In 2004 Rick Steve's Easy Access Europe was published. Brilliant book for all travellers with a wheelchair. Never updated or reprinted.
In 2019 we travelled for 5 months all through the UK including Ireland, Scotland the Orkneys & Paris, Amsterdam, St Petersburg, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Estonia & Germany using this wonderful Book as our base resource tool.
From my wheelchair, I constantly wished that Rick Steve would update and extend this great tool for accessible Travel. There are thousands of disabled people who love travelling and are desperate for good quality, well researched information like this 2004 book.
The hotels have changed, but most of the travel and tourist activities are very much the same, so I was able to use Rick Steve's Easy Access Europe as my go to guide for wheelchair tourism. I loved the confidence that it gave us, to give activities a go and be reassured that someone had done this activity before me.
Please, advise when you will do accessible again???
Posted by
Paris
9570 posts
That sounds like an invaluable resource. It really is a shame that they haven’t updated it more recently. However, I doubt that plans to update this can really go anywhere under the current restrictive conditions.
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23267 posts
My guess is that they did not sell many copies. Things get update/revised when there is a demand.
Posted by
Ottawa
1446 posts
Well, regarding demand...
20 years later and the able backpackers from decades ago are still traveling, but differently. The travel bug never left us but sadly, for an increasing number of us, our ‘mobility’ is not what it used to be.
As so many of us boomers make up the bulk of the RS “blue book” toting tourists in so many European cities, YES! —-> it’s time to address accessibility again in a Europe guidebook, and it will sell.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32752 posts
Please, advise when you will do accessible again???
The only way to know that is to write or call the RS company - Contact Us buttons below.
This is a semi autonomous semi anarchic group of fellow travellers with occasional visits from folks who represent the company, but not often, we are not a contact point for the company.
Welcome to the Forums. Ask away, we will do our best to help. But for the company, ask the company.
Posted by
Ind., United States
317 posts
I was not aware of this resource, but what a great idea! I'm afraid that by the time Europe is again open to us for travel, our mobility will be compromised---food for thought.
Posted by
Sweden
6384 posts
As others have said, this is not the way to contact the tour company. But it is a way to ask questions. So, what are you looking for in an updated version? As you mentioned "most of the travel and tourist activities are very much the same". Accessibility is likely to have improved during the last 15 years with more wheelchair friendly buses and trams being delivered and more hotels having ramps added.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16893 posts
I’m so glad that the old info can still be of use. Readers can download that text and see other links at https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/trip-planning/travelers-with-disabilities. The book wouldn’t have happened without research by accessibility specialists trained (or forced by circumstance) to notice relevant details. In my understanding, Rick doesn’t any current plan to revisit that project.
Posted by
Northern California
93 posts
@dave44sue: Thanks for your post! I'm not in a wheelchair, but I'll mention this book to a relative who has severe mobility issues and really misses traveling. Maybe he can find a used copy somewhere if this is op. I'd never heard of it and I'm guessing others haven't either. By posting here rather than just sending your comment/question to "the RS organization," you've given other Forum readers a helpful resource -- and you did get a reply from the RS organization! At some point down the road, RS could consider reprinting the book sans hotel and restaurant info (which some Forum readers think are the weakest part of his books anyway), if the info is still quite relevant. RS is not going to know how much of a demand there is, 20 years after he first published the book, if he hasn't advertised it in years!