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You may have found yourself saying I've heard of a travel advisor but What is a Certified Autism Travel Professional?
A certified autism travel professional is a person who has shown they are knowledgeable and capable of providing support and travel-related services to people with autism.
However, these same professionals also offer support to the other family members that are traveling with the person with autism. This means that certified autism travel professionals look at the entire family and plan a vacation that everyone will enjoy and love!
What is a Certified Autism Travel Professional?
As a certified autism travel professional, I chose to become certified, so I could understand how to best support families with autism. I didn’t just obtain one certificate during my training though. I extended my training, so I could receive the Autism Double Check certificate. This means I have developed my understanding and acceptance of autism even further.
While I have a son with autism, I also know that every person with autism is different. What might work for my son might not work for every family I work with. That is perfectly fine with me because I enjoy seeing what works for every autistic family, I plan vacations for!
In fact, the greatest challenge I face in my business is the aspect I love the most. My challenge is always learning how I can best work with each and every client that lands in my inbox. And I quite happy when I have accomplished creating a family vacation for each one of those clients’ love.
A few things I have learned throughout my certification courses include:
How to ship food in your suitcase that you know your child will eat
The importance of security
The importance of alarms for water safety
How to better support self-advocacy and how traveling can help with that
How to find inclusive accommodations and what is acceptance vs. awareness at a hotel
How to find the staff that will go above and beyond for all my clients
Some people will think that I simply offer my clients a certification that doesn’t mean much of anything. However, I offer so much, including the acceptance of autism in regard to travel. I am continuously looking out for my clients and making sure that every single one of their needs is met. When I choose accommodations and attractions, I make sure they have the support they need during their visit. This could include a staff trained in helping autistic families, security, and even an autism program.
There is no way I can guarantee that every place I choose for my clients is going to have everything. However, I make the best effort for as many of them to be in place as possible.
I didn’t get certified as an autism travel professional for a piece of paper. I was certified, so I can support every family in the best way I can. I combine my certification training with my experience as a mother to a boy with autism to offer autistic families the vacations of their dreams.
And my training will never stop because I will continue to learn more about autism and how to be a better travel advisor to each and every one of my clients.
A certified autism travel professional is a person who strives to make vacation dreams a reality for autistic families like yours! I would love to invite you to schedule a planning session with me today! You can click here to be taken directly to my digital calendar, where you can schedule a time that is convenient for you.
