Going on a Holiday

By Bev Hallam

Ever seen a wheelchair access symbol in those colourful travel brochures? The display rack is usually filled with dozens of catalogues advertising exotic tours, cruises, resorts and fly/drive packages. Hundreds of dream vacations to Europe, Florida, the Caribbean and the South Pacific are detailed with beautiful photos.

I have seen none that depict people with disabilities having any fun.

Buried in the fine print, you are more likely to find this statement: "Acme Tours cannot guarantee that destination airports, transfer vehicles, and accommodation will be wheelchair accessible. Services required for handling wheelchair-confined passengers are not included in the package."

Seems people with disabilities aren’t always welcome on tours!

THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY: SOME HISTORY
In 1841, Thomas Cook organized a 12-mile railway excursion for 540 people to a temperance convention. There is no record of any wheelchair users attending, or even wanting to know more about it.

The Industrial Revolution, with the growth in railways, urbanization, and increased wages and leisure time, marked tourism as a growth industry. Cheap fares and a growing middle class led Cook to leave his wood-turning job and organize more excursions throughout Europe. His
company is now one of the world’s largest travel and tour organizations.

AIR TRAVEL
Today, cheap airfares, even more leisure time, and longer life expectancy are making tourism a worldwide growth industry. More than 700,000 round trips annually are taken by people with disabilities, according to the airlines. In Statistics Canada’s "Health and Activity Limitations
Survey," 85 per cent of Canadians with disabilities (3.6 million) report that they are able to take long trips.

In September of 1967, Montreal’s Dorval International Airport was completely clogged with wheelchair athletes arriving for Canada’s Centennial Paraplegic Games. The airport had no airways to the cabin door. Food trucks with hydraulic lifts were pressed into service to unload the "invalids."

In those days, airline staff seemed to make up the rules as they went along. Sometimes they required you to have an attendant and a medical certificate before you could not fly; sometimes they didn’t. Where to seat the "wheelchair case" was always a subject of great debate and frantic enquiry. The first row in from the cabin door was always the obvious choice, since you could
slide directly from your wheelchair into the seat. No lifting, no hassles.

Things have improved tremendously, and airline travel is safe, quick and dependable. If you have problems, you can file a complaint to the National Transportation Agency (NTA). Their toll-free number is 1-800-883-1813.

Joan MacDonald, the Director of Accessible Transportation at NTA in Ottawa, points out that "air carriers have to provide services to persons with disabilities when a request is made at least 48 hours prior to departure. Services provided include assistance boarding and deplaning, and allow the carriage of manual folding wheelchair in the cabin where space permits."

The airlines used to argue that wheelchairs left in the cabin could be thrown around and injure passengers in case of an accident. We suggested that artificial limbs, eyeglasses, hearing aids, wigs and false teeth be checked through baggage for the same reasons. We also suggested each group be assigned its own section of seats on the plane -- for safety reasons, of course. Picture that lineup at baggage claims.

TRAVEL AGENTS
Although you can book your own airline, hotel and car, it’s easier to book them through a travel agent. Agents are the primary access to the tourism industry and are paid a commission by airlines and other suppliers. They are linked by computer to airlines, hotels, car rentals, cruise
ship companies, tour operators, and some attractions such as theme parks or local tours.

Agents are also knowledgeable about passports, currency requirements and other restrictions in foreign countries. Many have personally visited the resorts, attractions and cities listed in the brochures. Some are quite informed about access.

Shirley Shelby of Travel Helpers, based in Toronto, has over 15 years experience in booking travellers with disabilities. Travel Helpers can sell you a tour, a cruise or a resort holiday, or build a customized business trip or vacation. Booking a flight, a car with hand controls, and
accessible accommodation is fairly easy for major cities in North America.

Shirley says, "Las Vegas and Orlando’s Disneyland are the most popular destinations." Even wheelchair-accessible vans with hand controls and removable driver’s seats are available from Wheelers or Getaways or are owned by major car rental companies. Many cruise ships now have wheelchair-accessible staterooms. Some Caribbean resorts are accessible, although wheelchair
taxis are rare.

Ms. Shelby and other agents have often booked group tours for people with disabilities. But some customers complain about travelling with other people with disabilities and prefer to go alone or on a regular tour.

PARTNERSHIPS IN TRAVEL ’96
Cathy Smart, Director of the Ontario March of Dimes Recreation Program, has conducted tours of people with disabilities to the Himalayas, Holland and the Grand Canyon. Now, she feels, is the time to educate both the traveller with a disability and the tourism industry on the issues.

Ontario March of Dimes is hosting a major accessible travel conference from March 22 to 24, 1996, at the International Plaza Hotel in Toronto. It will include workshops and sessions, personnel training, and an exhibit hall. The aim of "Partnerships in Travel ’96," is to "unite
persons with disabilities, mature travellers and the travel industry to develop a truly accessible world."

Sponsors and exhibitors include Air Canada, Canadian Airlines, Delta Hotels and Resorts, Coast Victoria Hotel, Hotel Association of Canada, Transport Canada, National Transportation Agency, Canadian Wilderness Trips, Via Rail and Princess Cruises.

For more information about the conference, you can call Catherine Smart at (416) 425-3463, ext. 288.

CRUISE SHIPS
Cruises are like having hotel, transportation, meals, gambling, live shows, and stopovers at ports of call, with fun in the sun thrown in.

Most major cruise lines have twigged on to the demographics and know that people with disabilities and seniors are growing in numbers, have money and want to travel. Many of the new ships are totally wheelchair accessible. The Cruise Line International Association publishes a
cruise ship directory for travel agents that includes a quick reference guide for wheelchair accessible ships. Check with your travel agent.

Muriel Lee, of Muriel Lee Cruises in Port Credit, Ontario, talks to the special services department of cruise lines almost daily to ensure needs of a passenger with a disability can be met. This might include, for example, transportation to the ship. Princess Cruise Lines has announced
Access Princess, a cruise ship boasting accessible facilities for passengers with all disabilities, complete with Braille elevator buttons.

A friend and I sailed on a Carnival cruise (the "FUN" ships), having booked a cheap cabin below decks. The sink and toilet were both in the corner shower. The door was about a foot wide. We couldn’t find an accessible washroom on the whole ship. Still, we were determined to sail; the purser had us sign several liability waiver forms.

She then let us have the owner’s cabin on the bridge, behind the wheelhouse. A king-sized bed, queen-sized couch, dining room table, and one-way window overlooking the sunbathing deck soothed our troubled souls during the cruise. They even had the ship’s carpenter build a raised floor in the bathroom with a ramp up to the raised threshold. All this at no extra charge. We also did fairly well at the crap tables.

ESCORTED TOURS
In 1969, I took an escorted tour of England, Scotland and Ireland. The tour operator removed a few seats from a Mercedes Benz coach, built a portable ramp for the front door, and we were on our way.

We saw the changing of the guard inside the courtyard at Buckingham Palace, toured the Lake District and Edinburgh Castle, and drank and sang our way through several Irish pubs in Dublin, Galway, Limerick and Cork. After the pubs, we apparently kissed the Blarney stone. The group enjoyed a medieval feast in an old castle including several goblets of mead. It’s also called lunatic soup.

Tom O’Shaunassey, our tour guide, had a flat Dublin accent and would have put most stand-up comics to shame. He also had a great sense of history. It sounded as if Oliver Cromwell had ravaged Ireland just last week, not in the 17th century.

EUROPE BY RAIL
In Europe, cars, gasoline and parking are all very expensive. Railways in Europe are modern, high speed, fairly accessible and take you right to the heart of the city. While many travellers book sleeping berths, they also miss the scenery.

Almost every railway station is located in the centre of town and is the focal point for all public transportation. Many hotels are in the immediate vicinity. Post offices, barbers, newsstands, restaurants, currency exchanges, tourist information and hotel booking offices are usually in the
stations, too.

Buying a Britrail or Eurail pass for unlimited travel before departure from Canada creates the opportunity to visit 17 countries, from Norway, over to Ireland and south to Italy. You’ll need to study a map of the railways and ferries with timetables to plan your grand tour of Europe. (See
the list of resources with this article.)

INTERNET ACCESS
Accessible San Diego is the United State’s first and foremost information centre for travellers with disabilities. It lists accessible hotels, attractions, local tours and cruises. The Internet address is http://www.electriciti.com/acesssd/#tra.

If the tourism departments of Canadian cities provide the same listings, our tourist dollars are bound to improve.

TOUR OPERATORS
Remember those glossy tour brochures without wheelchair access symbols? The fine print always contains something like this: "All Inclusive Tour Charter holidays and Advance Booking Charter flights are operated pursuant to the rules of the National Transportation Agency and have been approved or are subject to approval by the agency on behalf of Acme Tours."

Ironically, the National Transportation Agency administers a Complaint Resolution program for people with disabilities. If the NTA determines that a traveller with a disability has encountered an "undue obstacle," it may order corrective action upon the carrier to remove the problem and/or provide compensation. These rules apply to scheduled carriers like airlines, railways, ferries and, someday, perhaps inter-city buses. These rules do not apply to chartered tour operators or destinations in foreign counties.

Over 450 Canadian tour companies offer package tours to 67 countries. Adventure Tours, Air Canada Vacations, Sunquest, Signature Vacations and Trafalgar Tours are typical examples of large tour operators in Canada. It is a very competitive business. Read the ads in any newspaper travel section.

None of the marketing managers at the tour companies seem to have twigged onto the disability market the way that the cruise ships, Disneyland, and the adult Disneyworld in Las Vegas have. Las Vegas, with its gambling, good food, live entertainment and, now, theme hotels, has become the most popular destination for seniors, according to Shirley Shelby of Travel Helpers.

Murphy’s Law states, "If anything can go wrong, it will." I have come up with "Murphy’s Rules for Travellers Using Wheelchairs" (see sidebar). These are some rules I’ve learned over the years. (If you have others, I’d love to hear them.) If you can anticipate problems, you will be able to deal with them, and have a great holiday!

(Bev Hallam is a well-travelled individual and wheelchair user, and former Managing Director of the Canadian Paraplegic Association’s national office. He can be contacted by e-mail at: bev.hallam@sympatico.ca.)


RESOURCES:

National Transportation Agency of Canada
Ottawa, Ontario
Joan MacDonald, Director of Accessible Transportation
1-800-883-1813

Ontario March of Dimes
Toronto, Ontario
Catherine Smart, Recreation Director
416-425-3463, ext. 288

Muriel Lee Cruises
Port Credit, Ontario
Muriel Lee, President
905-891-2344

Travel Helpers
Don Mills, Ontario
Shirley Shelby, President
416-443-0583

Thomas Cook European
Timetable and Rail Map
Forsyth Travel Library, Kansas
1-800-367-7984


MURPHY’S RULES FOR TRAVELLERS USING WHEELCHAIRS

There will be thick carpets in all hallways.
"Handicapped" rooms will be farthest away from the elevator.
All bathroom doors will be 18 inches wide or less.
Toilet paper will be at least five feet from the john.
Towels will be hung six inches from the ceiling, over an open toilet.
The toilet seat will be at least two feet above the floor.
All mirrors will be mounted five feet above the floor.
Furniture will be placed in front of drapery pulls.
Light switches will be hidden behind the remaining furniture.
Heating controls will be at least six feet above the floor.
There will never be sliding doors in closets.
Instead, there will be swing-out closet doors in narrow hallways.
The phone will be as far away from the bed as possible.
The dining room, bar, and smoke shop will be down steps.
Elevators will be shut down at 10 pm every night.