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Madelyn Plenskofski

RPTM 277

Dr. Reed

8 November 2022

Lack of Accessibility at Hotels

Despite there being a large population of people with disabilities, there are a lot of hotels

that do not properly accommodate these conditions. For this research, I focused on hotels in the

Florida Keys. This is an important site because it is a popular vacation destination for many, so it

is important to ensure that hotels there are able to accommodate people with disabilities. This is

obviously an area with many beaches, so it is also important to focus on beach accessibility at

resorts and hotels in addition to rooms and services inside.

An article from Mews details some components that all hotels should have in order to

compensate for different disabilities. The article states “These rooms…are required to include

roll-in showers, toilets with bars on the sides, wide entryways to accommodate wheelchair

maneuvering and other elements…” (Lacalle, 2022). Although these are all very important and

will be touched on further throughout the paper, I noticed not many sources mention beach

access. This is equally as important to the rest of the components when dealing with hotels in

vacation/beach areas, like the Florida Keys.

My main goal is to ensure that all hotels and resorts in the area are doing the best they

can to serve people with disabilities, not only in their room, but also provide beach, water, and

pool access easily to them.

Title III and Other Background Information

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Regarding the regulations on accessibility in hotels, most of these can be found in Title

III of the ADA. This part of the ADA discusses the necessary accommodations for all public

spaces, which includes hotels. According to Title III, all accessibility accommodations must be

clearly listed on the website or listed over the phone if calling to make a reservation, all

amenities must be accessible for everyone, all staff must be trained on accessibility information,

etc (Lewis 2021). Some could argue that the reason some hotels get away with less

accommodating beach access is because the beach is more of a natural space than an amenity to

hotel offers. In other words, the hotel doesn’t really own the beach, so they may not technically

need to worry about access for those with disabilities. However, in this paper I do focus on beach

access since I think it is a very important aspect of a beach hotel and should still be

accommodating regardless of regulations.

Proposal

For my project, I want to take a look at different hotels in the Florida Keys to see what

sort of accommodations they offer. From there, I would like to make them the best they can be,

focusing on aspects of the room, but with more focus on beach access. The hotels I am looking at

include Playa Largo Resort and Spa, the Guesthouses at Southernmost Beach Resort, and

Margaritaville Beach House Key West.

Playa Largo Resort and Spa

I have actually stayed at this resort, so I have seen firsthand what they offer. Starting with

the rooms, I think the first thing to work on would be installing handlebars and shower seats.

Looking at the pictures, it does not look like these are already included. It also does not look like

the showers are roll-in, which can lead to troubles for people in wheelchairs or needing walkers.

An article from Patient Safety USA explains the importance of having these grab bars. “Grab
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bars can allow people with limited mobility to perform everyday tasks that might otherwise

require assistance. Handrails in or around showers and tubs can help them to safely bathe, and

bars around toilets can help them to use the restroom privately and comfortably” (Bathroom

Grab Bars, 2022).

Regarding my main focus, beach access, this could use a lot of improvement. Through

personal experience and looking at pictures of the resort, I know that although they do have a

little paved trail to the beach, it ends too far up to really be much help to anyone who needs it. In

addition to this, the only access to the water is down sets of stairs built into the sand. To improve

this, a ramp should be added near the steps as a way for people unable to use stairs to be able to

get in the water and enjoy the beach.

The Guesthouses at Southernmost Beach Resort

While researching this resort, the main thing I noticed is how impractical it could be for

anyone living with a disability. For starters, there are stairs everywhere. It seems like an old

building and, because of this, there does not seem to be an elevator anywhere. This should be one

of the first and most important actions in order to make this hotel more accommodating because

right now it is almost impossible for a person with disabilities to stay here since they really can’t

access anything. This hotel is only two stories high, and although the requirement is that hotels

more than two stories high must include an elevator (Falstad, 2013), I think it would be a useful

practice for them to include one anyway. This will help them be more inclusive and allow more

people to stay at their hotel.

The Guesthouses’ property does not sit on the beach, so they don’t have any way to allow

beach access through the hotel anyway. However, they do have a pool with only a stair entrance.
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In order to allow everyone to enjoy the pool, they should build a ramp entrance into the water,

and maybe even include some sort of chair lift to get in and out like some pools offer.

Margaritaville Beach House Key West

Out of the hotels mentioned, I think this is the most accommodating one. I wanted to

include it as a good example while also exploring ways to make it even better. On the hotel

website they have a list of accessibilities including handrails, elevators, roll-in showers,

wheelchair accessible pathways throughout, and even wheelchairs on site. I like how they

included this list, as it was hard to find when researching other hotels. This is a great way to

practice inclusivity and make it easy for people to look into what is offered.

Regarding beach access, this one has the beach go right up to the water instead of stairs,

so it is easy for people with disabilities to get into the water. However, I do think this hotel could

also use a paved or rubber walkway along the sand down to the water. It doesn’t have to be huge

or take up the whole beach, but one of these paths would allow easy beach and water access to

those in wheelchairs or those who would struggle to walk on the sand because of the uneven

surface.

I think it would be most useful to try to begin these changes as early as possible, and also

include them on websites and advertisements as a way to promote it. This will help to spread the

word, welcome a more inclusive environment, and help to make people with disabilities feel

welcomed and cared for.

Conclusion

To summarize, despite the ADA regulating rules for hotels and resorts, a lot of hotels

actually do not follow all the necessary components to consider the hotel accessible. According
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to a study by Wheelchair Travel, a lot of hotels will include the necessary items that are visible

from the street, like wheelchair access to pools or entrances, as a way to seem accommodating to

someone taking a glance while driving or walking by, but not include the other important

requirements in spaces that are not as easy to see (Morris, 2018).

Because of this, it is important to research hotels and bring to light which regulations they

are not following. A lot of them also forget about things that may not seem as important or may

not be regulated, like the beach access I focused on for a lot of my research. This is a very

important aspect considering the people are most likely staying there for the beach.

By including these accommodations, people with disabilities will have a much easier

time accessing and enjoying everything these vacation destinations have to offer. This will make

for a much more inclusive environment and is also a great way to stand out as an accommodating

hotel that people would want to stay at.

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Accessible Lodging. (n.d.). ADA National Network.

https://adata.org/factsheet/accessible-lodging

Bathroom Grab Bars. (2021, September 16). Patient Safety USA.

https://www.patientsafetyusa.com/blog/bathroom-grab-bars/

Falstad, H. (2013, January 31). ADA compliance rules for hotel elevators and stairs. Access

Advocates. http://accessadvocates.com/ada-compliance-rules-for-hotel-elevators-and-stairs/

Lacalle, E. (2022, November 2). A guide to accessible hotel rooms | Mews Systems.

https://www.mews.com/en/blog/accessible-hotel-rooms

Lewis, E. (2021, May 26). Webinar Wrap-Up: Title III of the ADA: How Does it Apply to

Hotels, Restaurants, and Businesses? 3Play Media.

https://www.3playmedia.com/blog/the-ada-and-business/

Morris, J. (2018, April 17). Study: Major ADA Violations in 87% of Budget Hotel Rooms.

Wheelchair Travel. https://wheelchairtravel.org/ada-accessibility-budget-hotels/

PLAYA LARGO RESORT & SPA, AUTOGRAPH COLLECTION - Updated 2022 Prices &

Hotel Reviews (Key Largo, FL). (n.d.). Tripadvisor.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g34344-d8541447-Reviews-Playa_Largo_Resort_Sp

a_Autograph_Collection-Key_Largo_Florida_Keys_Florida.html