Booking an accessible hotel room through an online consolidator may soon become a reality; thanks to a recent settlement agreement between disability rights advocates and Hotels.com. Although the forthcoming changes will undoubtedly open up those last minute deals and internet specials to disabled travelers; it's also hoped that the settlement will set a precedent that other consolidators will voluntarily follow.

How Hotel Consolidators Work
Hotel consolidators, like Hotels.com, buy blocks of hotel rooms and resell them to the public at substantial discounts. The good news is, you can save anywhere from 20 percent to 50 percent off the rack rate by booking through a consolidator. The downside is that most hotel consolidators merely treat reservations for accessible rooms as requests.

Even worse, the reservation is not held in the customer's name; so it's virtually impossible to call the property directly to inquire about the availability of an accessible room. In most cases, specific rooms are not assigned until the day of arrival; and if an accessible room isn't available, the customer is just given a standard room. And when a customer complains, they are reminded that accessibility is only treated as a request.

The Case of Denying Accessibility
Obviously this procedure won't work for anyone with access needs; a concept that wasn't lost on Bonnie Lewkowicz. As an avid traveler, and professional dancer Bonnie became increasingly frustrated at being shut out of the bargains on hotels.com, just because she needed a wheelchair-accessible room.

"It just didn't seem fair that travelers with disabilities were unable to take advantage of the convenience and low cost options of booking hotel rooms online,” recalls Bonnie. So she resolved to do something about it.

Ultimately Bonnie teamed up with fellow Axis Dance Company member Judith Smith, who was equally frustrated about the situation; and together they attacked the issue legally. Subsequently the case became Smith v. Hotels.com, with the plaintiffs represented by Berkeley-based Disability Rights Advocates.

In an unusual legal move, the lawsuit didn't ask for any monetary damages, but instead asked for injunctive relief from Hotels.com. In short, the plaintiffs wanted the judge to compel Hotels.com to change their policies about reserving wheelchair-accessible rooms.

The Settlement: Accessibility Wins
In the end, the plaintiff's legal strategy paid off, as Hotels.com agreed to a settlement, rather than taking their chances in court. Under the terms of the settlement, Hotels.com and Expedia will include details about accessible rooms on their website; and give travelers with disabilities some personalized attention in the reservation process.

In many cases, travelers will be able to reserve a wheelchair-accessible room. It won't exactly be a point, click and book option, but a trained customer service representative will work with each customer with a disability to make sure an accessible hotel room that meets their needs is reserved. The deadline for implementing these changes is September 2009.

"I hope this also sets the standard for other hotel consolidator websites", says attorney Victoria Ni. "After all, they have to compete in the marketplace and this is a very lucrative niche."

Candy Harrington is the editor of Emerging Horizons and the author of Barrier Free Travel: A Nuts and Bolts Guide For Wheelers and Slow Walkers. She blogs regularly about accessible travel issues at www.BarrierFreeTravels.com.

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In search of  accessible hotel rooms? Check out, Finding an Accessible Room Beyond ADA Compliance.

For more useful resources for adaptive tourism, see Resources for Traveling with Disabilities.