More Autism Friendly Vacation Ideas

autism friendly vacation

Our blog post – Top 5 Autism Friendly Vacation Spots – was one of our highest trafficked posts for that year. So with more hotels, resorts and theme parks making efforts to provide an enjoyable and safe experience for families impacted by autism, we decided to do a follow-up post with even more autism friendly vacation ideas.

That previous post included Sesame Place®, LEGOLAND Florida, Surfside Beach, South Carolina, Dollywood and Tradewinds Resort. We also did an addendum to share about VillaKey, provider of autism friendly vacation rentals in Florida.

Thankfully we are seeing lots of places becoming “autism friendly” – and when they make these efforts they are creating inclusive places for everyone to enjoy. Hotels, resorts and theme parks are providing training for their staff about autism. They are creating quiet rooms and sensory rooms for individuals who get overwhelmed and need a place to relax. They are adding safety measures for kids who are prone to wander. All of these thoughtful efforts benefit families with an autistic child, but also kids with Down syndrome and even typical kids. By doing so, they are opening up vacation opportunities for families who never dreamed of going to some of these places.

So here are a few more autism friendly vacation ideas to add to your list.

Heading to Florida

Disney World – Orlando 

Disney World is a destination for many families with young children. For those with an autistic child, Disney has some accommodations to help make your time there more enjoyable. If you are considering a vacation there, look into their Disability Access Service Pass that allows pass holders to avoid lines at rides. They also have Disney’s Strollers as Wheelchairs program, which is a special safety measure for kids who wander, or who need a familiar seat to feel safe and secure. For qualifying children, this program allows kids to remain in their strollers while on a ride or visiting an attraction. Disney also offers a visual guide of the park for individuals with disabilities that you can download before you go. There are a number of additional accommodations for individuals with autism, like Rider Switch, Break Areas and Companion Restrooms.

Discovery Cove – Orlando 

Earlier this year Discovery Cove, Orlando became a Certified Autism Center. Discovery Cove is SeaWorld’s all-inclusive family resort. They have created accommodations and supports for individuals with autism and other sensory needs. As explained on their website – staff receive specialized training to ensure all guests have an enjoyable experience. Training focuses on: sensory awareness, motor skills, autism overview, program development, social skills, communication, environment, and emotional awareness. They offer a Sensory Guide that provides details on their attractions and how a person with sensory issues may respond to each experience so that families can plan accordingly. Another benefit Discovery Cove offers is they limit the number of daily attendance of 1,000 guests. So crowd control is built into how they operate.

Closer to Home

Cedar Point

At just over 2 hours away from Metro Detroit, Cedar Point’s autism accommodations can provide for a great get-away for families. Known as the Roller Coaster Capital of the World, they also provide some great services for families with an autistic child or other disabilities. They offer a Parent Swap ride program and KidTrack is a wristband program if your child is known to wander. There is a Family Care Center and other places for a quiet place to take a break and cool down. Additionally, there are several Family Restroom facilities for those who need support. You can download the Cedar Point mobile app to check on ride wait times, attraction accessibility, events and more. And for overnight stays there is Cedar Point’s Hotel Breakers that provides many features to make it a fun get-away.

Hersheypark

For a little bit longer trip but still a doable drive for a long weekend, Hersheypark is about 7 hours from Metro Detroit. They partnered with Parent to Parent of Pennsylvania to make sure their park and attractions are accessible to individuals with disabilities. One feature is their Ride Accessibility Questionnaire – families can answer some questions to receive a detailed list of the rides and attractions suited for your personal family situation. They have several Quiet Areas throughout the park to provide a private place for those who may become over stimulated. Additionally, guests can download a Rider Safety & Accessibility Guide ahead of their visit. And if you have dietary restrictions, you can learn about their allergen information and dining options.

Going Above and Beyond

Morgan’s Wonderland

A park designed to cater almost exclusively to children with special needs? That’s Morgan’s Wonderland, in San Antonio, Texas! It is the world’s first “Ultra Accessible Theme Park”. The park offers an impressive number of traditional and adaptive rides, swings, and activities to suit all ages. Additionally, they have a Sensory Village, and entertainment that teaches messages of inclusion and kindness. And most importantly, children with special needs, including autism, receive free admission! It may be time to start planning a Texas vacation.

International Adventure

Beaches® Resorts

Beaches® is the first IBCCES (International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Studies) and Autism Certified resort company. Their resort locations in Jamaica and the Turks and Caicos islands offer specialized service to families with children with autism and other special needs. These services include mealtime accommodations such as custom dietary needs, kids camps for children of all abilities, and staff trained in autism needs, sensory awareness, motor skills, and more. Additionally, Beaches® partners with Sesame Street® and Autism and offers activities with Julia, the first Sesame Street® character with autism.

Shannon Airport, Ireland

If you’re thinking of traveling through Ireland, be sure to consider Shannon Airport as a thoroughfare! Ireland’s Shannon Airport provides an awareness program for kids with special needs, ensuring a smooth airport experience. Through this program, kids and those with special needs can access a 24-hour sensory room.

In conclusion, many resorts, theme parks and hotels are understanding the needs of autistic individuals. So we hope these autism friendly vacation ideas help spark your imagination to plan a get-away for your family that everyone will enjoy! And let us know if you’ve found another vacation spot that was perfect for your family.

If you found this information helpful, we’d love it if you’d share it with your network!

Top 5 Autism-Friendly Vacation Spots

Does the thought of going on vacation with your child with autism stress you out? Taking an individual with ASD away from their familiar environment and routine, to a place that may not understand their unique needs, is no idea of a vacation for most parents. But thankfully there are many theme parks and resorts who are taking extra steps to create autism-friendly vacation destinations. There really are places that are fun for everyone, including kids with autism spectrum disorder and other developmental needs.

Here’s our list of the top 5 autism-friendly vacation spots:

Sesame Place®, Langhorne, Pennsylvania

As the first theme park in the world to be designated as a Certified Autism Center (CAS), Sesame Place, north of Philadelphia, is a perfect place to enjoy a variety of fun rides, shows and activities for every member of your family. They have earned this designation from the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES). Recognized for their thorough training of their employees on autism, sensory awareness, social skills, communication, motor skills, emotional awareness and much more!

On top of their trained staff, the park also has quiet rooms, noise-canceling headphones and low-sensory areas. They also provide low-sensory parade viewings, special character dining accommodations and meet-and-greet with Julia, Sesame Street’s first character with autism.

LEGOLAND Florida Resort

Located outside Orlando, LEGOLAND Florida added new features in 2017 to become an autism-friendly destination. They created quiet rooms for families to take a break, equipped with noise-cancelling headphones, weighted blankets and LEGO building tables. The resort also offers a “blue hero pass” for guests on the spectrum. The pass allows the guest and their family expedited access to popular attractions.

In addition to specialized training to equip their new employees with skills to more effectively interact with guests on the autism spectrum, the LEGOLAND Training & Development team created social stories to provide an illustrated, step-by-step walk-through of every theme park ride and show. This allows guests to know ahead of time what rides have loud noises, periods of darkness, bright lights or other elements that might be overwhelming for some. All of these special touches makes LEGOLAND Florida stand out as an autism-friendly vacation spot.

Surfside Beach, South Carolina

Proud to be named the world’s first official autism-friendly destination, Surfside Beach, South Carolina is a perfect choice for families wanting a beach vacation that provides specialized options for their child with autism. Located south of Myrtle Beach on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, Surfside Beach is unique in what they do not have – loud or over-stimulating boardwalks and crowded beaches. They also partnered with CAN (Champion Autism Network) to created the CAN Card. Showing the CAN Card is a subtle way to let participating attractions, restaurants, hotels and resorts that they have a family member with autism. Participating businesses are trained in how to accommodate the variety of needs a child with autism can have.

Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee

Situated in the Smoky Mountains, Dollywood features a natural environment with lots of trees for shade, creeks running through the park, and a less crowded feel than many theme parks. Even with this setting, employees observed parents using bathrooms to try to calm overstimulated kids. So the Dollywood team set out to create a haven for families that needed a break. In 2016 they added a Calming Room, which includes items like weighted blankets, fiber optic strands, a teepee and comfy soft places to relax. In 2017 they added a Calming Corner at its water park. Dollywood has definitely shown why they are an autism-friendly vacation spot.

Tradewinds Resort, St. Petersburg, Florida

Recognized as an autism-friendly resort by the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities, Tradewinds Resort on St. Pete Beach offers a wonderful vacation get-away for families who have a child with autism. At check-in they have room safety kits that provide parents with a door alarm, outlet covers and more. Additionally, they offer temporary safety tattoos, highlighting how this resort has thought of many details other places have not. Furthermore, their popular Konk Club (“Kids Only, No Kidding”) staff are trained in autism awareness.  Parents can plan with the staff before they arrive to make their child’s visit as fun and stress-free as possible.  They also created a downloadable social story to prepare kids for their vacation stay at the resort.

We hope these ideas for autism-friendly vacation spots help you to plan a get-away that your entire family will enjoy! And let us know if you’ve found another park or resort that was perfect for your family.

UPDATE July 18, 2018 – VillaKey

We just discovered another great autism-friendly vacation option that we wanted to share! VillaKey is a vacation home rental provider in Florida. They have an entire program dedicated to helping families impacted by autism have an enjoyable vacation.

The VillaKey team is trained to understand autism. They provide a selection of homes screened to meet the needs of children with autism. Some of the features are quiet locations, alarms on doors, odor free cleaning products, and more. Additionally, they offer an Autism Travel Tool Kit with a vacation rental social story and an autism travel check list. And to top it off, they donate $10 from all bookings to VillaKey Cares™ to help defray the costs for families impacted by autism who may not be able to afford a vacation. If you would like to book a vacation home rental through VillaKey, our blog readers can use code VKFRIEND for a discount!