Trailblazers in accessible travel – Award winners

Award winners Trailblazers in accessible travel

Pioneers, front runners and educators in accessible travel

Trailblazers in accessible travel – The Accessible Travel Foundation is the non profit affiliate for AccessibleTravel.Online.

One of the foundation goals is to raise awareness, as the world of accessible travel needs specialists and out-of-the-box thinkers making it possible.

Award winners

In 2019, true Trailblazers in the industry received the first ATO Awards of Excellence.

5 categories

In 5 categories some outstanding entrepreneurs deserve their place in the spotlight.

• Accessible Travel Accommodation
• Accessible Travel Product
• Accessible Travel App
• Accessible Travel Agency and
• Accessible Favorite by Public Vote

2019 WINNERS – INTERNATIONAL

Accessible Accommodation  – Great Ocean Stays

Accessible Travel Products – Access Trax by Acces Trax

Accessible Travel App WelcoMe by Neatebox

Accessible Travel Agency – Sano Touring

Accessible Favorite of the Year – Lazarillo App

To read the stories of these trailblazers scroll some more!

Christine Smith – Accessible Travel Accommodation

Australia

In Ocean Grove, Victoria, you will find 4 fully accessible luxury holiday rentals, near the famous Ocean Road and minutes from the beach.

Christine Smith, multi award winning disability advocate, mom of 4 and above all excellent travel entrepreneur is setting the tone for fully accessible properties.

The 4 houses available through her company Great Ocean Stays are fully equipped with accessible kitchen, bathroom and bedroom interiors.

We did not have to think long to decide that the ATO Award of Excellence in the first special edition of Trailblazers in the category of Accessible Travel Accommodation is given to Christine Smith.

Kelly Twichel – Accessible Travel Product

United States

Kelly Twichel from San Diego is a beach person, as everyone in California is!

During her studies in occupational therapy, she got involved in a product challenge.

The result is the absolutely innovative Beach Trax, now officially Access Trax: a lightweight, foldable pathway to be used on the beach, or any outdoor terrain, empowering people of all mobility types with on-demand access.

In the first year alone, her Trax found their way around the world. From Costa Rica to Japan to Europe and of course in the United States.

Kelly’s company Access Trax has been nominated for and has won awards several times – we know this trailblazer will be doing a lot of traveling!

It is our pleasure to give Kelly the first ATO Award of Excellence in the first special edition of Trailblazers in the category of Accessible Travel Product.

Gavin Neate – Accessible Travel App

United Kingdom

Award winning Welcome app was created by Gavin Neate, a brilliant entrepreneur from Scotland.

Gavin, a former guide dog instructor, has worked with people with a disability for almost 25 years.

He developed WelcoMe, after identifying a real problem with staff training and disability awareness. In today’s digital world, we are more connected than ever. Gavin believes in true societal change, Welcome is a great tool for that.

By using his knowledge and experience, combined with technology, the Welcome app was born in 2017.

In a very short period of time, 55 locations across the UK and Ireland subscribed to this service. (banks, governments, galleries, councils and airports).

We are delighted to share Gavin Neate receives the ATO Award of Excellence in the first special edition of Trailblazers in the category of Accessible Travel App.

Cristina Caluianu – Accessible Travel Agency

Romania

Cristina is a true entrepreneur with vision. Always choosing quality over quantity and aiming for the best.

She has many skills that are crucial to reach her goal: put Romania on the accessible travel map. Her travel agency Sano Touring (Accessible Romania by Sano Touring) is a true favorite among travelers in Romania.

She has years of experience in the travel industry, in consulting projects in tourism and knows several languages too.

Cristina can easily switch between having a one on one conversation sharing tourist info with one of her clients visiting Romania and consulting management on the highest level, sharing her knowledge as a consultant in European projects related to accessible tourism or cultural heritage.

Cristina is always seeing the greater picture of contributing to society at large; she receives the ATO Award of Excellence in the first special edition of Trailblazers in the category of Accessible Travel Agency.

Rene Espinoza – Accessible Favorite by Public Vote

Chile

Lazarillo – a navigation app for the blind and visually impaired.

The Lazarillo app provides orientation everywhere in the world having more than 140.000 users in 29 countries.

Anyone can download Lazarillo and start using it right away. Besides the app Lazarillo there is a platform they use to map locations that don’t exist on any map, like University campuses, hospitals buildings, shopping centers, tourist parks and more.

In 2019 the Lazarillo app won the Award of Excellence Accessible Favorite by Public Vote with 432 votes.