Travelling to India with disabilities? What to know before you go…
There’s very little infrastructure for those people travelling to India with disabilities. Moving through the chaos on India’s streets and roads is frustrating enough for the sprightliest of travellers, let alone someone with mobility issues. Access to buildings will mostly be difficult, but on the plus side there’ll usually be some person nearby to provide a helping hand.
Finding a clean public toilet in India would be a bit like finding water in the desert, so the idea of finding a clean public toilet with easy access might be compared to discovering water on the moon! On the other hand it’s entirely possible for a traveller with disabilities to enjoy an adventure in India, provided you’re willing to pay for private car hire and mid-luxury guesthouses along the way. Facilities are improving all the time and many of the key tourist sites now have ramps for chair users (always check before you go). Several airports (particularly those with international flights) have also received a huge refurbishment in recent years and are now well equipped with easy access toilets and other facilities for travellers with disabilities.
Travelling in India with a disability may feel restricting at times compared to other tourist destinations and I would strongly advise taking an able-bodied companion along with you, who can scout out any hindrances and facilitate the crossing of any unforeseen hurdles along the way. I tend to advise people not to make any concrete plans when travelling in India, but if you’re travelling with mobility issues, then I would say it’s much better to have a pre-determined programme in place before you travel. Try to communicate with hotels and tour operators in advance to determine that your proposed itinerary is possible based upon your own requirements.
There are a lot less tour operators offering bespoke packages for accessible tourism in India than one would wish for. I suppose this is indicative of the fact that India still remains to be a challenging travel destination for the disabled traveller and I hope that more options become available in the near future as India steps up to become a new world power. For the time being I would highly recommend booking a tour with these guys…