DisabledTravelers.com Travel Blog

Where in the world is YOUR next vacation?
Photo by: Sachin Ghodke (Stock Exchange)

Hello, everybody! Are you excited for the holidays yet? I just finished decorating the house, myself, and I’m looking forward to all the excitement of Christmas and New Year.

For most of us, this is a time of reflection where we take stock of what we accomplished and plan for the future.

So, to help encourage all the disabled travelers out there, I’d like to talk about my own “travel resolutions” for this year. I know it’s a bit early, but you can never start too soon if you want a fun and safe trip!

Resolution #1: Take Another Trip in the U.S.

Ever since my first journey abroad, to London and Oxford, I’ve been doing my best to visit new locales throughout Europe every few years. Naturally, this requires a lot of saving up and big-time planning … so finally, my friends have suggested I take my next trip in the good ol’ United States. Now, there are places throughout the U.S. I’d like to visit. In fact, I’ve been meaning to take a camping trip for a while now; drop by AllCampgrounds for a great overview of accessible state and national parks.

But, not all of my usual “travel buddies” are camping enthusiasts. I wanted something unique, so with some encouragement, I finally decided that my next adventure would be in Sin City itself: Las Vegas, Nevada. A while ago I posted a review of accessible hotels in Las Vegas in response to a viewer question, and I’ve heard good things about the area – there are a lot of businesses that are mindful of disabled travel needs and competing actively for your tourism dollar. But, that said, I’ve never actually been to Vegas – heck, I don’t even know how to play poker!

But I can’t resist the lure of a completely new travel experience, so look for my posts on this sometime around mid-year.

Resolution #2: Try Some Place “Wild”

Now, by this I don’t mean the Outback, though Disabled Travelers has been there twice: once to talk about getting around and once to highlight top accessible attractions. What I crave is something to see that most folks don’t even think about when they’re on vacation. I know this might pose certain accessibility challenges, but as it happens, I came across just the place while reading the news a few days back. Apparently, Ukraine is lifting travel restrictions on the Chernobyl disaster site.

(A good base for this is the beautiful city of Kiev, which I’ll be covering in a post soon!)

Don’t get me wrong – I have mixed feelings on this kind of place becoming a “tourist trap,” and it’s wise to wait and see how local authorities will handle increasing traffic through the area (some visitors are already permitted.) At the same time, sites like Chernobyl have a lot to teach, and I think it’s good for world travelers to be daring and move off the beaten path when we can.

I’ll be keeping an eye on this and I’ll post new developments in the blog!

Resolution #3: Learn to Use a Camera!

I have to admit, I’m no hotshot when it comes to cameras. True, some places are just plain hard to photograph – Notre Dame comes to mind, for those daring enough to flout the warning not to photograph the interior – and sometimes, things happen a bit too fast to center in your lens. But I’m the kind of guy who loves travel photos, and even with modern digital cameras, there’s a lot of skill that goes into taking really excellent pics.

Of course, there plenty of neat ways to enhance your trip. Great photography is definitely one, as long as you don’t find yourself looking through the viewfinder too much. Learning a bit of the local language is a definite help, depending on where you’re going. (For example, it was surprisingly hard to find someone to help in English while visiting Paris; but most folks in Stockholm were very fluent.)

So, what’s your favorite way to spice up your trip? Do you have a special gadget, a skill, or any other tricks that help you get the most out of your journeys? Do you have a travel resolution you’d like to share, or even a recommendation to help me achieve mine?

If any of these apply to you, Disabled Travelers wants to hear more! Feel free to contact me – now or any time – by commenting on this entry or sending me an email at my new address: disabledtravelers@gmail.com I’ll be glad to hear from you!

Si