TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

Travel Industry People

Welcoming Lynn Osmond, Former Chicago CVB Joins TravelAbility Advisory Board

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By Jennifer Allen

Lynn Osmond joins the TravelAbility Board with a unique combination of industry leadership and personal experience as a caregiver. Her background, both as the former President and CEO of the Chicago Architecture Center and Choose Chicago, and as someone who has navigated travel with a spouse who has a disability, makes her an invaluable asset.

Lynn’s personal journey in accessibility began when her husband was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2015, followed by Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, a more advanced condition.

Jennifer Allen

A Personal Connection to Accessibility

Lynn’s personal journey in accessibility began when her husband was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2015, followed by Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, a more advanced condition. Resigning from her work earlier this year to spend time traveling to destinations on her husband’s bucket list, gave her the lived experience of becoming the caregiver in charge of researching, booking and troubleshooting the invariable challenges that arise. 

“We’re honored to have Lynn join our advisory board,” remarked Jake Steinman, founder of Travelability. “Lynn will lead a panel of companions and caregivers at our Summit in San Francisco that will explore ways that destinations can help make their travel experience more like a vacation and less like work.”

“Accessibility isn’t one-size-fits-all,” she says, reflecting on her experiences. Something as simple as restrooms became a daily challenge, particularly when trying to assist her husband. Family restrooms, for instance, were a game changer—yet they’re not consistently available. So far, they’ve traveled to Panama, Route 66, Mount Rushmore, Canada and they recently returned from a Viking River Cruise through France. 

Experience in Leadership and Accessibility

For over two decades, Lynn led the Chicago Architecture Center (CAC), transforming it into a globally recognized institution. The river cruise, which was voted the best boat tour in North America, was one of her flagship projects.

After that, Lynn became the first woman President and CEO of Choose Chicago, the city’s official destination marketing organization (DMO.

Actionable Insights for the Travel Industry

Lynn’s experiences offer key takeaways for DMOs, hotels, and travel-related organizations:

  1. Engage Local Disability Advocacy Groups: Lynn emphasizes the value of reaching out to these groups to gain insights into what accessible travel means on the ground. Beyond awareness, these groups can help uncover funding opportunities and grant options that support accessibility initiatives.
  2. Show You Care: Lynn recounts a standout moment from a road trip to Mount Rushmore, where a Marriott representative in Souix City IA, repeatedly checked in to ensure that every aspect of the trip would meet their specific needs. This level of personalized service is key to building loyalty and trust among travelers with disabilities.
  3. Rethink Hotel Layouts: Surprisingly, older motels along Route 66, with ground-floor rooms and direct parking access, proved to be more convenient than many high-end hotels. Lynn points out that modern hotel designs often place accessible rooms far from elevators, creating unnecessary difficulties for guests with disabilities.
  4. Create a Handicap Hotline: Instead of assuming that a wheelchair-accessible room will meet every traveler’s needs, Lynn suggests that hotels and DMOs set up dedicated phone lines or booking systems where guests can specify exactly what accommodations they require, whether it’s visual, auditory, or mobility-related.

Instead of assuming that a wheelchair-accessible room will meet every traveler’s needs, Lynn suggests that hotels and DMOs set up dedicated phone lines or booking systems where guests can specify exactly what accommodations they require, whether it’s visual, auditory, or mobility-related.

Jennifer Allen

Where’s the Money?

Lynn is a strong advocate for positioning accessibility not as a checkbox or compliance issue, but as a business strategy. She notes that travelers with disabilities represent a growing segment, especially with the aging baby boomer population. Catering to this market is not just about inclusivity; it’s about meeting demand.

Recent research conducted by Longwoods International, revealed that 17% of American travelers in 2023 had someone in their party that required accessibility services. “That number will only increase,” Lynn explains. “For organizations that prioritize accessibility, this represents a significant opportunity for economic growth.”

Advice for her fellow DMO Executives.

Lynn encourages DMOs to develop a clear, actionable accessibility strategy. This can start with:

  1. Engage Local Advocacy Groups. Collaborating with local disability groups and advocates by involving them in annual tourism meetings, where they can share their insights, experiences and help identify accessible features. They can also be valuable in partnering for grant applications.
  2. Gather Accessibility Features: Survey hotels, attractions, transportation, and other services to gather accurate data on what accessibility features are already in place. This can inform not just improvements, but also marketing and SEO strategies by ensuring that accessible options are easy to find on websites.
  3. Updating Website Information: Lynn advises DMOs to include specific details, such as bed heights, shower rails, and the layout of accessible rooms. “Just listing a room as ADA-compliant isn’t enough,” she says. Detailed descriptions and measurement help travelers make informed choices.

Looking Ahead: A Vision for Accessible Travel

“Too often, people with disabilities limit their travel because of fear—fear of the unknown, of facing barriers,” she says. But with thoughtful planning and a commitment to accessibility, those barriers can be overcome, opening a world of possibilities.  

Lynn advises DMOs to include specific details, such as bed heights, shower rails, and the layout of accessible rooms. “Just listing a room as ADA-compliant isn’t enough,” she says. Detailed descriptions and measurement help travelers make informed choices.

Jennifer Allen

Credit Card Scams and Jake Steinman: Changing the World of Accessible Travel

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Congratulations, Jake, on this well-deserved recognition! Who knew a credit card scam would change the face of accessible travel? Your work with Travelability and the Accessibility Playbook cannot be overestimated for the impact they have on tourism in 2024.

Here’s the link to the article in Northstar Meetings Magazine.  

Accessibility Champion: Kevin Wright, VP Global Marketing, Travel Oregon

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An inclusive soccer stadium showed Kevin the difference he could make through Travel Oregon.

Note: This interview is part of an ongoing series featuring interviews with 24 Champions of Accessibility for 2024 selected and celebrated by TravelAbility.

Q: When did you begin focusing on accessibility in your destination and what was the impetus for wanting to make your destination more accessible? 

A: A few summers ago, I brought my family and some out of town guests to a Portland Timbers game. We forgot headphones for one of the younger children in our group who has sensory issues. After back-to-back goals, this youngster became overwhelmed, so we decided to leave the stadium. On the way out of the stadium we stopped by guest services. Much to our delight, the staff was trained to support visitors with sensory issues and were quick to hand us a sensory kit that allowed us to stay and enjoy the rest of the game – which included food, beverages, and trips to the Timbers store for merchandise. 

Travel Oregon’s vision is to be a welcoming destination for all. Experiencing travel with family members that have mobility and cognitive issues gave me insight into what destinations can do to improve accessibility in ways that have major impacts for visitors. Supporting and enabling accessibility and inclusivity presents an incredible moral and economic opportunity for the tourism industry.     

Supporting and enabling accessibility and inclusivity presents an incredible moral and economic opportunity for the tourism industry.     

Kevin Wright

Q: What are your main responsibilities and tasks in your organization? 

A: As the Vice President of Brand Stewardship, my responsibilities include building market

awareness for Oregon through the management of Oregon’s brand and ensuring Travel Oregon’s work reflects the honest, abundant, and imaginative spirit that makes Oregon unique. I have the privilege to work with some of the brightest minds in the tourism industry.  

Q: Aside from budget, what are the most difficult obstacles or barriers that you face regarding the advancement of accessibility in your destination? 

A: The paradox of opportunity. There are so many opportunities for destinations to enhance

accessibility for the traveler that it can be hard to determine where to start or how best to deploy limited resources for the greatest impact. It’s a constant balance between the desire to be nimble and jump on opportunities with the need to have a strategic approach that can be scaled statewide for broader impact.   

Q: What initiatives have you undertaken to improve accessibility in your destination, and which are you most proud of? 

A: While it never feels like enough, it does feel good to take a step back and look at

what we have accomplished. Travel Oregon recently added sensory kits to our State Welcome Centers, which includes staff training, and we are also currently installing hearing loops. Travel Oregon recently awarded $3.6 million to 56 recipients through the agency’s Competitive Grants Program to fund projects across the state that will improve accessibility and inclusivity for underserved and under-resourced communities, such as people with disabilities, BIPOC, Oregon’s nine federally recognized tribes and LBGTQIA+. So much of this work is happening at the local level, which fuels our content team with new accessibility stories to share with visitors. We continue to improve the information we share on our accessibility hub on TravelOregon.com. Hosting influencers with disabilities has also been a powerful tool to tell authentic stories. The feedback we receive from their visits is invaluable.  

Two colleagues I like to follow and collaborate with in the Destination Management Organization (DMO) space are Alison Brooks from Visit Mesa and Kathleen Harvey from Destination British Columbia.

Kevin Wright

Q: Who do you follow? Name an organization/company/individual you look to for ideas or inspiration.

A: I feel fortunate to be on the TravelAbility Board. I am continually learning and bringing

ideas back to our teams from the collective expertise and generosity of these passionate individuals. Two colleagues I like to follow and collaborate with in the Destination Management Organization (DMO) space are Alison Brooks from Visit Mesa and Kathleen Harvey from Destination British Columbia. Kathleen was instrumental in the development of the Travelability Playbook and Alison is doing so much for Visit Mesa on so many fronts. It is inspiring to try and keep up. 

Q: What are your plans around accessibility in 2024? 

A: I am excited about how accessibility shows up in Travel Oregon’s 2023-2025 strategic plan. In 2024, I see our organization doubling down on the work we have started, continuing to test and try opportunities that arise and seeing the fruits of the $3.6 million we invested through our grants program as we continue down the path of making Oregon a welcoming destination to all.

Accessibility Champion: Ron Pettit, Director, Disability Inclusion & ADA Compliance

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With Ron leading the way, Royal Caribbean Group is named as one of the “Best Places to Work for Disability Inclusion.”

Note: This interview is part of an ongoing series featuring interviews with 24 Champions of Accessibility for 2024 selected and celebrated by TravelAbility.

Q: When did you begin focusing on accessibility and what was the impetus for wanting to make cruising more accessible?

I began focusing on accessibility in 1997 when I took the role of Senior Specialist, Customer Service Policies & Policies at Northwest Airlines.  As part of my role, I developed, coordinated and implemented policies, procedures and training aimed at improved air travel experience for over 3.3 million Northwest customers with disabilities and compliance with the Air Carrier Access Act. Among my accomplishments, I introduced a Customer Advisory Board composed of several individuals representing different disabilities to solicit advice on how we could better serve this growing disability market. 

This was in addition to my “day job,” and the more I worked with the disability community, the more I acknowledged my own disability (being hard of hearing) as one of my diverse identities. I wanted to do more.  I love to travel and the idea of making travel accessible is incredibly rewarding.

Finally, the opportunity opened up to become a full-time Access Manager leading a team of six individuals and managing Royal Caribbean’s accessibility program. I’ve been there ever since, catching the wave to disability inclusion on the high seas!

Q2. What are your main responsibilities and tasks in your organization?

I am responsible for the Disability Inclusion and Accessibility program at Royal Caribbean Group and its family of cruise lines with a focus on our three global cruise brands – Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea. 

I have almost 50 people on my team who are dedicated to the disability market. Most of my team is in our Accessibility Contact Center, helping our guests and travel agent partners plan accessible cruise vacations and accessible shore excursions.

I have a small disability inclusion team who collaborate with our brands to develop and execute disability inclusion strategies and standards in the workplace and marketplace, including the areas of digital accessibility and supplier diversity.

Our goal is to be a global leader in providing innovative and accessible cruise vacations, making a lifetime of vacations possible.

Q3. Aside from budget, what are the most difficult obstacles or barriers that you face regarding the advancement of accessibility? 

Some of the most difficult obstacles or barriers are around education and awareness. There are always opportunities to do more in this area.  

Q4. What initiatives have you undertaken to improve accessibility, and which are you most proud of?

I am most proud of our Autism Friendly initiative which we introduced at Royal Caribbean International in 2014 and Celebrity Cruises in 2015. This initiative aims to reach the target market of 1.5 million individuals on the autism spectrum and their families in the U.S. and Canada, as well as 75 million globally. We introduced the first ever Autism Friendly movies and Social Story by a cruise line. As a result we received several awards for our Autism Friendly initiatives.

I am also proud of the fact that we introduced not only one, but three advisory boards at a cruise line – Disability, Autism, and Accessible Travel Advisors – including the disability community and travel advisors on how we can further improve and innovate the accessible cruise vacation experience.

Q5. Who do you follow? Name an organization/company/individual you look to for ideas or inspiration.

There are too many to list them all – but some names pop to the top of my mind – Eric Lipp, Cory Lee, Debra Kerper, Kristy Durso, Amy Garner, Jordana Izzo and everyone on our Accessibility Team and our Disability, Autism and Accessible Travel Agent Advisory Boards. New accessible travel agents Deneen Cooper and Cynthia Perez are recent connections that also come to mind.

I am proud that Royal Caribbean Group was named, once again, as one of the “Best Places to Work for Disability Inclusion,” and for the eighth year in a row by Disability:IN® and American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) after scoring a top score of 100% on the Disability Equality Index® (DEI®).

Ron Petit

Q6. What are your plans around accessibility in 2024? 

 We’ve had many accessibility accomplishments in 2024.

  • I am proud that Royal Caribbean Group was named, once again, as one of the “Best Places to Work for Disability Inclusion,” and for the eighth year in a row by Disability:IN® and American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) after scoring a top score of 100% on the Disability Equality Index® (DEI®).  This is the fifth year we have scored 100%.  Among hospitality and travel companies, we are the only cruise company on the DEI.
  • Icon of the Seas, launched January 2024 which has four accessible suites:
    • A two-story Accessible Icon Loft Suite, our first Star Class suite with Genie Service.
    • An Accessible Surfside Family Suite offering a separate kids’ room
    • Two Accessible Sky Junior Suites.
  • Icon of the Seas also introduced a new category of accessible balcony staterooms – 11 Accessible Infinite Balcony Staterooms that provide level access from the stateroom to the balcony.
  • Expansion of our Accessibility Team with 15 agents in our Contact Center to help with increasing calls and emails from our guests with disabilities and travel advisors.
  • Utopia of the Seas, launched in July 2024, has four accessible suites, continuing the increase of accessible suites from Wonder of the Seas in 2022.  Earlier Oasis class ships only had three accessible suites.
  • Continued to work with Accessible Travel Solutions to expand our line-up of accessible shore excursions around the world including the Caribbean and Europe.

Congratulations to Arin Arnold Davis at Visit Lex!

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What does it mean to be the first ever Director of Destination Stewardship and Community Engagement?

Arin is excited for her new role as Director of Destination Stewardship and Community Engagement, and the TravelAbility community is excited to see the positive impact of this new role.

In this new position, Arin will develop and execute the destination stewardship strategy, building upon resident quality of life and visitor experiences with specific focus on accessibility, sustainability, and social belonging. She will continue to manage the Lex for Good program that highlights accessibility, sustainability, and social belonging in Lexington. Her goal is to make Lexington an even better place to live and visit.