App helps to explore a world without barriers

Now I look at the places I visit through different eyes.

The need for accessible destinations abroad and in your own city is so important and the need grows each day as the population ages. Accessibility encompasses more than just those who you may think.

It includes people such as moms with strollers and the aging population who have physical needs, minor or major ones, cognitive needs and a range of other needs that are more common than special these days.

Now, there is an app that can help travelers with restrictions reach their destinations. Planat is an online tool that allows users to view and rate the accessibility of places worldwide. This is an initiative started by the Rick Hansen Foundation in 2011 after the 2010 Paralympics in Vancouver.

Just as you would use apps to review or comment on a restaurant or destination, Planat (derived from Plan Where You’re At) can provide much needed accessibility reviews that can help people prepare for their trips, or even local choices, and make life better.

It’s also a tool that businesses can use to promote their access while gathering valuable feedback to make improvements.

Currently, Planat has around 45,000 venues listed across 14 countries worldwide, says Marco Pasqua, the marketing and community manager for Planat. There are more than 14,000 community reviews in their database. And these numbers will continue to increase each day as more people and businesses engage with this website.