Our Story
We are TravelAbility, and our mission is to make travel more accessible and enjoyable for everyone.
Our story began in 2018, when we received a bogus “Travel Agent of the Year” award from the city of Sausalito, California, where we are located. We were not a travel agency, but we soon had a lot of people coming to us for help with planning their trips, many of whom had a disability in their family. We saw an opportunity to fill a niche in the market, so we embarked on a two-month listening tour to understand the needs and challenges of travelers with disabilities and what options were available to them. We learned that there was an ADA law that set a minimum standard for accessible infrastructure and a travel industry attitude of compliance to avoid lawsuits. But we also learned that it was designed for the average and only worked for half of the people, leaving the other half to be investigators because there was no ADA law for information. We decided to create a network of resources and events to make travel more inclusive for everyone.
We started an annual conference, and a monthly newsletter called the, TravelAbility Insider, which offers practical advice and information for travel businesses to be more welcoming. We built a website to be a source of resources for any travel business that wanted to be more inclusive. We spent seven months creating The Accessibility PLAYBOOK, a complete guide with over 100 presentations, videos and links to help any travel business improve their accessibility. We also hosted InnovateAble, a pitch event that features the latest assistive technology and amenities that enhance the travel experience for people with disabilities.
Earlier this year, a friend suggested that I meet with the Sausalito Chamber of Commerce manager and tell them how that dubious award inspired us to do all this. I thought it was a good idea, so I went and told them everything. They were astonished and asked me if I got the award by email. I said yes. “Oh,” she said. “That was a credit card scam.” Sometimes the universe can unexpectedly work in mysterious ways to make itself a better place.
The Status Quo
We discovered that the accessibility-in-travel world has largely been driven by top down legislation. While the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Airline Carrier Accessibility Act (ACAA) set standards that make transportation, hotels, restaurants, and airlines accessible to disabled people, implementation was at a bare minimum and, in many cases often not enforced or thoroughly thought out.
In effect, rather than seeking to serve disabled travelers in a way that enables and even enhances the travel experience, the mindset has become litigation avoidance.
Need is the Mother of Invention
In response, we have found a quiet groundswell of innovators dedicated and determined to offer a more robust travel experience to disabled travelers. These trailblazers have developed products, services, and other initiatives that reduce the barriers to travel for those with physical, behavioral and cognitive disabilities and offer enhanced experiences of the places they visit.
With over 20 years of experience in producing boutique events for the tour and travel industry, and with a vast network of destination marketing organizations, tour operators and other industry players, we invite you to join us for the second annual TravelAbilitySummit and become a part of a powerful gathering of travel industry leaders and innovators making destinations accessible to everyone.
