WHEELING THROUGH AMERICA: 10 BARRIER-FREE TREASURES FROM BIG CITIES TO NATIONAL PARKS TO EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN

WHEELING THROUGH AMERICA: 10 BARRIER-FREE TREASURES FROM
BIG CITIES TO NATIONAL PARKS TO EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN

By Steve Wright and Heidi Johnson-Wright

Travelers who use wheelchairs have travel tastes as diverse as any able-bodied vacationer.

Wheelers simply have to search a little farther to find barrier-free fun:

The big city with a world-famous landmark that can accommodate people with disabilities gets the booking over one that does not.

The National Park or natural area with trails and visitor centers capable of being traversed by wheelchair gets the nod over those that have neither.

The far flung or middle of nowhere destination with barrier-free attractions get visited, while the attraction that fails to remove barriers gets trimmed from the must see list.

Finding an unexpected treasure – a magnificent park not far from man made monstrosities, an almost too good to be true country inn – makes travel magical for everyone. If such a hidden gem readily accommodates people with physical impairments, that gem becomes the Hope Diamond to the disabled traveler.

During the next 10 days, we will profile 10 diverse wheelchair-accessible destinations across America. They may not be the top 10, but they certainly are barrier-free (Hope) diamonds in the rough.

Tomorrow: The Brooklyn Bridge