233 Broadway, 12th Floor, New York, NY 10279 212 334 1300 vera.org

Series: Designing accessible events for 
people with disabilities and Deaf people

Selecting an Accessible Venue

Tip Sheet No. 3

March 2016

One of the first decisions in event planning 
is location. Selecting both a city and 
a venue requires a number of considerations: 
Will it be relatively easy and inexpensive 
for participants to travel to the 
area? Are there venues that are willing to 
work within your budget? Does the venue 
have the type and size of meeting space 
needed? It’s also critical that meeting 
planners consider the possible access 
needs of participants with disabilities 
and Deaf attendees. If the location of 
the event is inaccessible, then the event 
itself cannot be made accessible. This 
tip sheet outlines a process for finding 
and selecting an accessible venue and 
hosting an accessible meeting. 

Choosing an accessible city

The first step in selecting an accessible 
venue is determining the geographic location 
of your event. Some cities are more 
accessible and welcoming to people with 
disabilities and Deaf people than others. 
Consider the following when selecting an 
accessible city:

> Are direct flights available? Transferring 
between more than one flight can be 
difficult for people with disabilities. 
Additionally, many regional aircraft are 
unable to fit wheelchairs in their cargo 
carriers.

> Is accessible transportation available 
in the city? Many taxi fleets do not 
have accessible vehicles. Those that 
do often have few available, making 
them difficult to schedule. Contact 
transportation companies or reach out 
to the visitors bureau before selecting a 
city to determine if there will be ample 
accessible transportation.

> Is there anything in the neighborhood 
surrounding the venue that would 
make it difficult to maneuver, such as 
large hills or lack of curb cuts? Are 



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Selecting an Accessible Venue

there accessible restaurants, shopping, 
or attractions in the general area?

> Is there a reason to hold the meeting 
in a particular location because of 
attendee configuration? For example, 
if several Deaf participants will be 
attending your meeting, is there a particular 
region of the country where you 
know there are qualified interpreters? 

Selecting an accessible venue

Once you’ve identified potential cities in 
which to host the event, your next step will 
be to search for an event property that 
can meet the baseline requirements of the 
ADA and the accessibility needs of your 
participants. Even properties that identify 
as being ADA-compliant may still have 
access barriers, either because of the age 
of the property or because of inconsistencies 
in their application of ADA standards. 
For this reason, you should not rely on the 
property’s self-report. Instead, conduct a 
thorough review by following these steps:

1. Reach out to the hotel to ask about 
the accessibility of the event space, 
the public areas, and guestrooms. 
Ask preliminary questions about the 
property’s accessibility.

 Does the hotel provide an airport 
shuttle?

> Is the shuttle accessible to people 
with disabilities?

Federal legal requirements: the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Title III of the Americans with 
Disabilities Act (ADA) requires any 
business or organization to make all of 
their services available to people with 
disabilities. Organizations and commercial 
facilities must remove barriers 
in existing buildings where it is “readily 
achievable,” meaning easy to do 
so without much difficulty or expense, 
given the entity’s resources. Title III 
also specifies architectural standards 
for new and altered buildings.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act 
prohibits organizations receiving federal 
funding from excluding or denying 
individuals with disabilities an 
equal opportunity to receive program 
benefits and services.



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Vera Institute of Justice

How many ADA-compliant guestrooms 
does the property have? 

> How many of these rooms have 
roll-in showers? 

> Are shower seats affixed to the wall?

> How many have tubs? 

> Are tub seats available in 
these rooms? 

Does the hotel have rooms specifically 
adapted to accommodate Deaf and 
hard of hearing people? 

> How many Deaf kits (also known as 
ADA kits) does the property have? 

> If needed, can the property obtain 
additional Deaf kits?

Is all the meeting space accessible for 
people using wheelchairs?

> Are there accessible restrooms near 
the meeting space?

> Is there an ADA-compliant ramp for 
the stage available?

> Does the ramp have railings?

2. If a property seems promising based 
on the venue’s response to your 
preliminary questions, set up a call 
to discuss your needs in-depth. This 
will give you an opportunity to more 
fully discuss your access needs. It will 
also help you gauge the property’s 
willingness to work with you to enhance 
their accessibility. For example, if the 
hotel indicates that their shuttle is 
not accessible, they may be willing to 
contract with a company that provides 
accessible transportation.

a. The best way to determine if a site 
you’re considering is accessible is 
to see it for yourself. Schedule a 
visit to walk through the hotel with 
the property sales manager. Ask to 

Definitions

A roll-in shower has a floor that is flat 
and rimless, allowing a wheelchair to 
maneuver into the shower stall. 

A tub chair sits inside the tub or 
shower and allows the person to 
take a shower while in a seated position 
rather than standing on the slippery 
bottom of the tub or shower.

A room that is accessible for Deaf/
hard of hearing individuals either 
has permanently or temporarily 
installed equipment which makes 
auditory alerts—a fire alarm, knock at 
the door, or telephone ring—visual.



Selecting an Accessible Venue

review all common areas, including 
public restrooms and the meeting 
space, as well as the accessible guestrooms, 
to ensure they meet the ADA 
requirements. At a minimum, review 
one of each type of ADA room. If time 
allows, review all ADA guestrooms, 
because there are often inconsistencies 
within the same property. Vera’s 
“Considerations for Selecting an 
Accessible Venue” includes measurements 
and considerations for assessing 
the accessibility of a property. Plan 
to spend an hour and a half at each 
site and bring a clipboard, the considerations 
form, and measuring tape. 
During your tour of the property, point 
out to hotel staff access barriers that 
you encounter. This may be the first 
time the hotel has had anyone review 
their property through a lens of accessibility, 
and it’s important for them to 
know what barriers exist so they can 
create a plan to remove them.

b. Although an event property may not 
meet all of your access needs, some 
may have an accessible structure in 
place with inaccessible features they 
are able to change or remove. For 
example, a property may be willing to 
change out toilets that do not comply 
with ADA requirements, cover exposed 
hot water pipes under sinks, or move 
furniture around to allow for clear 
aisle ways.

Working with the hotel

Generally speaking, the property has primary 
legal responsibility for architectural 
access and the event host has primary 
legal responsibility for the accessibility of 
programming. However, because the event 
host is contracting with the hotel and 
bringing guests to that specific site, the 
event host shares in the responsibility of 
ensuring physical access. For this reason, 
approach your relationship with the hotel 
as a partnership and work together to 
ensure you’re both meeting your legal 
responsibilities and are providing the best 
experience for your guests.

The ADA includes minimum standards 
for parking and passenger drop-off 
areas, routes to the building entrance, 
routes to the event space, the meeting 
space itself, restrooms, and guestrooms. 
See the ADA Standards for 
Accessible Design, available at 
www.ada.gov/stdspdf.htm.



Vera Institute of Justice

Reflect best practices in 
the contract

Before signing the contract, ask the hotel 
to specify the rooms you will be using 
during the event. Have them create a 
diagram of the meeting space using 
your anticipated set-up and 36-inch aisle 
ways to accommodate people using 
wheelchairs. Detail the configuration 
requirements for the meeting space, 
including sufficiently wide pathways and 
the provision of an ADA-compliant ramp if 
you will be using a stage. Hold ADA rooms 
as part of your room block and designate 
the number of Deaf kits you may need 
for the event. Specify your expectations 
regarding ADA compliance. Additionally, 
include a relocation clause stating that, in 
the event the hotel is oversold, the guests 
requiring ADA rooms will not be relocated 
to another property.

Train hotel staff

Hotel staff can have a significant impact 
on any guest’s experience, including 
those with disabilities and who are Deaf. 
To ensure the hotel is prepared, request 
that the heads of different departments 
are trained on how to increase staff’s 
comfort and capacity to work with guests 
who have disabilities and Deaf guests. 
Include general tips for working with 
people with disabilities, such as using 
people-first language. Also include tips 
specific to each department. For example, 
department heads should ensure that the 
valet and front desk staff have pen and 
paper available for written communication 
with Deaf participants if needed, and 
remind housekeeping staff to not move 
accessibility devices in guestrooms. 

Accessible rooms

Hotels are required to have accessible 
rooms available to guests with physical 
disabilities and rooms that are accessible 
for Deaf or hard of hearing guests. 
For example, doors must be at least 32 
inches wide; routes within the room must 
be at least 36 inches wide; and toilets 
should be between 17 and 19 inches from 
the floor to the top of the seat. Hotels 
must offer two types of accessible guest 


Tip!

People-first language puts the 
person before the disability, and 
describes what a person has, not 
who a person is. For example, “a 
person with or who has a disability” 
is preferable to “a disabled person.”



Selecting an Accessible Venue

rooms, which differ based on the design 
of the restroom.

> Accessible room: Standard accessible 
guestrooms generally have a tub with a 
seat that can be securely attached to 
the tub for a person who cannot stand 
in the tub to bathe.

> Accessible room with roll-in shower: 
The shower in these rooms has a flat, 
rimless floor and a seat permanently 
attached to one of the shower walls 
that a person using a wheelchair can 
transfer to.

Hotels must also offer rooms that are 
accessible to Deaf or hard of hearing 
guests, including devices that create 
visual notifications for door knocks, 
phone calls, and smoke alarms. This can 
be done through permanent modifications 
to a room, or through the addition of 
a Deaf kit, which also generally includes 
TTYs (text telephones) and bed shakers 
that attach to the alarm clock. If a hotel 
doesn’t have enough Deaf kits available, 
they can likely borrow them from other 
properties in the area. 

Contract language

The following sample language can be 
added to hotel contracts to outline your 
expectations regarding access.

ADA compliance

Each party agrees to use good faith 
efforts to ensure that it complies with 
its obligations under the Americans with 
Disabilities Act and the act’s accompanying 
regulation and guidelines (collectively 
the “ADA”). Each party further 
agrees to indemnify and hold the other 
party harmless from and against any and 
all claims and expenses, including attorney’s 
fees and litigation expenses, that 
may be incurred by or asserted against 
the other party or its officers, directors, 
agents, and employees on the basis of 
the indemnifying party’s non-compliance 
with any of the provisions of the ADA. The 
Vera Institute of Justice (“Vera”) agrees 
to provide Hotel with reasonable advance 
notice about the special needs of any 
attendees of which Vera is aware. Hotel 
agrees that all necessary staff will attend 
a training on “Disability Etiquette” that 
Vera will schedule and provide within one 
month of the program.



Additional Resources

Vera Institute of Justice, Center on Victimization and Safety, 
Designing Accessible Events for People with Disabilities and 
Deaf Individuals Tip Sheet Series

https://perma.cc/LLM3-Q4T9

Vera Institute of Justice, Center on Victimization and Safety, 
End Abuse of People with Disabilities website, Creating 
Inclusive Movements

https://perma.cc/B5ML-FBDJ

United States Access Board, Guide to the ADA Standards

https://perma.cc/4E4J-PSQP

U.S. Department of Justice, ADA Home Page, Accessible 
Information Exchange: Meeting on a Level Playing Field 

https://perma.cc/ZJ8X-ANFU

For more information

The Center on Victimization and Safety 
(CVS) at the Vera Institute of Justice works 
with communities around the country to 
fashion services that reach, appeal to, 
and benefit all victims. Our work focuses 
on communities of people who are at elevated 
risk of harm but often marginalized 
from victim services and the criminal justice 
system. We combine research, technical 
assistance, and training to equip 
policymakers and practitioners with the 
information, skills, and resources needed 
to effectively serve all victims. To learn 
more about CVS, contact cvs@vera.org.

This project was supported by Grant No. 
2011-TA-AX-K004 awarded by the Office on 
Violence Against Women, U.S. Department 
of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions 
and recommendations, expressed in 
this publication are those of the author(s) 
and do not necessarily reflect the views of 
the Department of Justice, Office on 
Violence Against Women.