The Askew Family Travel Playbook: 10 Tips for Wheelchair Travel
01: CALL AHEAD
Don’t leave anything to chance. Call ahead to the airlines, the hotels and if you can restaurants and tour companies. The meaning of “accessible” to a family with a wheelchair and “accessible” to a hotel are often very different, especially in foreign countries. Call ahead or check online to make sure they will have an aisle chair if you need it. Most airlines have travel profiles for each passenger so be sure to fill it out with your needs and then call again.
02: USE WHEEL THE WORLD OR HIRE A TRAVEL AGENT
I recently found Wheel the World website ( Accessible Travels, Hotels and Experiences | Wheel the World) and it’s really good. It’s all about accessible travel and rates everything for you. It takes the guesswork out and It’s fantastic. Thank you for providing this service! Highly recommend.
Taking it way back here, but I’ve had great luck with agents as well. We don’t travel internationally all the time, but when we do I find experts for those regions. They can be your greatest asset. They know the hotels and tour guides and best restaurants. Often, they have folks on the ground who can visit hotels ahead of time and take door measurements. I know not everyone can afford it, but many travel agents don’t charge as much as you might think and for me it’s worth it. Not only do I not have the time to do the research anymore, but it’s not worth my sanity.
03: EXTRA EVERYTHING
Extra seat cover, tools, tires, clothing, cleaning wipes and hand sanitizer for dirty wheelchair hands. You can find equipment replacements domestically but international is another matter. Keep an emergency kit handy at all times.
04: THE EXTRA BIG BAG
Honestly, we haven’t nailed this one yet, but Rob typically takes his chair to the gate and checks it there. At that point we need a place to put the seat, legs and back in order to fold the wheelchair. In the early days Lucy and I would try to carry it all on and it was stressful. We now use a big Lands End boat tote and it works pretty well.
05: BOOK DIRECTLY WITH HOTELS
I love booking online and getting deals, but I highly recommend booking directly with the hotel if you can. If anything happens, you are dealing directly with the hotel and not a 3rd party. If that is not an option, make sure you call the hotel directly to confirm your room is accessible. Being a member of a loyalty club can help too. I am Marriott Bonvoy and they’ve been pretty good to us because of my status. Loyalty matters. Again Wheel the World is fab and does a lot of the legwork for you.
06: SCOUT
Scout your location. Are the streets flat concrete or cobblestone? Are pathways gravel (not good) or paved? Typically, you can get enough good information before traveling somewhere to know if it’s a good fit. Are there wheelchair friendly tours and restaurants?
07: LEAVE EXTRA TIME
Don’t leave it to chance. For some reason screening folks in wheelchairs is a sorta brutal. There is no easy way about it. I always say it’s better to get through security and then sit and wait instead of rushing to a flight or missing a flight. It’s not worth the stress.
08: DRIVE
Sometimes driving is just easier. It gives our family more flexibility. The bathroom is a disaster for people in wheelchairs on flights. Driving allows us to dictate timing, schedule and fit all the extras we need. You could also bring a portable ramp. We haven’t had to do this yet, but it’s a great idea and we have had one we could bring to friends’ houses if necessary.
09: RESEARCH GROUND TRANSPORTATION
Whether it’s a rental car, or hiring a van, find out what your options are. During high season things book up fast. I’d also say make sure to download your Uber and Lyft apps. We’ve found Lyft way more wheelchair friendly on the app, but we have had good experiences across both companies.
10: MANAGE YOUR EXPECTATIONS, BUT FIGHT FOR YOUR RIGHTS
The truth is traveling with a wheelchair can be challenging and sometimes annoying. We once got to a US hotel and the bathroom door wasn’t wide enough, one of the elevators was broken and a stair lift was out of order. Oof! It’s a constant push and we’ve learned to hold businesses accountable. I’ve also learned that sometimes you just have to go with it and remember not to get caught up in the hard stuff. (we asked and got our money back at that hotel) Remember the Askew motto - perfectly, imperfect.