Growing in Confidence Travelling as a Blind Person

I’ve loved travelling ever since I was a child. I still do today. Days out with my family, creating new experiences with my friends, visiting places I’ve been to before and returning to much-loved ones, and the general excitement of it all. But there’s a flipside. When you’re disabled, travelling isn’t always as plain sailing than what we hope.

There’s so much to think about: the planning, preparation and everything in between. As much as I love travelling, I haven’t always been the most confident traveller. I stuck to what I knew best for a long time. The more I stepped out of my comfort zone, the more my confidence grew. Here’s how I became confident travelling.

Realising That Preparation is Key

I’ve always been an organised person. I like to be organised and know what I’m doing in many areas of my life, not just when travelling. That organisation is something I’ve come to realise can take much of initial stress away when preparing to travel. It’s something that I’d say is key.

As a blind person, being familiar with accessibility information beforehand gives me some familiarity before I take to the trip. I also find it helpful to save key information and things that I might find useful in a way that’s accessible for me. Whether it’s a simple note in the Notes app on my phone or an itinerary in a document, finding the ways that work for you can help give a good start.

Surrounding Myself With Those Who Get It

No matter where you are on your travel journey – if you’re starting out or a regular traveller, there’s joy in having the experience with those who get it. I always enjoy days out or trips with my family.

Over the years, they’ve also helped me become much more confident with the environments when travelling. For example, we’ve scoped out the use of assistance together, or made sure that I’ve had all the information I need. If ever I’ve felt nervous, they’ve been there to help work it out together.

They’re also always there to offer virtual assistance when working inaccessible heating or air conditioning units in a hotel room. Having that virtual assistance is a good level of support whilst being independent.

I’ve also taken a lot of comfort from hearing experiences from fellow disabled people over the years. And their tips have come in pretty handy as well. There’s some brilliant disabled content creators, writers and people sharing their experiences online which you can learn so much from. I know I have.

Some of my favourites include fellow bloggers and content creators Sassy Wyatt, Carrie-Ann Lightley, Pippa Stacey and Simply Emma, just to name a few.

Practice, Practice

They say that practice makes perfect, and there’s a lot of truth in that. When you’re going on a trip for the first time, you of course can’t practice. What you can do though, is put everything you’ve learned previously into practice. I’ve found the ways that work for me.

I’ve also practiced with things like passenger assistance which has massively increased my confidence. It’s something I now do without a second thought.

Making Use of Services Available

Services like passenger assistance on trains, airport assistance and others are there to offer support to disabled people. They’re there to make travel accessible to us. They open the gate to independent travel.

For me, those services help me travel with ease, and with confidence. They give me that reassurance I need when things go a little off track. Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t perfect. I’ve been left on train platforms more times than I can count, despite booking assistance.

Turning a negative into a positive though, is those experiences have helped me become

much more resilient when travelling. My advice: use the services whenever you need to, and don’t feel guilty for it.

Finding technology to be my best friend

I’ve loved technology ever since I was young. But embracing technology when travelling, it’s a real game changer. From maps apps to giving you a helping hand when identifying products, there’s something that can be our digital companion through every step of the journey.

Some of my favourite maps apps include BlindSquare, Google Maps, Soundscape and GoodMaps.

Then there’s identification apps: Be My Eyes and Seeing AI are at the top of my list. There’s of course lots more, but these are my go-to.

Having trusty technology help you in any situation when travelling can make the experience so much easier. I have no doubt that it’ll continue to change the game in the future.

Acknowledging My Feelings

Disability isn’t linear. Neither is travel. Some people enjoy travelling, others don’t. I think it’s really important to recognise how we’re feeling. It’s even more important not to bottle those feelings up.

It’s okay to feel anxious. It’s okay to feel nervous. It’s amazing to feel over the moon when it all goes to plan. Never be afraid to recognise those feelings.

Realising That Every Trip Makes Me More Confident

This post has been about confidence, so we had to end with a tip on confidence. Every single journey, no matter how big or small, helps you become more confident.

Those first solo train journeys helped me get to a point where it’s the norm now. The first time I went on a plane by myself made me step out of my comfort zone. The first time I stayed in a hotel by myself made every one after that feel far less daunting.

It all contributes to the small steps or the end goal. Every journey, every trip, every moment counts. The more confident I’ve become at travelling as a blind person, the more I enjoy it.

I’m not sure if I’ll ever travel the world. What I will do is hold on to the fact that I’ve come on leaps and bounds when solo travelling as a disabled person. And you know what? That makes me proud.

Plan that trip.

Embrace technology.

Use the services and support available to you.

Journey by journey, little by little, your confidence will grow.

Holly Tuke is a social media manager, blogger, freelance writer and

disability advocate. She is the author behind the award-winning blog,

Life of a Blind Girl. For more of Holly click here.