Searching for an accessible holiday in the USA with discounts exclusively for disabled travellers? Look no further. Consider accessibleGO as your one-stop shop for all things stateside.

What is accessibleGo?

Put simply, accessibleGO is an all-in-one platform for disabled travellers. It allows you to reserve hotels and flights, just like any other online booking site – but this isn’t ‘any other booking site’. Not only is it specifically for people with disabilities and their families; what really sets accessibleGO apart from the crowd is the emphasis on community and its attractive discounts.

A treasure trove of information

Similar to Tripadvisor, accessibleGo has recently added a travel forum feature to its website where like-minded travellers can ask questions and share knowledge and personal experiences. Disabled travellers often have a difficult enough time trying to find accessibility information; accessibleGo is helping to address that with the creation of a dedicated online space for accessible travel discussion.

But even if you manage to read through all of the articles on their website, you can find an abundance of hand-picked accessible travel articles shared via the accessibleGo Facebook page.

Additionally, accessibleGo allows and encourages users to leave accessibility reviews for hotels and attractions. By doing so, you are actively improving accessible travel and making it a higher priority for the travel industry. It lets the people know who is doing a good job and who has room for improvement. Oh, and last but by no means least, the best reviews win prizes. Who doesn’t love prizes?

A booking engine that understands accessibility

Now, back to making bookings. At first glance, the hotel, flights, cars and cruises search tool doesn’t look too dissimilar from most others. You choose when you’re going, how long you want to stay, how many rooms and how many people. Simple. But once you press that ‘search’ button, that’s when you notice the difference in the detail.

By inputting an example search for New York, of the 295 hotels available, you can see that 49 are deemed ‘accessible’. The first result – Hilton Garden Inn – is indeed accessible, and you can see some of the features including a step-free entrance and hearing systems on that first page of results. When you click on the result, you can find everything you need to know about the hotel plus reviews.

Customer support that goes the extra mile

At Enable My Trip, we discourage the use of third-party booking sites primarily due to the disconnect in communication between the traveller, the booking site and the hotel. If you don’t check, double-check and check again with your hotel that your requirements will be met upon arrival, the holiday can be ruined. This is, of course, a much more pertinent issue for disabled travellers due to specific needs.

However, accessibleGo nullify that element of risk by contacting the hotel on your behalf to confirm that your room is guaranteed and your personal requirements are catered for. It can’t be understated that this is a huge plus. Once you have completed your booking, a representative from accessibleGo will email you to confirm, or to let you know if the accommodation is unavailable or unsuitable for your requirements. In an era of uncertainty where many companies are prioritising profits over people, it is reassuring to see customer service done right. 

So, who is behind it all?

accessibleGo was co-founded by Miriam Eljas, a serial entrepreneur who started and sold a newspaper in NYC. Miriam was inspired to start the business by Emma Eljas, her mother who was a wheelchair user with multiple sclerosis. Miriam was made acutely aware of the issues and difficulties of accessible travel growing up. Emma and her family often travelled to the Bay Area in Florida to enjoy its beauty. Many venues and attractions were indeed accessible, but many more were not. Even after calling in advance, the family were often given misinformation by well-intentioned staff who did not fully understand Emma’s requirements.

As a teenager, Miriam recalls going to a local cinema with her mother. Again, they were told that the cinema was fully accessible only to find out that, upon arrival, there was a set of stairs from the lobby to the auditoriums. However, the manager, undeterred, retrieved a flimsy, cracked piece of plywood to act as a ramp. Knowing the ‘ramp’ would not be able to bear the weight of Emma and her wheelchair, the pair left the cinema disappointed and frustrated.

The incident left an impression on Miriam. She realised that she could make a difference simply by sharing her knowledge and experiences, much like on other travel websites and forums where reviews detail the quality of an experience, but not the quality of accessibility.

Enter accessibleGo. Founded in 2017 and based in Jerusalem, its vision is to create a platform for travellers with disabilities to access information, share experiences and be inspired to travel the world without obstacles.

By putting the question to their community, “What’s the hardest thing about travelling with a disability?”, accessibleGO identified three key barriers which are reflected in their goals: