TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

accessibility

Major Airline Announced: Step Right Up, We Need to Weigh You

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Our Takeaway: While this was a survey to determine the true average passenger weight in order to calculate the amount of freight, they will be able to accommodate, we hope this is just a one-off event. If this catches on, privacy litigation can’t be far behind.

Airline passengers are well accustomed to weighing their luggage and keeping bags light ahead of departure, but many travelers flying with one airline will soon be asked to step on the scales themselves. Yes, you read that correctly — passengers themselves will be weighed. Throughout the month of June, all Air New Zealand passengers travelling internationally from Auckland airport will be asked to step on the scales to participate in the airline’s passenger weight survey. Read More.

50+ Brains to Pick at TravelAbility 2023 Savannah

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Our Takeaway:  Accessibility is a journey without a destination! Whether you’re just beginning or trying to improve your existing accessibility, it can be an incredibly daunting task. That’s why TravelAbility has assembled over 50 speakers/presenters/panelists under one roof as well as 12 DMO members of our Destination A11Y Club that can help you.

For your convenience, we’ve organized them by their field of expertise.

Assessment Providers

  • John Sage, Accessible Travel Solutions
  • Eric Lipp, Open Doors Organization
  • Camillo Navarro, Wheel the World
  • Meredith Tekin, President, IBCCES
  • John Morris, founder, Wheelchair Travel

Accessible Training Experts

  • Camilo Navarro, co-founder, Wheel the World
  • Kristy Durso, owner, Incredible Memories Travel
  • John Sage, owner Accessible Travel Solutions
  • Eric Lipp, founder, Open Doors Organization
  • Meredith Tekin, President, IBCCES
  • Meegan Winter, founder, AbleVu
  • Lynn Smith, Sunflower Lanyard

Getting the Word Out. Accessible Travel Influencers

  • Houston Vandergriff: Downs and Towns (500k followers on TikTok)
  • Cory Lee Woodard, Curb Free with Cory Lee (100k+ followers on social/blog)
  • Jennifer Allen, Wonders within Reach (50k followers)
  • John Morris, Wheelchair Travel (25,000 followers)
  • Chelsea Bear, Breaking BEARiers (500k followers)

B2C Contacts: Travel Agents

  • Camilo Navarro, co-founder, Wheel the World
  • Kristy Durso, owner, Incredible Memories Travel
  • Amy Garner, KHM (host agency: 4000 agents)
  • John Sage, Owner, Sage Traveling
  • Chad Burr, Co-owner, Outside Agents (host agency: 3000 agents)
  • Kristy LaCroix, owner, Wheelchair Escapes
  • Debra Kerper, Owner, Easy Access Tours

Free Consultation

 “Pop Up Out-of-the-Box Consulting Room.”  Over 25 experts will be available for one-to-one advice sessions.

New Sessions Added

  • Airbnb’s head of Accessibility discusses their new outreach.
  • Developing a Bad Ass Accessibility Strategy.
  • Should accessibility be DE&I, DEI&A, or should it stand alone?
  • How America’s top nude beaches are embracing accessibility.
  • How (and where) to begin your accessibility journey.
  • How to use accessibility to win more meetings business.

TravelAbility EMS 2023 August 18-20, Savannah, GA

 AGENDA, https://travelability.net/summit/agenda/

SPEAKERShttps://travelability.net/summit/speakers/

REGISTER NOW: https://travelability.net/summit/register/  

TravelAbility and Becoming RentABLE Launch a Disability Events Calendar

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image of a calendar with 3 call-outs of disability events happening in May
TravelAbility and Becoming RentABLE are proud to announce the launch of a new calendar of events for disability conferences, events, and para sports events in North America. This collaboration aims to provide a comprehensive resource for individuals with disabilities and destinations so that they can prepare their stakeholders for upcoming events. The full calendar will be available on both the TravelAbility web site and Becoming RentAble web-site.

The calendar will include a wide range of events, from conferences on accessibility and inclusion to para sports competitions. The goal is to provide a one-stop-shop for individuals with disabilities to find events that interest them and provide opportunities for networking, learning, and fun.

“Disability has never had more visibility to the mainstream,” said Becoming RentAble CEO, Lorraine Woodward.  “Providing information about adaptive sports events and conferences creates networking and relationship building opportunities for a community that is woefully underserved.”

“We are thrilled to be working with Becoming RentAble on this project,” added TravelAbility founder, Jake Steinman. “Our goal is to raise awareness among destinations that hosting adaptive events and disability conferences provides an excellent opportunity to educate their hotels, attractions, restaurants about how to serve these visitors in a way that is welcoming and inclusive for everyone, and this calendar is a big step towards achieving that.”
The calendar will be available on both the TravelAbility.net and BecomingRentAble.com websites and will be regularly updated with new events.  
Stay tuned for more information on this exciting collaboration!
 
If you know of an upcoming event in your destination add it to the calendar . Listings are a free service for the community.

5 Accessible Design Changes Most DMOs Don’t Think About (but should)

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group of adults some using a wheelchair some using a cane talk in the center of a large lobby

Before writer Brad McCannell explains five architectural changes that work for everyone, he points out his pet peeve. That would be when someone he is meeting with about building accessibility says, ‘I’m already accessible because my building meets code’. His story focuses on making meaningful changes to buildings. Read his full post, here.

OUR TAKE: A few facts to keep in mind when planning accessibility design in the age of concurrent pandemics, wildfires, tornadoes, and murderous hornet invasions. First, you’d best have an emergency plan for everyone, including people with disabilities. (The ADA law doesn’t stipulate that you must.)  Second, implementing a design that’s accessible for all should not only about wheelchair access. Second, according to the Centers for Disease Control, while it’s true that 13.7% of people with disabilities use a wheelchair. It’s on you to think about agility, hearing, vision, and cognition, too. Roughly 30 million Americans said they had difficulty climbing stairs or used a wheelchair, cane, crutches, or walker according to the last nationwide census.

To read more on this topic, visit our archive of disability advocates, here.

The Baby Steps Plan to Accessibility

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Think small. Aim high.

In order to achieve your goal of getting beyond compliance to creating a more accessible and disability-friendly destination, we’ve outlined the baby steps you and your colleagues can take to get started. And surprise! Many are free or will have a minimal impact on your budget.

Step 1: Convince the Unconvinced: How to Make The Case for Accessibility

  1. Join the mainstream. Making the world accessible for people with disabilities is gradually becoming a mainstream trend.  To bolster this argument consider forwarding “10 Signs Accessibility Is Going Mainstream” and “20 Accessibility Travel Predictions for 2020” to your management, board members and your industry.
  2. Look to Baby Boomers who have 70% of the disposable income in the U.S.  (Average household net worth: $1.2 million) and will inherit $14 trillion globally in the years ahead that can be used for travel.
  3. Learn from your peers. Share presentations from TravelAbility Summit 2019. Each issue of the Insider newsletter offers a link to a different presentation from the 2019 event, which can be used to help educate your industry. See Baby Boomer Travel research from AARP  here. 
  4. Roll a mile in my chair. Watch this superb video and distribute it to hotel GM’s. It’s called the “Hotel Manager in Wheelchair” video and was created by Sylvia Longmire. 

Step 2: Research & Development

  1. Research accessibility assets beginning with museums and attractions. Work with the ADA coordinator in the City Manager’s office to find the latest accessibility information about beaches, parks and outdoor hiking trails. Example: Here’s NYC & Co’s Accessibility page.
  2. Research hotels that will be undergoing a renovation in the next three years. Make a list of local experts and disability organizations who might attend a meeting and share knowledge with hotels while they’re in the renovation planning stage.
  3. Convene a meeting comprised of local people who can speak to travel issues around autism, mobility, and vision at your destination. Research shows these are top concerns for Americans

Step 3: Take Action

  1. Check if your website is accessible. Enter your website’s URL into www.wave.com to assess its accessibility. If it’s not, check out www.accessibe.com, which uses AI to convert websites to compliance standards for as little as $495/year.
  2. Introduce an accessibility/inclusion “Pledge” (TAS can provide you with one) that can be signed by industry partners, presented to local elected officials and shared with your community to underline your commitment to making your destination accessible.
  3. Include a panel about accessibility and travel at your next industry event
  4. Meet with your City Manager’s ADA Coordinator to learn about outdoor and nature accessible assets for future possible collaboration.  
  5. Use the Fabulous 50 list on the TAS website to Introduce your industry partners to apps and products, everything from BeMyEyes to portable ramps, that ease the transition to greater accessibility.
  6.  Keep asking—and answering questions. Work with forward-thinking hoteliers to develop an Accessibility FAQ page with images of the bathroom, entryway, and sleeping rooms. 
  7. Offer awareness training: Create a “Welcome to Accessibility 101” Seminar for your local industry partners.
  8. Add your Accessibility page to your website. Organize the research into an easily updatable product page similar to what Valley Forge did after TravelAbility Summit.

Final Note: To find trustworthy resources. Browse by topic on the TravelAbilityInsider.com website. (Topics include Autism, Hotels, Expert Opinions and more.) Sign up for our newsletter here to keep up to date with resources, new ideas and find personal stories