With spring break in the rear view window, many of us are
turning our attentions to summer vacation planning. Although planning a family trip
can be fun, it does have its challenges. After all, coming up with a
destination and itinerary that suits each family member while also adhering to
a timeframe and budget is no small feat. The task can seem even more daunting when
one vacationer requires special accommodations because of a disability.
English entrepreneur, Srin Madipalli, who has spinal
muscular atrophy (SMA) and uses a motorized wheelchair, discovered this first
hand in 2010, when he took six months away from his job at a law-firm to
travel. Madipalli found the experience “eye-opening.”
“It was extremely difficult to
find information on adapted accommodation and transport. A lot of times it
involved hours of searching online, taking a major risk and hoping for the
best. While I enjoyed the challenge, it also felt very frustrating and I'd
often just like the planning to be easy!”
While traveling, Madipalli reached the conclusion that technology could
offer solutions for the frustrations faced by him and other travelers with
disabilities.
“Such systems have revolutionized travel for other customer sectors,
[think: airbnb], so why not for the accessible travel
market?” he wondered.
When he returned to the UK, Madipalli and his childhood friend, Martyn Sibley, an avid traveler who also has SMA, co-founded
an online magazine called Disability
Horizons. The publication covers a variety of topics including employment,
entertainment, relationships, technology, news and travel. Through the
magazine’s online community, Madipalli and Sibley learned that others were also
concerned about the lack of travel resources for those with disabilities. Always
up for a challenge, they decided to see what they could do to change the status
quo.
“I put myself through an MBA at Oxford and taught myself to code, so I
could build the website for Accomable,” says
Madipalli. “The idea is to make everything as transparent as possible for
customers looking for accessible hotel rooms and vacation rentals.”
Each property listed on Accomable includes information about all the
accessible features of that property. Need a place with step-free access and
roll-in showers? Are height adjustable beds and ceiling, mobile or pool hoists
necessary? Would you like to rent a wheelchair when you arrive? The platform
allows you to search for lodgings vetted by the Accomable team, filter listings
according to your needs, make a reservation, rent equipment if necessary, plan
your trip with Accomable’s accessible city guides, get tips and recommendations
from other users and share your experiences with the staff and fellow
travelers. While you’re online, you can view gorgeous photos and read
interesting blog posts about travel-related topics.
Although Accomable started in the U.K., its more than 500 listings are
located all over the world. Last month, the company opened its first U.S.
office in Austin, Texas. “We want to be the easy go-to travel company for all
of these people, and their friends and family, initially for hotel and vacation
rentals, but eventually for specialist car hire, activities and insurance too,”
says Madipalli. “That’s our big push for this year: finding hundreds of great,
quality accessible hotels and rentals across the country.”
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