Travelling with Sight Loss

If you have visual impairment, you’ll know how many aspects of our eyesight we take for granted. But having sight problems shouldn’t stop you from enjoying a break.

If you have an assistance dog, speak to your travel agent about accessible holidays, which will mean you won’t have to worry about your assistance dog being accommodated while travelling or at your destination.

Whatever the reason for your visual impairment, a little forward planning can help ensure a smooth trip.

How Will Visual Impairment Affect Me?

There are many causes of visual impairment, but age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of sight loss in the UK. It gets more common with age, affecting about 1 in 20 over 65s and 1 in 8 people over 80.

 The retina is the layer at the back of your eye, packed with ‘seeing’ cells which pick up light and images. The macula is the central area of your retina, which you need for detailed vision. AMD means you lose the detailed vision you need for fine tasks, but you still have ‘side vision’. That means you can still see light, movement and objects, but can’t focus on them.

The early symptoms of AMD include not being able to focus on objects straight ahead, blurred words when you’re trying to read, problems recognising faces and colours looking dulled, and, later, a blind spot in your vision.

A cataract causes clouding of the see-through lens your eye uses to focus images on the seeing cells of the retina. It affects about 1 in 3 over 65s. It can lead to haloes around bright lights, colours looking faded, blurred vision or spots in your vision.

These and other causes of visual impairment can make it difficult to navigate unfamiliar situations. That’s why it’s worth doing some advanced planning to make sure you enjoy your holiday to the full.

My Top Tips for Planning Your Holiday

Join the RNIB Connect Forum

If you’re not a member already, consider joining the RNIB Connect forum on Facebook. The forum includes radio shows, but on one of the many Facebook groups, you can ask about personal recommendations for holidays. You can join more than one local group – just type in ‘RNIB Connect’, followed by your local area.

You may also be able to find Facebook groups for people with visual impairments in the area you’re planning to stay. Here, you can ask for recommendations for accessible places to visit or hospitality companies which offer services for people with visual impairments.

Research Your Destination

In major European cities like Amsterdam, Berlin, Paris and Stockholm, public transport is generally very accessible, with audio announcements and tactile guidance paths. In others, you may need to rely more on taxi apps or local support.

If you’re travelling outside Europe, there may be no announcements in English (or at all). It’s worth checking with your travel agent about accessible destinations, which will usually be bigger cities or resorts.

Consider a Sight-Loss Friendly Holiday

Have you considered taking a break with other people who understand your needs and challenges? Several organisations cater specifically for people with visual impairment:

• Limitless travel welcomes people with all types of disability, including visual impairment. Their repertoire of holidays includes many cruises.
• RNIB has a list of specialist hotels around the UK which are designed for the needs of people with partial or complete visual impairment
• Seable specialises in holidays for the visually impaired community. All their trips have activities tailored for people with visual loss, and all include trained local sighted guides
• Traveleyes organises group holidays for people with visual impairment travelling with fully sighted companions.

Speak With Your Hotel

Before you travel, contact your hotel directly to ensure your hotel is aware of your vision requirements and can offer to help. For instance, they should be able to:

• Offer a room on a lower floor, closer to the lifts for easier access.
• Provide a member of staff who can take you round your room, opening the door and pointing out the location of objects and services you might need (light switches, plugs, air conditioning, TV remote, etc.)
• Offer assistance at check-in and check-out.

Be Prepared

When you’re planning and packing, there are several steps you can take to make your journey – and your time at your destination – easier:

• Be insured. Take out insurance from a specialist travel company such as Medical Travel Compared. They can ensure you’re covered for all eventualities. This applies even if you’re travelling to an area covered by the GHIC (formerly the EHIC). The GHIC provides access to medically necessary state-provided healthcare in participating countries on the same basis as a resident. However, this isn’t always free and doesn’t cover all care. Do make sure to take copies of your insurance cover – and emergency contact details for your insurance company – with you in a format you can access.
• If you use a cane, take a spare. This means you won’t be without it if one is damaged. You can use the older one for unfamiliar or less accessible places (like the beach) where your cane may be more likely to get damaged.
• Tie brightly coloured luggage straps round your hold luggage so they’re easy to spot when they come out of the carousel.
• Always wear sunglasses in bright weather if you have conditions such as macular degeneration, to protect your remaining vision.
• Pack a wide-brimmed hat or baseball cap to shade your eyes.
• Take water and snacks for whenever you’re travelling, so you don’t have to seek out the food trolley.
• Store details of how to access emergency medical help at your destination – either on your phone or printed out in large font to carry with you. That can help avoid a panic if you do need urgent care.
• Look into mobile data options for your destination and put them in place before you go. Many aids for people with visual impairment require internet access, and you want to avoid exorbitant data roaming charges on your return. 

Airport Assistance

All airports in the UK offer special assistance at the airport; however, to guarantee it’s available, you’re advised to book it at least 48 hours in advance. It’s always best to book it with your airline or travel agent when you book your flight.

Do remember that while booking special assistance sometimes means it will be automatically available at your destination too, that can’t be guaranteed. Do make sure you double-check your booking before departure.

Here are some examples of the services available (apologies if I’ve missed your airport!):

• Birmingham Airport: You can pre-book assistance when you book your flight with your airline. This airport offers support for users of Sunflower Lanyards, which you can buy from hdsunflower.com – if you’re using one of these, you’ll need to check in at the Assisted Travel desk (between Costa and SPAR in the terminal). It may entitle you to travel through the express lane, but this will depend on traffic.
• Gatwick Airport: Airport. You can book assistance to find your way around the airport, as well as for checking in or getting through security, through your airline or travel agent. There are special assistance receptions at the drop-off points at each terminal, or help points if you need help getting into the terminal.
• Heathrow Airport App: The Heathrow app works with your screenreader, such as VoiceOver and Talkback. It provides information on transport to the airport, real-time flight updates and interactive maps.
• Luton Airport: offers help for parking, dropping off, getting to the airport from public transport, getting around the airport and getting through security and onto the plane. They also recognise Sunflower Lanyards, which you can buy from hdsunflower.com. You can also get a lanyard free at the Assisted Travel desk (signposted on a yellow background from the entrance to the terminal building ) – it will allow you and your immediate family to use the Fast Track Security free of charge. 
• Manchester Airport: You can go to one of the Assistance Reception areas in the check-in areas in the airport and request a special lanyard to wear. This identifies you to staff as needing special assistance and allows access to family and priority lanes at security as well as assistance lanes at the UK Border on arrival back into Manchester Airport.
• Stansted Airport: Also recognises the Sunflower Lanyard, along with offering assisted travel if you book it when you book your flight. They have videos you can watch/listen to in advance to familiarise you with the airport and give advice on all the stages where you can access support.

Apps to Help

There are numerous apps – including many free ones – which can help you get around more easily if you’re visually impaired. Some of the most widely available include:

• Aira app. The Aira Explorer version of this app provides on-demand visual interpretation services. You can tap a button in the app to connect your smartphone live to trained visual agents. They can describe visual information, help with navigation or read text for you. The app isn’t available for free everywhere, but if you’ve downloaded the app, you’ll get a message when you approach an establishment which partners with it. If you’re visiting the USA, companies such as Starbucks, Target and Walmart pay for their customers to have on-demand access to the app. In the UK, all railway stations managed by Govia Thameslink, Great Northern, Southern and Thameslink have the app set up for users.
• Be My Eyes connects you with volunteers in over 150 countries through artificial intelligence (AI) and live video. You can connect 24 hours a day with the AI feature to get a description of a picture you’ve taken. It also has a central directory of accessible services and helpdesks of organisations in many countries.
• Seeing AI app. This app for iPhone and Android uses AI to provide audio descriptions. You can take a photo of your environment and have the app describe it; use it to read documents, scan barcodes and accessible QR codes; tell you about the person nearby (including announcing their name if you’ve set facial recognition) or recognise one of 17 currencies. The camera can also be used to teach the app to look in your environment for items you need often, such as keys, sunglasses, etc.

For more tips, guides, and advice, make sure to visit our blog.