TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

TravelAbility Report: March 2019

Why We Postponed TravelAbility Summit

by

Jake standing with a microphone talking to audience members seated at :Llaunchpad event

We have some sad news. Despite the six months of promotion and awareness, registrations for TravelAbility 2020 have been alarmingly slow. Our team spent the past week phoning last year’s attendees and our Advisory Board members—our most enthusiastic supporter base— to find out if they were planning to register for this year’s conference. The results were not exactly surprising, given the state of the travel industry.

Here’s what we heard: Because there is no real end in sight to Covid-19 and with travel happening in fits and starts, their budgets – or what’s left of them – are being placed on hold until there is a clear end in sight. Some destinations have been barred from spending money unless it generates revenues in the short term, and one advisory board member told me that they need approval for even a $20 expenditure. The industry is in survival mode.

When faced with challenges and obstacles, many in the disability community are resilient, adaptable and resolute. I’ve seen those characteristics first-hand in my listening tours across the country, one-on-one conversations and at the amazing inaugural conference we had in 2019. We understand the current realities, but also appreciate the chance to continue conversations and commitments throughout the coming year. 

Although we’re postponing the Summit until the fall of 2021, we will continue to work on advancing accessibility in following ways:

  • Launching our newly redesigned website as an information hub and repository for accessible travel information
  • The Explorable podcast, launched last month in collaboration with Design Sensory, will feature many of the innovative companies and speakers in upcoming episodes.
  • TravelAbility Insider, the Summit’s companion online newsletter will be published bi-monthly.
  • Monthly or bi-monthly webinars featuring some of the most inspiring presenters we recruited for TravelAbility 2020
  • The Landing Page Initiative: Helping the travel industry advance accessibility by adding accessible landing pages to their websites..

As a result of the postponement, we will miss the opportunity to gather and create new allies. So many people left last year’s TravelAbility Summit inspired to promote accessibility and inclusion!

Thank you for your support and we look forward to seeing you at our upcoming webinars. 

Coming Soon: The TravelAbility Landing Page Tracker. If you are destination, hotel or attraction with a dedicated accessible web page and would like to become part of the Landing Page Project, please contact me at jake@travelabilitysummit.com

What’s Your Disability Etiquette IQ? Can You Get A Perfect Score?

by

Illustration of a lightbulb inside a thought bubble.

Western University in Canada published a short disability etiquette quiz to help nondisabled people learn to “respectfully interact with people with disabilities.” The quiz is a great conversation starter and an opportunity for teams to learn more about the disability community.

OUR TAKE: The quiz takes only a few minutes – can you achieve a perfect score? Even (especially?) if you don’t, you’ll learn a great deal.

CLICK HERE to take the quiz!

Can this Dreamy Universal Design for Aircraft Cabins Fly Above the Utility Wires?

by

Airplane cabin.

For years, disability advocates have called for greater consideration to accessibility in the design of aircraft cabins and that message is slowly beginning to pierce the airline industry bubble.

In exploring how universal design might best be applied to passenger jets, Runway Girl Network identified a number of possibilities, including putting flight attendant call buttons within easier reach of passengers, improving connectivity onboard, the installation of larger lavatories with hands-free doors and the expanded use of high-visibility and iconography-based signage.

OUR TAKE: Air travel has been consistently identified as a major pain point by disabled travelers, so the industry’s increased attention to universal design is welcome. With improved accessibility in air travel, larger numbers will take to the skies to explore new destinations.

To learn more about the dream scenario for universally designed aircraft cabins, click here.

Beach Cruising for All: Check out this new Beach Wheelchair Rental Concession in Florida

by

Wheelchair under sun shade umbrella.

Wheelchair users can now rent an accessible ride on the sand in Cocoa Beach, Florida. Crabby’s Beach Wheels opened earlier this year in Cocoa Beach, Florida. The family-owned business provides customers with a wide variety of beach wheelchairs to choose from, including a powerful electric chair known as the “King.”

OUR TAKE: In recent years, there has been an explosion in the number of destinations and businesses making beach wheelchairs available for rent to disabled tourists, and the availability of these chairs has become a key consideration for many in the planning of accessible vacations.

To check out Crabby’s Beach Wheelchairs online, click here.

Featured image courtesy Crabby’s Beach Wheelchairs.

Rising Stars: How 20 Disabled Models Got Their Start

by

Disabled models wearing all-white clothing who are amputees with prosthetic devices.

As further proof that accessibility has moved into the mainstream, disability  representation in the modeling industry has increased substantially, with disabled models appearing in advertising campaigns for brands like Coach, Diesel Jeans, L’Oréal, Target, Vera Wang and many others. They’ve also walked (or rolled) the runways during fashion weeks around the world and been featured in top magazines like Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire and Vogue.

Every model finds a different path to their career and The Photo Studio recently interviewed 20 disabled models to reveal how they got their big breaks. The 20 models featured include stars like Jack Eyers, Jillian Mercado, Sophie Morgan and Madeline Stuart. Through their hard work and determination, they’ve pushed the industry towards greater diversity and proved that representation is a winning strategy.

To read about how 20 of the top disabled models earned their spot on the cover, click here.