10 Tips for Finding Wheelchair-Accessible Lodging

~ Although it’s been well over a decade since the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law, wheelchair-users and slow walkers still have problems finding accessible lodging. In fact, according to a 2005 Harris Interactive survey, 60% of disabled travellers experienced problems with their overnight lodging choices.

“Finding an accessible room would be an easy task if every accessible room had the same standard features,” explains Candy Harrington, author of 101 Accessible Vacations; Travel Ideas for Wheelers and Slow Walkers. “But that’s not the way it works in real life. In reality, two properties located right next door to one another may have vastly different accessibility standards, so travellers need to ask the right questions in order to get a room that suits their needs.”

In the end, a little advance planning mixed with a healthy dose of self advocacy goes a long way towards finding the appropriate room. Here are Harrington’s tips for accomplishing that task.

• Never just ask for an “accessible” or an “ADA compliant” room. Instead, describe the access features you need.
• In Europe, if you need a room with an accessible bathroom, ask for an adapted room. An accessible room only features a barrier-free path of travel; however an adapted room also contains an adapted shower and toilet.
• Make sure and ask about the availability of elevators, especially in small European properties. It’s not unusual for a property to have an accessible room that can only be accessed by a stairway.
• If you need a roll-in shower, ask for one. This is not a standard feature in all accessible or even adapted rooms. Specify your needs.
• Always call the property directly, rather than calling the central reservation number.
• Bed height is not regulated under the ADA, so make sure and ask for measurements. Many properties are replacing their standard mattresses with high pillow top and luxury models.
• Avoid yes or no questions. For example, ask the clerk to describe the bathroom, rather than just asking if the bathroom is accessible.
• Ask the reservation agent to fax you a floor plan of the accessible room. This will give you the dimensions of the room, but remember that access can vary depending on the placement of furniture.
• If you have difficulty determining if a room will suit your needs, ask to speak to somebody who has recently been in the room. Employees in the housekeeping or engineering departments usually have a good knowledge of access features of the individual rooms.
• Remember to ask the reservation agent if the accessible room can be blocked for you. If the answer is “no” or “sometimes”, then find another hotel. Remember, even the most accessible room in the world won’t work for you, if that room isn’t available when you arrive.

Finally, always trust your instincts. If a reservation agent hems and haws, gives ambiguous answers or sounds inept, call back and talk to another reservation agent or call a different property. When in doubt, always go with your gut.

101 Accessible Vacations; Travel Ideas for Wheelers and Slow Walkers is published by Demos Publishing and is available from your favourite bookstore or on-line at www.101AccessibleVacations.com. Visit Candy Harrington’s Barrier Free Travels blog at www.BarrierFreeTravels.com for more helpful access tips, news, resources and information for disabled travellers.

Image courtesy of Orlando Fun Tickets…

Debunking Myths About Accessible Travel

~ Expert Debunks Myths About Accessible Travel

By Candy Harrington

With the evolution of the internet, information is just a few mouse clicks away. That includes information about accessible travel. An although the internet is a great tool for disabled travellers, there’s also a lot of misinformation circulating on-line. And that can be a very dangerous thing.

Says Candy Harrington, author of Barrier-Free Travel; A Nuts and Bolts Guide for Wheelers and Slow Walkers, “I get a lot of mail from readers who have relied on misinformation they found on-line. When all was said and done, they later discovered it was just someone’s incorrect interpretation of the law. For example, wheelchair-users don’t get automatic upgrades to first-class, nor are they always entitled to bulkhead seating on airplanes.”

In the end, just because someone types it, doesn’t mean it’s true. With that in mind, here are some examples of accessible travel misinformation that Candy recently spotted on-line.

Myth: The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the law that covers air travel for disabled passengers.

Fact: The Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA), which actually predates the ADA, covers airline and aircraft accessibility. The ADA does not.

Myth: Companions of disabled passengers are entitled to free flights under the ACAA.

Fact: Airline personnel can require a passenger to travel with a “safety assistant” if they feel the passenger cannot adequately assist with his or her own emergency evacuation. The cabin crew however, usually designates another paying passenger or an off-duty crew member to act in this capacity.

Myth: Wheelchair-users are guaranteed bulkhead seating on airplanes.

Fact: Under the ACAA, people with a fused leg and those who travel with a service animal are the only passengers guaranteed bulkhead seating.

Myth: You don’t need to make advance arrangements for accessible rooms.

Fact: Truthfully you don’t need to make reservations for any hotel room; however that doesn’t mean you will have a room when you arrive. The same goes for accessible rooms. The only way to ensure your room will have the access features you need, is to make an advance reservation. In practice, only a small portion of hotel rooms have access features.

Myth: Making a reservation at a property assures you that the accessible room will be there when you arrive, because you have guaranteed it with your credit card.

Fact: Guaranteeing a room with your credit card only locks you in on a specific rate. Blocking a room sets aside a specific room for a specific guest on a specific date. All accessible rooms need to be blocked.

Myth: All accessible guest rooms have roll-in showers.

Fact: In the US, only hotels with over 50 rooms are required to have accessible guest rooms with roll-in showers. Those with under 50 rooms are merely required to have tub/shower combinations with grab bars.

Myth: All hotels have to have shuttles that are wheelchair-accessible.

Fact: If a hotel provides free airport transfers, they must also provide accessible transfers at no charge. They don’t have to own their own accessible vehicle though. They can contract out the service, but they cannot charge extra for it.

Myth: Cruise ships have to be accessible under the ADA.

Fact: Even though the Supreme Court ruled that the ADA applies to foreign-flagged cruise ships that call on US ports, we still don’t have any specific access guidelines for them. Those are being sorted out by the US Access Board and the Department of Transportation (DOT). For now, all the access modifications the cruise lines have made, have been completely voluntary.

Myth: The ship-sponsored shore excursions on most cruises are usually accessible.

Fact: In order to take most ship-sponsored shore excursions you have to be able to walk a few steps and climb up into a bus. Most of the ship-sponsored tours do not include accessible transportation. The exception is in Alaska, but you have to specifically request an adapted vehicle there, even on tours that are designated as “accessible”.

Myth: Theme parks let wheelchair-users go to the front of the line so they don’t have to wait.

Fact: In some cases, disabled guests are allowed to access certain attractions through the exit, because it’s more accessible. The newer rides and attractions are being built with accessible entrances, so this alternative access is no longer required. This accommodation was never meant as a line-cutting privilege, as everyone has to wait at theme parks. The goal is to have all guests access the attractions through one integrated (and accessible) entrance.

Barrier-Free Travel; A Nuts and Bolts Guide for Wheelers and Slow Walkers, is available from your favourite bookstore or at www.BarrierFreeTravel.net. Candy Harrington also blogs regularly about accessible travel issues at www.BarrierFreeTravels.com.

Image courtesy of Global Access News…