by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 3:17 PM ET, Mon March 22, 2021
Handiscover, a leading accessibility and disability data organization, found that over a third of people with disabilities in America say that hotels have not met their accessibility needs.
It is estimated that 60 million people in the United States live with a long-term illness or disability that requires specific accessibility requirements. With improved accommodations, accessibility information and better training, the U.S. travel industry could grow by 25 percent, earning almost $200 billion more each year in GDP, which could help the industry recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Handiscover has released its free resource, the Accessibility Standard for Hotels, which hotels can use as a guide to make their own improvements.
Businesses can also sign up for Handiscover's Accessibility Management Program, which combines data and marketing expertise to help market to those with disabilities, as well as Accessibility & Disability Education to make improvements in accessibility.
"Ever since we launched Handiscover, our aim has simply been to use accessibility data to make booking accommodations easier for those with disabilities," said Sebastien Archambeaud, CEO at Handiscover. "We now want to take the knowledge and experience we have working with those with accessibility needs and help hotels and accommodation providers improve accessibility and knowledge. We want to let businesses know that improving accessibility is not a cost burden, but a means to actually improve business by catering to more customers."
Handiscover is also a hotel booking engine, which examines thousands of hotels across the world and categorizes them into three mobility categories, so people with disabilities can book accommodations without worrying if they'll be able to actually use them once they arrive in their destination.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
