- Neurodivergent travelers and people with non-visible disabilities may find vacation travel particularly challenging due to unpredictable situations and environments.
- Preparing distractions, practicing travel scenarios at home, and understanding your or your travel companion's needs are good ways to prepare for a trip.
- Travelers should research airport amenities and services to better understand the resources available.
Holiday travel brings crowds and unpredictability to airports across the country, which can be frustrating and stressful for everyone. But for neurodivergent travelers and those with other non-visible disabilities, it can be particularly taxing.
“The biggest challenge is the unknown of timelines and procedures – it’s the unknown,” said Alan Day, co-founder and CEO of Autism recheckedtold USA TODAY.
If you're getting ready to take flight this vacation and have special accessibility or adaptability needs, or if you're traveling with someone who does, here are five ways to make travel a little more fluid. But remember that these are not blanket solutions. Every situation is different.
1. Practice at home
One of the best things to do to prepare for a trip, especially for children on the autism spectrum, is to try solutions at home, Day said. It is important to do this well before arriving at the airport.
“For a child on the spectrum, you don't know in advance if they're going to tolerate it, so try it at home,” Day added.
Items like EarPlanes earplugs may help some adjust to cabin pressure, while others may find them uncomfortable to wear. Meanwhile, hard candy or chewing gum may also be a solution for some travelers, less palatable for others.
“You are the expert when it comes to your child. Think about how your child will react in a given situation. It's universal; think of your child as a unique individual,” Day said.
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2. Pack accordingly
Bringing distractions is helpful for travelers of all abilities, and this is especially true for neurodivergent travelers.
“Travel with more than one attention holder,” Day said, whether it's books, movies, video games or a toy you or your child particularly likes. “Just have things ready to shoot so you don’t miss things that will capture their attention.”
He added that it's a good idea to store these distractions in a personal item, which fits under the front seat, rather than in a carry-on bag that must be stored in the overhead compartment to ensure access throughout of the flight.
3. Defend your interests or those of your traveling companion
THE Tournesol program for hidden disabilities is active in many airports and can be a way for travelers with all kinds of disabilities to get help.
Lynn Smith, the program's U.S. regional director, told USA TODAY that wearing a sunflower lanyard participating airports signals to staff that you are willing to be approached and asked if you need help.
“If you feel like you need help at the airport, I would put the symbol on. I would travel with it. You'll probably be contacted if you see an airline employee, and they'll ask if they can help you,” she said. “If they need help, great. If they don't want attention, they can put it in their pocket. »
If you need additional help for any reason, advocates emphasize that it's no big deal and are actually encouraged to ask for what you need.
For example, Day said many neurodivergent travelers may struggle with inaccurate information, making interruptions such as flight delays particularly stressful.
“Ask for as specific information as possible, but take it with a grain of salt,” he said, because flight delay times can change and, especially for parents of autistic children, you don't want to set expectations only to have them change again.
4. Plan Ahead
Both Day and Smith stressed that it's essential to get as much information as possible about your trip's waypoints in advance.
“When you're traveling, I would go to the airport website, and I think they probably already do this, but I would search: Do they have the sunflower program? Do they have quiet spaces? Do they have comfort dogs? See what the services are, see where the locations are,” Smith said.
Day added that contingency plans for any possible setbacks are also a good idea.
5. Avoid connecting flights when possible
Day also said it's best to avoid connecting flights as much as possible, because fewer flights means less chance of something going wrong.
“Connecting flights are never great. They pose a greater challenge for neurodiverse children,” he said. “If you can, avoid connecting flights.”
Zach Wichter is a travel reporter for USA TODAY based in New York. You can reach him at zwichter@usatoday.com.
