04/06/2026
Nobody is just a booking reference
We were proud to see World Accessible Holidays featured by TTG this week in an article about what accessible travel really means.
The story began with a late-night call.
A repeat client was already in Switzerland, taking part in an adapted sailing event on Lake Geneva, when he realised he had left vital medication behind in the UK. Without it, he faced having to abandon the trip almost as soon as he had arrived.
Courier options were explored, but the timings were too tight. The medication was needed the next day, and the client had already missed his scheduled morning dose.
So Steve Hansen, Co-Founder of World Accessible Holidays, got in the car. He left Cardiff late at night, drove to east London to collect the medication, then continued straight to Heathrow for the first available flight to Geneva. Even then, it was not straightforward.
When Steve reached Heathrow, his flight had been cancelled. British Airways rebooked him onto a later departure, but the medication still had to arrive by 1pm.
After landing in Geneva, Steve went straight into a taxi for Lake Geneva. The client was already out on the water competing when Steve arrived.
The medication was delivered at 12.35pm, with less than 30 minutes to spare. The whole round trip took around 19 hours.
Flying medication across Europe is not a standard service any travel company could promise as part of a booking. But the principle behind it is standard for us. We do not see our customers as booking references.
We see the person, the family, the carers, the support needs and the impact if something goes wrong.
Accessible travel often involves far more than booking flights and hotels. It can involve adapted rooms, wheelchair accessible transfers, mobility equipment, aircraft suitability, medical equipment, airport assistance, carers and contingency planning.
For many disabled travellers, one missing detail can put the whole trip at risk. That is why specialist knowledge matters. It is also why relationships matter.
Our customers often come to us after being told no, priced out, let down or left to manage complicated arrangements alone. Our role is to reduce that pressure, find solutions and make travel feel possible again.
Sometimes that means checking whether a hotel really has a roll-in shower. Sometimes it means challenging incorrect information about aircraft and wheelchairs.
Sometimes it means arranging equipment, adapted transfers or extra support. And very occasionally, it means getting on the first plane out there because that is simply what needs to happen.
We are grateful to Travel Trade Gazette for sharing this story because it highlights something much bigger.
Accessible travel is not a niche extra.
It is about equity, dignity, independence, inclusion and trust.
For us, it will always be personal.
Alt text: Screenshot of a TTG article headline about Steve Hansen of World Accessible Holidays completing a dash to deliver a client’s vital medication, with a portrait photograph of Steve smiling underneath the headline.
ps we are not keen on the words mercy dash.
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