Accessible business travel: how to plan every step

Employees with disabilities or reduced mobility travel for work like any other professional: they visit clients, attend conventions, take part in training and represent the company in other cities. What changes is the level of planning. A wheelchair that is not waiting at the aircraft door, an “accessible” room without grab bars or a transfer vehicle without a ramp can turn a simple trip into a difficult day.

Since 1989, ArrowTur has been organizing corporate travel, and we know that accessible business travel cannot be sorted out the day before. It depends on information shared well in advance, on suppliers who deliver what they promise and on a travel policy that treats the subject as a normal part of the process. This guide shows how to prepare each stage of the trip.

Start with a conversation with the traveler

No one knows the traveler’s needs better than the traveler. Before booking anything, have a straightforward conversation, ideally recorded in the company’s traveler profile, about points such as:

• The kind of support needed at the airport: a wheelchair to the aircraft, help boarding, assistance during connections.
• Equipment that travels along, such as the traveler’s own manual or power wheelchair, walker, crutches or medical devices.
• Whether a companion or a guide dog is needed.
• Hotel room requirements: accessible bathroom, roll-in shower, bed at a suitable height, visual alarms for deaf travelers.
• Ground transportation preferences and the minimum time needed between appointments.

With this information on file, the company and the agency do not need to ask everything again on every trip, and the traveler does not have to explain personal details over and over.

Flights: how to request special assistance

In Brazil, special assistance for passengers who need it is regulated by ANAC, the Brazilian civil aviation authority. The general rule is simple: the need must be reported to the airline when the ticket is purchased, with details of the equipment and support required. The regulation also covers cases in which the airline requires a companion and specific rules for carrying mobility aids such as wheelchairs.

ANAC is currently reviewing this regulation, so deadlines and conditions should be checked against ANAC’s official passenger guidance (in Portuguese) and with the airline at the time of booking. Some good practices do not change:

• Report everything when booking and reconfirm with the airline a few days before the flight.
• Choose direct flights. Every connection is one more point where assistance can fail.
• If there is a connection, allow plenty of time for assisted deplaning and moving between gates.
• Power wheelchairs require information about the battery type, which the airline needs in advance.
• Arrive early at the airport and check in at the airline counter to activate the assistance.

On international flights, each country and airline has its own rules, which makes booking early, with help from someone who knows the process, even more important.

Hotels: what to check before confirming

“Accessible room” does not mean the same thing at every hotel. Before confirming the booking, check:

• Door widths and turning space in the room and the bathroom.
• Grab bars, a roll-in shower, a shower seat and the height of the sink and toilet.
• Step-free access from the hotel entrance to the elevator, the restaurant and the meeting rooms.
• Features for deaf or low-vision guests, such as visual alarms and tactile signage.
• Accessible parking spaces, if the traveler will be driving.

Hotels usually have only a few accessible rooms, so booking early is essential. Ask the hotel to confirm in writing that the room booked is the accessible one, not just the room category.

Ground transportation and meeting venues

Getting between the airport, the hotel and meetings needs the same care. Transfers with adapted vehicles, ramps or lifts should be booked in advance, because there are far fewer of them than regular cars. Ride-hailing apps offer accessible options in some cities, but availability varies a lot.

It is also worth confirming the accessibility of the destination itself: the client’s office, the convention center or the plant to be visited. A quick note to the host prevents the employee from arriving to find stairs with no alternative.

What to include in the travel policy

The travel policy can make accessibility part of the process rather than an exception negotiated on every trip:

• Authorize direct flights, hotel categories and adapted transfers when needed, even outside the standard cost limits.
• Cover the companion’s travel, when required, as a company expense.
• Set booking lead times that allow enough time to arrange assistance and accessible rooms.
• Make sure the health information provided is used only to organize the trip and shared only with the suppliers who need it, in line with the LGPD, Brazil’s personal data protection law.

Accessible corporate travel with ArrowTur

ArrowTur takes care of the details that make a difference for travelers with disabilities: we record their needs in the traveler profile, request special assistance when issuing the ticket, prioritize direct flights, confirm the accessible room with the hotel and book adapted transfers. Our team is available Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (Brasília time), with emergency support outside those hours if anything changes along the way. Learn about our corporate travel solution or register your company.

To talk to our sales team, call +55 11 5189-4120 or message us on WhatsApp.

Read also: How to choose a business travel hotel.

Frequently asked questions

When should I request special assistance from the airline?

When the ticket is purchased, stating the type of support and equipment. Reconfirm a few days before the flight and check the current ANAC and airline rules.

Can the traveler’s wheelchair go on the flight?

Yes. Mobility aids such as wheelchairs are carried by the airline, but power models require prior information about the battery. Report everything when booking.

How can I make sure the hotel room is really accessible?

Ask the hotel for written confirmation of the accessible room and its features, such as a roll-in shower and grab bars, before finalizing the booking.