Traveling with a disability can be a challenging experience. It’s often said that travel can bring out the worst in people: crowded airports, delayed flights, over packed luggage, and too much alcohol consumed at strange hours of the day. During the COVID-19 pandemic, travel has become even more complicated, as some destinations require negative COVID-19 test results and proof of vaccination. Still, for those who are not able-bodied, traveling poses a litany of complications and risks. Many cities, public transportation systems, airports, hotels, and popular tourist attractions do not meet accessibility standards for all travelers, of all body types. As a result, the joys of adventuring the world and experiencing new cultures are often reserved for those who have the physical capacity to roam from place to place.
Travel in fact can encourage an individual to “cultivate more skills to navigate this inaccessible world” because “travel is also a teacher.” Travel should not only be available to able-bodied individuals. Adventuring to new places and experiencing new cultures should not be exclusive of individuals due to accessibility inequities. As long as standards for accessibility — such as the spectrum of what some hotels define as “wheelchair accessible —remain inconsistently enforced across the globe, disabled communities will not have the same opportunities to travel comfortably.
Specific problems often encountered by the disabled tourist when trying to book a holiday, scenic tours, and accommodation can include:
- Lack of well-adapted hotel rooms
- Lack of accessible airport transfer
- Lack of wheelchair accessible vehicles
- Lack of accessible restaurants, bars, etc.
- Inaccessible, or only partly accessible, websites
- Lack of adapted toilets in restaurants and public places
- Inaccessible streets (cars parking on the sidewalk, etc.)
Disability Travel Tips
- Bicycle shops are great places for wheelchair replacement parts.
- Learn foreign vocabulary that can help you describe your situation and needs.
- Consider getting travel insurance. Make sure that it covers pre-existing conditions.
- Bring plenty, even extra, of any medications that you take. Make sure that all medicines are allowed in the country you’re visiting.
- Look for disability organizations or resources at your destination that can provide you with area-specific information as well as local contacts.
- If you use an electric wheelchair, look into whether you’ll need a plug adapter and a voltage converter. Or see whether you can rent a battery charger abroad. Have a contingency plan if power outages or voltage drops.
- Have a backup plan, including your accommodation. In case your reserved accessible room isn’t available, bring along items such as a portable ramp, a shower chair and a reacher to grab items that may be beyond arm’s length.
- Know your rights. This is particularly important for airline travel, at the airport and on the plane. Familiarize yourself with applicable laws and airline regulations. Inform the airline of your situation and make assistance requests in advance.
- Understand cultural differences.
Benefits of traveling for people with disabilities
- A first step for getting out of your comfort zone.
- Traveling makes you more sociable and social.
- Traveling broadens the horizons of your personal universe.
Travel is the key that opens the door to what all human beings crave: happiness. Therefore, wonder of travel, meeting new people, exploring new places, and experiencing new cultures is not something that anyone is or should be excluded from, no matter their personal circumstances.
