Uncategorized

Fly across the world—or home for Thanksgiving—without ever getting on a plane? Yes, it’s possible, writes Andrea Romano in Travel & Leisure. Whether it’s a fear of flying or difficulty due to a disability…there used to be so many roadblocks to travel. Now? there’s a robot for that. Japanese airline All Nippon Airways (ANA HD) has plans for a “telepresence robot,” called “Newme” that allows you to travel around the world without boarding a plane. READ MORE

OUR TAKE: For once, the news isn’t about how robots are coming to take our jobs. They’ll be working for and with us, helping the 40 million people who have mobility issues, according to the U.S. according to the Centers for Disease Control.  The future of travel is coming to an airport near you. 

And the future of accessible travel? That’s coming to you in the form of TravelAbility Summit, November 12-13 in San Francisco. Find out more.

LaunchPad: At-a-Glance Look at Innovations and How they can be used.

LaunchPad will bring together socially conscious entrepreneurs, who have created products and services that  make travel easier for people with disabilities, and established travel end users—hotels, airports, attractions, and destinations— “The goal is to connect entrepreneurs with new distribution channels in the travel industry and to help jumpstart new accessibility initiatives,” says Jake Steinman, founder and CEO of both LAUNCHPAD and TravelAbility Summit.  The accessible travel market has been estimated to be in excess of 17 billion dollars* annually and growing at a rapid pace as Baby Boomers age into a disability.

OUR TAKE: Every one of these posts helps to make the business case for accessibility—no surprise there. But you will also be interested to see the variety of products, tech, expert ideas and corporate plans out there. There’s a nugget of usable information in all five of these:

1.    Two Companies Disrupting the Wheelchair Rental Market for Good (Sept.5) READ MORE

2.    Top 10 Signs That Accessibility Is Going Mainstream (Sept 26) READ MORE 

3. Airlines, Hotels, Attractions Prove Disability Inclusion Isn’t Just the Right Thing to Do—It’s Great for Business (Aug. 8) READ MORE

4.    50 “Accessible Hacks”​ to Make Travel More Enjoyable for People with a Disability (Aug. 8) READ MORE

5.    EXPERT Q&A: The Secret to Creating a 5-Star Accessible Hotel Website on a 2-Star Budget (Aug.8) READ MORE

Check out the categories on the right-hand side of our home page at TravelAbility Insider.  (Note: If you are using a mobile phone the categories of the index will appear as you scroll down, starting Accessibility.

There you will find the ‘A to V ‘ of recent stories by category, from Autism and Airports to Trends and Vision. Our mission is to connect you with both the disability community and travel experts and advisors. Sharing knowledge like this creates a unique ecosystem where accessibility travel can thrive.

OUR TAKE: There’s a lot of blogs and newsletters out there about travel and accessibility—but many can be complicated, or worse—outdated. Thanks to our expert Advisory Board and staff, we’ve sourced the most trustworthy, relevant information for you. The search to understand the next big trend in travel is over—or maybe it’s just beginning! Either way, we’re here to help.