Accessible trip planning: City sightseeing or active travel adventures?

How do you want to spend your annual summer vacation? Are you headed for the beach, plan to explore cities in East Frisia (German: Ostfriesland) or is skiing in the mountains more your style? No matter the destination, most people use their vacation time for a relaxing escape from the hustle and bustle of life. Unfortunately, planning a trip can be stressful and is especially challenging for people with disabilities, as they must find accessible accommodations and inclusive destinations.

While there seem to be a myriad of vacation spots, activities, and modes of transport to choose from, not all these options are accessible to everyone. Planning a trip with a disability means you must pay close attention to find the right accessible accommodations for transportation, destinations, and hotels that meet your special needs. This can be cumbersome because accessibility also depends on the type of disability. What works for one person may not work for someone else. “This requires close collaboration with the providers to make sure they understand and meet the special needs of the guests. It includes – among other things- the right accessible accommodations, accessible transportation services and accessible experiences on location. The overall travel experience must be as smooth as possible to ensure the travelers enjoy a relaxing vacation," says Tino Richter, Managing Director of AG Leichter Reisen – Barrierefreie Urlaubsziele in Deutschland (English: Easy Access Travel – Accessible Travel Destinations in Germany).

The primary objective is to work on the implementation and the overall tourism supply chain, thus giving people with disabilities many great options to tailor their vacation to their needs and personal taste. Tino Richter knows from experience that people favor the same popular travel destinations regardless of disabilities: "Accessible tourism doesn’t differ much from the other travel patterns. You have a large target audience that prefers city tours, while others prefer to travel low mountain ranges or like to explore the wine regions...". Hence, an important goal of AG Leichter Reisen is to build a network and increase transparency when it comes to accessible travel options.

Providers and platforms, such as leichter Reisen AG and So barrierefrei erleben GmbH (English: Accessible Experiences) provide information and assistance pertaining to accessible travel. Most of these travel destinations are in Germany and are selected based on specific criteria to be included in the respective catalog. Cities and regions must demonstrate a willingness to address accessibility concerns and include them in a marketing plan to be a valid choice for leichter reisen.

The (online) magazine barrierefrei erleben partly relies on a certification system, but also turns to personal experiences and recommendations, which are critical to facilitate customized options that suit accessibility needs. The goal is to “present people with mild to severe disabilities with the most beautiful excursion and travel destinations. We also want to continually raise the level of awareness of tourism service providers on the importance of making travel accessible to everyone," says co-founder Daniel Wolf. For example, Barrierefrei erleben collects information for water lovers to spend their vacation at Chiemsee (a lake in Bavaria, Germany), where accessible swimming is among the many options the destination has to offer. "But it doesn't matter whether you travel by train, car, plane, bike or ship – tourists should have access to all options," says Wolf.

Those who prefer winter sports can turn to the Freizeit Para-Special Outdoorsports (PSO) adaptive ski school for skiing lessons for people with disabilities. Their motto “Geht nicht, gibt’s nicht” translates to "Nothing is impossible", as people with physical disabilities and learning difficulties (so-called "mental disabilities") can choose between monoskis, bi skis, and handheld outriggers (crutches) to enjoy the freedom of skiing in the Schladming-Dachstein ski region. It’s the perfect destination for those who crave active and adventurous vacations.

There are many providers and portals who are committed to facilitating wonderful, accessible travel experiences for people with disabilities. The information on their respective websites makes it easier to search for the right mode of transportation, accommodations, and activities. And they can also serve as an inspiration.

REHACARE is one of the world’s leading international trade fairs for rehabilitation, care, prevention, and inclusion and delivers a communication platform where providers and users can exchange ideas. Tino Richter says, leichter reisen AG was inspired by the services presented on the exhibition grounds. It encouraged and helped his company to adapt its accessible options to meet the special needs of travelers. The latter can also find inspiration for their next trip in the leichter reisen newsletter or by browsing the barrierfrei erleben online portal.

Another online service is the Wheelmap app. Users can search, find, and mark wheelchair-accessible accommodations, activities and so much more, which makes it easier to plan a vacation. That being said, accessible tourism has not yet undergone a full-scale digital transformation featuring state-of-the-art technology. However, REHACARE visitors will note that digitization is also playing an increasing role in this sector. Wolf agrees and says this about REHACARE: "The trade fair gives you a first-hand experience of today’s options and tomorrow’s possibilities.”