It is usually a challenge for travellers with multiple sclerosis or other disabilities to know where they can turn if they want to book their travel, confident that there won’t be any problems with accessibility throughout their trip.
Fortunately there are travel agents who do specifically service people with disabilities. One such innovative agent is Tarita Davenock, President of Tarita’s Travel Connections and an agent with Travel Professionals International (TPI).
Davenock, based in Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada comes about her role helping travellers with disabilities honestly, passionately and with hands-on travel experience.
Life was rolling along nicely for Davenock with two BA degrees to her credit, candidate for a Master’s Degree and a career as a social worker with a specialty in helping children and adults with special needs.
Then at age 29 her dream life was shattered – by a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS).
Rather than retreat from life, she shook it up, looked inward and refocused. Davenock always had a life-long passion for travel and other cultures – so she turned that passion into a new career.
After 13 years with CruisePlus as a very successful travel consultant, she broke out on her own and launched Tarita’s Travel Connections, specializing in accessible travel for travellers with multiple sclerosis or other disabilities and special needs.
Her company motto is “Travel should be inclusive and not exclusive.”
Davenock minces no words in terms of the need for suppliers to get on board and recognize the need for accessible travel options. “I shake my head when I see a hotel claim that they’re accessible. Often they only have one or two modified rooms out of 100. So what if those rooms are booked? Or the washroom in the restaurant doesn’t have a power door?”
We all love to travel. But very few inroads have been made the past few decades even though the number of people with special needs has increased dramatically and will only continue to increase as our baby boomers age.
We look forward to the trail-blazers like Tarita paving the way within the industry so that travel can be a smooth ride, accessible for everyone.
If you are thinking about planning a trip and you want to treated like royalty, you can find Tarita at MSrelief.com or call her at 1-888-993-9295.
Her ultimate goal besides full accessibility? To know that the phrase, “I can’t go there,” has been changed to “I went there.” Bucket lists are not just for the able-bodied.
