Family Travel Forum offers some useful websites for disabled travelers, and other resources to plan trips that include every member of the family.

"Cruising is the No. 1 choice for travelers with disabilities," according to Laurel Van Horn, Editor-in-Chief of Open World, a magazine of destination ideas and medical tips for disabled and mature travelers.

"It's such an easy thing -- you only have to unpack once and everything is accessible when you're aboard. More ships are adding boarding ramps for wheelchair users so they can join shore excursions."

Families with disabled members will find the Society for the Advancement of Travel for The Handicapped (SATH) site very useful, particularly the travel features from Open World.

Online Resources for the Handicapped

There are several well-crafted websites on the topic of handicapped/disability travel, but one of the pioneers is the Access Able Travel Source which offers tours, resources and travel tales for the hearing- or sight-impaired and the physically handicapped, plus a newsletter and links to relevant sites.

Other valuable online resources include www.GimpontheGo.com and www.emerginghorizons.com, homespun yet comprehensive websites managed by handicapped travelers, with their own publications.

Most major Visitor & Convention Bureaus publish special guides for the mobility, hearing or visually impaired: Toronto With Ease and the Virginia Travel Guide for Persons with Disabilities are two excellent ones. 

Tour Operators & Travel Agents Cater to Special Needs

With the increasing retirement rate among the Baby Boomer Generation, travel into the senior years has become big business, with many companies geared to meet the special needs of elderly, infirm, mobility-impaired and otherwise handicapped travelers. For cultural and adventure tours open to both the disabled and to children, explore the Specialty Travel Index magazine.

For a travel specialist who is knowledgeable about the accessibility features of resorts, cruise ships, and organized tours consult the ASTA site; visitors may search their database of members by zip code.