Holiday Information for Wheelchair Users
(and other people who have easy access needs)
Welcome to the home page for Disabled Holiday Information (Registered Charity No. 1119972) we hope that you find that it is useful when you are planning holidays, a short break away or a day out.
The website is designed to give travellers with disabilities (whether they are wheelchair users or have other mobility issues) appropriate information on accessible holiday accommodation, attractions, activities and in Shropshire transport to enable them to choose suitable accessible holidays bearing in mind their disability and special needs.
For information about some of the latest additions to our website including new holiday accommodations please check out the News pages. The latest news story is information about a summer sports programme for Children with disabilities in Shropshire.
As well as using our UK searches, if you click on the regions on the left hand menu there is more in depth information for the areas that have been visited by our researchers that includes detailed descriptions of both attractions and accommodation. (n.b. We are currently updating the information on several areas and adding lots of new attractions). The latest area to be added is Cheshire which as well as attractions and accommodation includes a page for accessible countryside trails within the county.
Within the regions the following towns or areas are included Aberystwyth, Anglesey, Bath, Birmingham, Black Country, Blackpool, Bristol, Bude, Cardiff, Carmarthen, Chester, Cheshire East, Cheshire West, Gloucester, Hereford, Ironbridge, Liverpool, Llandudno, Ludlow, Manchester, Nottingham, Oswestry, Peterborough, Redruth, Shrewsbury, Stafford, Strathspey, Taunton, Warrington, Welshpool, Whitchurch, Worcester, Wrexham and York.
Phillip, water skiing in North Wales |
If you have limited mobility it need not limit your ideas for days out or holidays. For more info on this years waterskiing courses please click here. .
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There is a excellent range of places to visit that are accessible for wheelchair users. More information about the Cairngorm Railway can be found on our Strathspey Pages. |
Trevor at the top of the Cairngorm Mountains
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Frank, Kite Buggying on Perranporth Beach in Cornwall |
Throughout the UK there are a wide range of exciting accessible activities. For more info about this sport check out our Redruth pages. |
Most of the accommodation featured on the website's regional pages has been assessed by one of our wheelchair user researchers. This is a 2 bedroomed lodge with a ceiling hoist and profiling bed situated in Shropshire. For more info about the lodge please click here |
Roy accessing the lodge's verandah at Astbury Falls |
Each week we are highlighting one of the many excellent accessible properties included on our UK search
Featured accommodation for the first week in September 2010
Rebecca Cottage
A view of the kitchen showing the accessible units
This week's featured accommodation is Rebecca Cottage (which sleeps up to 7 people) is located on the coast at Carnoustie near Dundee in Scotland and is owned by the Scottish Spina Bifida Association and managed from their centre in Cumbernauld.
The Cottage is fully insulated and centrally heated which enables guests to enjoy their stay even in the winter months. All rooms including the conservatory enjoy stunning uninterrupted views of the sea.
For more detailed accessibility information and a link to their own website please click here.
NB Last weeks featured accommodation was The Old Cow Barn at Llansadurnen Farm which is situated in the rural countryside near Laugharne in Wales. The property has been converted to a high specification from the Original Cow barn that formed part of the farmyard. Although this is now luxury holiday accommodation, many of the original features such as exposed beams have been retained.
Laugharne is an attractive town with a good selection of pubs and restaurants and is where the poet Dylan Thomas wrote many of his works in a small studio called the 'Boathouse'.
Also on site at Llansadurn Farm is a second property called the Mill and Stable which has been adapted to the same standard for use by people with disabilities.
For more information about The Old Cow Barn and a link to their own website please click here.
This feature has proved so popular we now feature a place to visit from our UK attractions search for each week as well.
Featured attraction for the first week in September 2010
Cotebrook Shirehorse Centre
A mare with her young foal in the fields
This week's featured attraction is Cotebrook Shirehorse Centre which is situated near Tarporley approximately 10 miles from Chester. It is home to the internationally renowned Cotebrook Shire Horse Stud with up to 30 stallions, mares and foals on site. As well as the horses, visitors can see a variety of domesticated and wild animals and birds.
There is also a cafe, picnic area and a shop. The farm covers 50 acres and some of the horses are grazed in the fields and the paths to these are uneven and can be muddy. Manual wheelchair users will need the assistance of an extremely able pusher to see the whole site. However for those who cannot attempt this there is still plenty to see around the farmyard and exhibition area including a video about Cotebrook and the horses.
For more detailed accessibility information about Cotebrook, a link to their own website and suggestions of places to stay in the area please click here.
N.B. Last weeks featured attraction was Spaceport which is located in Wallasey near Liverpool. It offers visitors of all ages a chance to try out an interactive exploration of space. On the ground floor there are themed galleries which provide space travel and planetary/solar information as well as a planetarium theatre.
On the upper floor is a Wallace and Gromit exhibition with a wide variety of interactive exhibits and a small cinema showing one of their animated films.
For more detailed accessibility information about this attraction, a link to their own website and to search for accessible accommodation nearby please click here.
More information about this website
Our regional web pages are not designed to give a comprehensive guide to each area but to give a taste of what can be seen and done, it is important to note that there may be other accessible places within the area that we did not visit.
N.B. All accommodation included in the regions has been assessed by one of our wheelchair user researchers for accessibility (unless otherwise stated). For accommodation inspection gradings e.g. Diamond ratings, follow the links to each providers own website.
Our website pages are updated on a weekly basis please check regularly for the latest additions.
We now have four 'Wheelchair Users' guides (one on accessible attractions, one on accessible walks and trails, one on accessible activities and our latest guide for accessible transport ) to accompany the Shropshire webpages. We also have one combined 'Wheelchair Users' guide for Cheshire which includes a selection of accessible attractions, accommodation and countryside trails.
Please click on our Publications page to download these in PDF or if you would like a physical copies sent in the post send an A5 SAE (1 x 1st class stamp per guide required) to the address in contact us. .
As a result of many enquiries we have also compiled a series of factsheets of UK wheelchair accessible holiday accommodation with additional requirements e.g. (one with ceiling hoists , one with wheel in showers and one where both accommodation and care can be provided).
Other fact sheet titles include ' wheelchair accessible accommodation with on-site fishing' and 'holiday information for children with disabilities'.
Our latest fact sheet has been compiled as a result of a specific request and gives information about accessible accommodation where pets are accepted.
You can download each of them in pdf from our Publications page.
Our main pages are UK based, for information on accessible holiday destinations in the rest of Europe or worldwide check out our links page. There is also a factsheet of accessible overseas accommodation either owned by a wheelchair user or recommended by one. We have recently added a fact sheet for travel insurance for those with pre-existing medical conditions You can download them in pdf from our Publications page.
If you prefer we can e-mail or post any of the factsheets above please e-mail us or send A5 SAE (1 x 1st class stamp per fact sheet required) to the address in contact us.