability is all about protecting natural resources, but the benefits of creating a sustainable destination can be far bigger. Find out how three beloved destinations used destination stewardship to tackle top local priorities like housing and traffic congestion while serving visitors and building awareness of the power of tourism.

Presenters:
Cathy Ritter, Founder, Better Destinations;
Mia Vlaar, Economic Development Director, Vail, CO;
Andy Chapman, President & CEO, Travel North Tahoe Nevada; and
Brett Stawar, President & CEO, Port Aransas (TX) Tourism Bureau.

Making Meetings More Welcoming and Inclusive for People with Disabilities. What meeting planners are looking for from hotels and destinations in their RFP’s. Is accessibility or sustainability a differentiator when making selections?

New Members of TravelAbilty’s Destination A11Y Club.  We’d like to welcome Destination British Columbia and Discover the Palm Beaches as the newest members bringing total membership to 14.

See the full agenda here.