TravelAbility 2021

We are pleased to announce the following organizations will be presenting at TravelAbility virtual June 24^th from 8:00am-12:30 pm followed by an optional Meet the presenters networking session one week later.

Google, Royal Caribbean, Delta Airlines, Open Doors Organization, Houston Airports, Marriott, Scandic Hotels, Travegali, Walt Disney World, Incredible Memories Travel, Wheelchair Travel Solutions, Magical Story Book Travels, European Network for Accessible Travel, German Tourism Board, The Beaches of Ft. Myers and Sanibel, Design Sensory, Expedia, Auberge Hotels and Resorts

Taking the learnings from the first two virtual events—LaunchPad and Parakeet—that Travelability produced earlier this year, we’ve asked presenters to limit themselves to 5-7 minutes each after which they proceed to roundtable format for lively interactive conversations.

Add-on Networking session one week later.

Attendees will be able to network among themselves as well as presenters through a series of 6-person roundtables, each hosted by a selected speaker.

Here’s the agenda, where you’ll find full details for all coming events. Register Now: There are a limited number of VIP Passes still available

Introducing TravelAbility’s newest initiative, “Striving For Herd Accessibility in Travel,” a year-long program designed to provide the destination information that people with disabilities need before they decide where to travel. While the ADA legislation of 30 years ago provided a baseline foundation for physical accessibility it didn’t address the overwhelming absence of information infrastructure that is lacking and necessary to help disabled travelers make the right buying decisions.

Since the first TravelAbility Summit in November of 2019, I have been searching for a way to measure our ROI to the industry. I noticed that following the Summit, several attendees added a landing page to their website that showcases the attractions, hotels, museums, zoos, nature trails, and beaches that are accessible in their destination. I realized that tracking the number of accessible landing pages that TravelAbility could influence would be the best way to measure our value. The first step was to learn how many accessible landing pages already existed.

Working with a team of interns we reviewed all 50 state websites and 65 city websites in the US and Canada and were able to identify a total of 45 destinations—16 states and 29 cities—that included a page with content that speaks to the needs of travelers with a disability. The most startling discovery was that the average time it took to find the landing pages was 3.5 minutes. These 45 landing pages, which can be found on the Accessible Destinations tab on our website, are the base from which we plan to scale the list to over 100 North American destinations so disabled travelers will be able to find this information all in one place.

We will amplify the information by making the link available to consumer-facing disability publications, bloggers, influencers, and news sites so that disabled travelers won’t have to spend over three minutes searching each individual site for accessible information.

Add Your Destination: If you have a landing page that showcases accessible options in your destination you can add it to our directory for free, If you would like help creating an accessible landing page just check the box on our form and we will be in touch.

In addition to the Accessible Destinations initiative, here’s a summary of what else we have been working on.

1. Increased industry awareness through our TAS Insider newsletter, which grew 5x, from 500 readers in December 2018 to 3,300 readers pre-covid. (2450 post-covid due to layoffs).
2. TravelAbility collaborated with two blind members of our advisory board to create the  “ExplorAble” podcast series where leaders and influencers in the accessible travel space were interviewed.
3. Recast TravelAbility 2021 into four virtual events (1 hybrid) to make it more affordable.
4. Introduced the LaunchPad pitchfest, the world’s only showcase for adaptive technology that makes travel easier for people with disabilities. The event was held April 1^st and was the first event of TravelAbility 2021 series.
5. Our website functions as a repository of tools and resources for travel organizations that want to elevate their accessibility for people with disabilities. 
6. Produced “Picking a Platform” a virtual book that was developed from the recordings of “Parakeet,” a pop-up virtual conference about virtual conferences held last October in collaboration with USAE News. (Password: Chirpchirp)
7. Assembled an all-star Advisory Board consisting of leaders from the disability community, media, and travel industry.
8. Destinations International and US Travel have requested TravelAbility to lead accessibility breakout sessions at their annual gatherings. The most recent of which was DI’s: “Adding Accessibility to your ED+I Program” at their annual Marketing Communications Summit on April 29^th.
9. UP YOURS!… a collaboration with forward-thinking DMO’s to up the accessibility of their members and extend a welcoming hand to travelers with disabilities. TravelAbility produces a customized one-hour virtual hackathon for the destination’s partners and stakeholders. All attendees at these sessions will earn a free registration to all remaining TAS virtual events in 2021.

The next TravelAbility Summit virtual event is coming June 24th, and the action-packed schedule is filled with presenters you won’t want to miss!

AGENDA

SUBJECT TO CHANGE

(i)=INVITED BUT NOT CONFIRMED

                                                              JUNE 24, 2021

8:00-8:15 am — OPENING REMARKS

8:15-8:35 am — UPDATE: GOOGLE MAPS: ADDING AN “ACCESSIBLE ROUTE” TO GOOGLE MAPS IN SIX CITIES COULD BE A GAME CHANGER.

Could this be the breakthrough disabled travelers and city dwellers have been pining for?

Presenter: Laura Allan, Head of Strategy for Accessibility and Inclusion,  Google (i)

8:35-8:45 am — UPDATE: CRUISING FOR A BRUISING: WHEN WILL CRUISE LINES’ PAIN WANE AND WHAT WILL THE RECOVERY LOOK LIKE ?

Cruise lines have been the hardest hit of all travel segments during Covid.

• What new post-vaccination protocols are planned
• What will it mean for domestic cruise ports that depend on shore excursions
• How are they planning to bring back customers
• What are they hearing from their agents? How are they communicating progress to their disability specialist travel agents.

Presenter: Ron Pettit, Director Disability and Inclusion, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines

8:45-9:05 am — UPDATE: AIRLINES. BACK TO THE FUTURE?

• When does the industry foresee travel returning to pre-Covid levels?
• What progress has been made on a Common Pass among the vaccinated?
• From LaunchPad: SATS: Centralized register for Verified Service Animals

9:05-9:20am — UPDATE; AIRPORTS

• How are airports reacting to the aging population?
• Partnering with destinations to promote accessibility.
• From LaunchPad: JAWS by Vispero, making airport/airline kiosks accessible to blind and visually impaired

Moderator: Eric Lipp, CEO, Open Doors Organization; Panelists: Dana Folsom, Manager, Disability Progams, Delta Air Lines (i); Tim Joniec, Director, Customer Relations, Houston Airport System

9:30-9:50 am — UPDATE: HOTELS. WILL MARRIOTT’S “ROOM FOR ALL” PROGRAM  INFLUENCE THE FUTURE OF ROOM DESIGN?

How they plan to upgrade bed height in accessible rooms of their 5500 U.S. hotels.

From LaunchPad: Travegali: Hotel booking engine with images of accessible sleeping rooms and bathrooms of 4000 hotels. 

Presenter: Zach Curry, V.P. Rooms and Guest Services, Marriott (i)

9:50-10:05 am — UPDATE: ATTRACTIONS. HOW WALT DISNEY WORLD’S FOCUSED ON CUSTOMER SERVICE FOR ALL (VERSUS COMPLIANCE)… to make the Happiest Place on Earth the most inclusive as well.

Presenter: Mark Jones, Manager, Accessibility and Services for Guests with Disabilities, Walt Disney World

10:05-10:25 am — BREAK

10:25-11:00 am — UPDATE: TRAVEL AGENTS & BLOGGERS. HOW THREE DISABILITY SPECIALISTS OUTLIVED COVID.

In what will go down in history as the worst year ever for travel agents—especially those serving people with disabilities—leading travel agents and bloggers discuss their coping strategies.

Panelists: Debra Kerper, Owner, Easy Access Travel; John Sage, President, Wheelchair Travel Solutions; John Morris, WheelchairTravel.org; Nicole Thibault, Magical Story Book Travels (i)

11:00-11:30 am — HOW WE MEASURE ROI FOR ACCESSIBILITY.  A panel of European travel companies and tourism boards reveal the metrics that matter to them and their stakeholders.

Panelists: Ivor Ambrose, Managing Director, European Network for Accessible Travel; Olaf Schleiper, Innovations Manager, German National Tourism Board (i).

11:30-11:50 AM — ADDING ACCESSIBILITY INTO YOUR EDI PROGRAM.

Where does accessibility fit into your existing EDI program?

• Why should you add accessibility to your EDI strategy. 
• What are benefits and measurable outcomes of adding accessibility to your EDI strategy. 
• Recognizing where accessibility and diversity intersect from a customer service training perspective, and the ways in which to incorporate accessibility into your marketing campaign

Presenters: Nicole King Smith, Lee County CVB

11:50-12:10 PM — NO COST/LOW COST BABY STEPS THAT YOU CAN TAKE TO ACCESSIBILITY

Getting started with accessibility shouldn’t be an expensive or daunting task.

• Getting started: three things you need to know
• Baby steps you can take that can save you time and money

Presenters: Josh Loebner, Director of Strategy, DesignSensory; Toby Willis, Technical Manager and head of accessibility, Expedia Group.

12:10-12:30 — TRAVELABILITY BUILDS A BUSINESS CASE TO SWAY A HOTEL CFO TO BUDGET FOR ACCESSIBILITY. WILL IT WORK? 

TravelAbility will present a slide deck, stitched together from key stats drawn from the four most prominent research reports released in the past six months, to a Chief Financial Officer. Will she buy it?

• Open Doors Organization/Harris Poll 2020 Market Study: Adults with Disabilities: Travel and Hospitality
• Expedia/Leonard Cheshire Report: Breaking Down Barriers for Travel
• AARP: 2021 Travel Trends 
• Stylus Media Group: Tourism’s Accessible Future