Traveling is always an experience that is full of fun, adventure, and the discovery of new places. This is also a time when you can make new friends and collect wonderful memories. If you have a disability and are planning to travel, you should never allow this to be a limitation because you have options. Disability definitely does not mean you are unable. As long as you do not feel uncomfortable and ensure that you remain safe, you can enjoy travelling just like any other person. You can enjoy travelling if you make prior plans and ensure that you do what is necessary to make probable problem situations less challenging.
The Challenges of for Disability Travelers
Despite the fact that people with disabilities travel a lot, they continue to experience numerous hindrances. This is why it is essential to look for ways to prevail over the difficulties. Here is a mention a few examples of the challenges people with disabilities go through. In airplanes, they are forced to sit in areas that are too congested and thus confining for them. The aisles on the plane are usually narrow and disabled people have to go a long way to get to the airport gates. In restaurants, they do not have sufficient space and must endure prohibitive doors and steps. When they book hotels, they have to make do with what they find because the rooms are never suitable to their conditions.
Planning Ahead is Crucial
Most times, you will feel that a certain city is not wheelchair friendly and will pose the challenge of access. There will be accessibility challenges in some places but with prior planning and research, it is possible to get access. Planning and research helps in determining which places to go and which ones to avoid. This way, your holidays will not be a struggle. Once you do enough research, you will find places where you are able to access hotel accommodations completely and will also find routes that are accessible to you so you can visit numerous tourist attractions and enjoy a wonderful travel experience. In making plans for your tour, you can depend on the experiences of other people with disabilities that have been on tour in the specific area you would like to travel to.
Make Early Bookings and Route Plans
It makes sense to make early bookings of hotels from an economical point of view. It is even more prudent to book accessible hotels in advance. You will find a few hotels that have been designed with accessibility in mind and they might get fully booked before you make your booking. If for example you are planning a summer vacation, you need to book in December in order to be guaranteed an accessible hotel. You also need to carefully consider the route you will use for your tour. Knowing what to expect when you go for the holiday will help you have a trip that is less difficult. In all likelihood, there will be ways to access the tourist attractions you are interested in. Some routes might be easy to access, while others might be difficult. Once you know the accessibility status of a specific route, you can make plans accordingly. There will be places where a wheelchair ramp is found, other places will have pavements, and some might be completely dangerous. Most places have user guides which you can use to find out if there is or there is no accessibility. Other guides might not have this information and so it will be better to find out about the routes.
Choose the Accessible Areas of Town
It might not be very easy to find an ideal situation because you might find a hotel that is very accessible in a town that is not accessible. This poses the greater challenge when you are planning your trip. The ideal situation would be to find a hotel that is accessible and is near restaurants that are accessible as well. This is why you must research properly and find the best option for your trip. Google Maps can be very helpful if you use the street view app to help you determine how accessible the area where you want to book your hotel is. Once you have the information that you need. You can talk to the hotel and ask them a couple of questions.
Always Have a Contingency Plan
Anything might go wrong despite the fact that you have planned your trip well in advance. What happens if things do not go according to plan? You probably have prepared for just about anything and have arranged to travel with someone to be of assistance. It helps to be a little adaptable in order to make changes even if you have to do it at almost the last hour. When you have fully prepared for a trip, you will not get confused when unexpected events occur. You need to be prepared and to have extra or spare stuff so nothing surprises you. If for example you have a wheel chair and one of its wheels gets faulty in the last minute, you should be ready for that kind of turn of events. When you are prepared for just about anything, you will not have to postpone your vacation.
Consider Getting an Accessibility Tour Guide
There are tour companies that specifically handle people with disabilities and have specialized in accessibility. They will be of immense help in getting you to the places you would like to visit more conveniently. You should find out if they are authorized experts with the training and license to undertake such tours. Determine if they have taken specific exams for such tours. You also need to know the routs that the guide will use and if you will be assisted physically by the guide if necessary. You also need to know if the tour is being held privately or if it is a group tour. Is the tour for disabled persons only or is it for able bodied people as well? If it is for able bodied people, how will it work out? Will you be expected to stay up to speed with the non-disabled? You also need to find out if the guide has been with other people with disabilities in the past. Once you have done your planning and are ready to go, it is now time to relax and enjoy wonderful scenery, culinary dishes and awesome experiences.
