Many hotels and restaurants in North Carolina now provide easy access, and some display the international wheelchair symbol in their brochures. It's always a good idea to call before you book to find out just what the situation is.
Many travel agencies offer customized tours and itineraries for travelers with disabilities. Among them are Flying Wheels Travel (tel. 507/451-5005; www.flyingwheelstravel.com), Access-Able Travel Source (tel. 303/232-2979; www.access-able.com), and Accessible Journeys (tel. 800/846-4537 or 610/521-0339; www.disabilitytravel.com).
Organizations that offer assistance to disabled travelers include MossRehab (www.mossresourcenet.org), the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) (tel. 800/232-5463; www.afb.org), and SATH (Society for Accessible Travel & Hospitality) (tel. 212/447-7284; www.sath.org). AirAmbulanceCard.com is now partnered with SATH and allows you to preselect top-notch hospitals in case of an emergency.
Also check out the quarterly magazine Emerging Horizons (www.emerginghorizons.com).
A helpful website for assistance while traveling in the U.S. is www.disabilityresources.org, a nonprofit group that supplies information about available resources. Just click on the state you are traveling to.
Amtrak, with 24 hours' notice, will provide porter service, special seating, and a discount (tel. 800/USA-RAIL; www.amtrak.com).
The American the Beautiful -- National Park and Federal Recreational Lands Pass -- Access Pass (formerly the Golden Access Passport) gives visually impaired or permanently disabled persons (regardless of age) free lifetime entrance to federal recreation sites administered by the National Park Service, including the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the Bureau of Reclamation. This may include national parks, monuments, historic sites, recreation areas, and national wildlife refuges.
