"Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting, and autumn a mosaic of them all." —Stanley Horowitz
Hey everyone!
People are most likely to find themselves ill during the fall and winter months and, since my trip to Italy in September, I have had a string of colds and sinus infections that have refused to relent. A few days ago, I saw a doctor for the second time and, thanks to a much stronger antibiotic, I am starting to feel better for the first time in over a month. My frequent travel and a slate of fall conferences likely are to blame, but I am undeterred — I never stop dreaming of travel, especially during the beautiful season of autumn!
Despite my limited energy, I have still traveled a bit over the past month, mostly to be with my family (and to watch Robert's wheelchair basketball tournament, where his team earned their first ever win!). I have cancelled other trips to prioritize rest and recovery, but also to avoid the chaos that has been air travel in the United States. Fortunately, the federal government has reopened and, after the Thanksgiving holiday, staffing of air traffic control towers should return to normal. I send my appreciation to the federal employees who worked for more than a month without pay.
Today, I am excited to share some of the articles I have written recently (mostly from the living room sofa) and highlight a few things to come.
Accessible travel in Italy
In my last newsletter, I shared an overview of my time at the World Summit on Accessible Tourism in Turin, Italy — If you missed it, you can read it here:
John Morris
After the conference concluded, I traveled to the Eternal City — Rome, Italy, where I had the opportunity to meet Pope Leo XIV. Disabled visitors receive preferential seating and an opportunity to greet the pope at his Wednesday General Audiences. You can learn more about how to take advantage of this opportunity here:
John Morris
Hotel rooms in Rome are often wildly expensive, as was the case during my October visit. JO&JOE is a hotel-hostel combination that is part of the Accor Hotels family (which I previously identified as one of the most accessible hotel chains) near Rome's central Termini Station, and it often has room rates that significantly undercut the competition.
Last month, I enjoyed my second stay at the property, and published the following review of its private accessible hotel room with a roll-in shower:
John Morris
While we're on the subject of Rome, I am excited to share a transcript of my interview with the city's Deputy Mayor for Mobility, Eugenio Patanè. During our August 2025 conversation at the ITS World Congress in Atlanta, where we were both speaking, Mr. Patanè was kind enough to discuss with me his vision for the future of accessible transportation in the City of Rome.
In response to my question about the lack of wheelchair taxis in Rome, Italy, he assured me that this was an area of focus for his administration — and he promised that, when I traveled to Rome in October, that I would be able to get a wheelchair accessible taxi. I waited to publish the interview to see if the situation on the ground reflected his statements and — YES, I was able to secure a wheelchair taxi after arriving to Rome's Fiumicino Airport! The city has added more than 200 new accessible cabs with wheelchair ramps to its fleet, which is a major win for accessibility.
You can read our full conversation here:
John Morris
Here's a photo of the modern, rear-entry wheelchair taxis that are now serving disabled residents and tourists in Rome:
Wheelchair Travel Members provide the financial support necessary to support my advocacy work, and make conversations like these possible. Please consider supporting my efforts to make travel accessible for everyone by upgrading to a paid membership today.
Technology and services improving accessibility
Each year, the TravelAbility Summit hosts an InnovateAble Showcase to highlight new products and services that are delivering improvements for accessibility in the tourism space — In the following article, I highlighted the seven products featured in the 2025 edition, which include some very exciting technologies.
John Morris
Two remaining spots on upcoming group trips!
Would you like to kick-off 2026 by joining me and other Wheelchair Travel readers on a wheelchair accessible tour? If so, I have some great news — I have one wheelchair accessible hotel room remaining on two upcoming group trips: the February 2026 Sydney, Australia tour and the March 2026 Greece tour. You can find details at the following links:
John Morris
John Morris
If you have any questions about these tours, send an email to grouptrips@wheelchairtravel.org. Be sure to pay close attention to this newsletter for updates on future group trips and, remember, tours are always made available first to paid subscribers of this newsletter.
Looking ahead
The year may be coming to a close, but my travel is far from finished! In addition to traveling home for the holidays, I will be welcoming Wheelchair Travel readers on a group tour of Morocco in December. It is my first-ever group tour on the African continent, and I look forward to sharing it with you! I also have a quick trip to London, England on the books, and am considering a stop in Las Vegas, Nevada to close out 2025.
You will hear from me again next week — until then, I wish you good health, good times and a lovely weekend!
All the best,
—John
