TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

travel

Tips on Accessible Solo Travel by Chelsea Bear, a TravelAbility Board Member

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Woman wearing sunglasses and smiling as she stands in front of a body of water

Research. Planning. More research. Repeat.

That’s the message threaded through Chelsea Bear’s Trip Advisor article on solo travel for people with disabilities: You can’t be overprepared.

Chelsea confesses that as a person with cerebral palsy who uses an electric scooter, she used to think that solo travel was not an option for her.  Now, she writes, “at age 30, I can happily say that my younger self’s beliefs and fears were completely wrong—I’ve traveled to 10 countries outside of the United States and dozens of states domestically.” In addition to tapping her own experience, Chelsea shares tips from leading travel influencers including Corey Lee, Sylvia Longmire, and Houston Vandergriff. Tips range from zip ties to extra batteries to mapping every conceivable destination and resource ahead of time. Read more.

UK Blue Badge Access Awards Recognize Hospitality Leaders in Accessible Design

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Seven people, one in a wheelchair, smiling and holding up award statues

TravelAbility recently attended the BLUE BADGE ACCESS AWARDS 2023  held at London’s Great Scotland Yard Hotel. We also attended a West End performance of Little Big Things, an incredibly rousing, accessibility-themed musical. The Blue Badge Access Awards want to raise the profile of accessibility in the industry and to honor the venues that are excelling at—and proud of—their accessibility.

The 11 Awards—for everything from best and worst bathrooms (loos), to hotels, spas and bars—were presented to venues and individuals that have provided exceptional accessibility, style, and design in the hospitality business and beyond…as well as those who haven’t! Read more.

TravelAbility Takeaway: This was not only a wonderful ceremony celebrating the best of Britain’s accessibility with a cheeky nod to the not-so-great, but also a blueprint for any destination to create their own award luncheon to showcase and honor their industry partners that provide stand-out accessibility and perhaps even generate FOMO.  After listening to various speakers discussing their frustrations with the inconsistent and catch-as-catch-can accessibility, it made us appreciate the ADA which, inadequate as it may be, provides a baseline of physical accessibility that is generally available.  In the UK, which has had the Disability Equality Act since 2010, there is no enforcement and many buildings—including hotels—are centuries old and grandfathered out.  

Hidden Camera Investigative Report on Traveling with a Disability

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A woman in a wheelchair with an unattached oxygen tube on her shoulder, looking into the camera with a concerned expression

Sylvia Longmire’s trip on Greyhound went fairly smoothly in part because the accessible bus had removable seats so that Longmire could remain in her own wheelchair (see related story in this issue). That’s not an option on airplanes, which can create a whole set of problems for passengers who use wheelchairs.

CBC News of Canada provides a powerful first-person view of the experience by using a hidden camera while accompanying Alessia Di Virgilio on an Air Canada flight. The trouble started several days before the flight when Di Virgilio notified the airline of her booking, as required. Despite the advanced notice, Di Virgilio did not receive a confirmation of her reservation until 24 hours before the flight. And when she arrived at the airport in her power wheelchair, no one at the gate had been alerted so it took 40 minutes for a crew to arrive to transfer her to an airline seat. The transfer is painful to watch as the ventilator becomes disconnected, a lift falls on her head, and her foot gets stuck. Meanwhile, her wheelchair is sitting out in the rain.

One crew member explains that he hasn’t been trained on the lift equipment for more than seven years.

“I did not feel safe,” Alessia Di Virgilio said after the incident.

The Air Canada flight is the centerpiece of a CBC expose of traveling with a disability. Other segments feature a woman with narcolepsy who is repeatedly turned down by taxis and rideshare drivers because of her large service dog—despite company policies that guarantee accommodating service animals. The third segment tracks the journey of a blind man trying to navigate the transit system. It’s a risky proposition with a lack of audio assistance in key spots, like trying to find the door of a subway car with the clock ticking.

The report has triggered a federal government investigation. Read more.

Watch the 22-minute video

TravelAbility TakeAway: It’s no surprise that this unprecedented investigation by CBC has launched a federal investigation in Canada. The video is hard to watch as we witness some of the indignities and injuries Alessia Di Virgilio had to endure. The physical and emotional pain of her airline trip is evident on her face as she moves from frustration to anger and fear to deep sadness. Deep appreciation and admiration to CBC and its hidden camera for putting us right there beside her—and to the other two travelers as well.  

How to Ride the Greyhound Bus as a Wheelchair User

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Greyhound logo beside an image of a bus employee operating a wheelchair lift connected to a bus

Award-winning travel blogger Sylvia Longmire has put a whole lot of miles on her electric wheelchair. She has visited 57 countries, 48 of those as a wheelchair user and 34 of those by herself. Along the way she has written four books and launched a consulting business.

For her latest adventure, she decided to leave the driving to Greyhound on a trip from Minneapolis to Fargo, North Dakota—her 50th state. Longmire shares her experience from the booking of a ticket on an accessible bus (accessible except for the bathroom) to tracking the on-time performance of each leg of the journey to assessing the pros and cons. Pictures included. Read more.

TravelAbility TakeAway: Longmire’s account of her Greyhound trip doesn’t make bus travel look easy but she does make it look doable in a wheelchair. And preferable in some important ways to the alternatives. One of the surprises of her trip was the on-time performance of the buses she took. That hasn’t typically been our experience.

Travel Oregon Awards 3.6 Million in Grants for Inclusive Tourism

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Woman using a wheelchair on a beach with steep cliffs rising out of the ocean

As part of an ongoing and far-reaching statewide initiative, Travel Oregon has awarded $3.6 million in competitive grants to DMOs, attractions, and cities for inclusion and accessibility projects.

The grants program targets funding for accessibility and inclusivity for underserved and under-resourced communities including people with disabilities, BIPOC, Oregon’s nine federally recognized tribes and LBGTQIA+. Funded projects reflect and align with Travel Oregon’s vision of a welcoming destination where tourism drives economic prosperity, benefits the natural environment and celebrates rich, diverse cultures—and must improve tourism infrastructure or enhance promotion of accessible and inclusive tourism.

“To say I’m inspired by the potential of this year’s grant awards would be an understatement,” said Todd Davidson, CEO of Travel Oregon. “Upon completion, each project will make a substantial impact on the accessibility and inclusivity of the tourism industry in Oregon, supporting Travel Oregon’s vision of a welcoming destination for all where tourism drives economic prosperity, benefits the natural environment and celebrates rich, diverse cultures.” Read more.

TravelAbility TakeAway: No question that Oregon is one of the key states to watch for leadership on inclusive and accessible travel. As we reported in last month’s Insider, Travel Oregon had the largest contingent of attendees at the Emerging Markets Summit in Savannah in August, with more than 30 staffers. They are using the TravelAbility network to great advantage, studying model initiatives from around the country and the world and turning that research into sustainable practice.

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