How to Plan Autism-Friendly Vacations

By guest writer Jackson McMahan

Planning a vacation is exciting. You imagine all sorts of possibilities for places to visit, activities to do, and memories to create. But for families with autistic members, planning vacations can be stressful.

Some of the struggles autistic individuals face in their daily lives can carry over to vacation, like sensory sensitivities, restricted food preferences, and their need for routine. These issues have the potential to turn relaxing getaways into frustrating ones. 

What if you could plan an autism-friendly vacation, one where the right strategies guarantee everyone on the trip can have a wonderful time? This blog post will explore the challenges autistic individuals face when going on vacation and tips for planning a smoother vacation for everyone involved.

Possible Autism Travel Restrictions

What causes autistic individuals to have rough vacations? For me, the big hurdle was stepping out of my comfort zone to try new things and visit new places. So, let’s look at a list of challenges that can make vacations more difficult for autistic individuals to enjoy.

Changes in Routine

Many autistic individuals rely on routines to feel comfortable and safe. Vacation days, by design, don’t adhere to their normal routine. Instead, they will follow a new schedule that can vary from day to day. Adapting to this new, temporary, changing schedule can be uncomfortable for autistic individuals.

Unfamiliar Settings

Vacations often involve visiting new places. For autistic individuals, new environments can be unpredictable and cause anxiety. They may take a few days to adjust to a new place only for vacation to end.

Sensory Sensitivities

Many autistic individuals have hyperresponsive senses that can make some settings difficult to be in. At home, they can familiarize themselves with

circumstances that overwhelm their senses and discover ways to overcome those difficulties. On vacation, they may go somewhere new and not know where their sensitivities are going to get triggered. This causes some autistic individuals to have rough sensory experiences when they least expect it. It can also cause anxiety.

Exhaustion

Vacation days can be exhausting. Sometimes, you need to wake up and leave early to reach a tourist destination before it’s too busy. Other times, families pack their days with activities. Autistic individuals already spend much of their days managing energy, and vacation days are sometimes particularly challenging. These draining days can cause burnout that leaves them unenthusiastic for the remainder of the vacation, especially if they were already on the edge of burning out from their regular life!

Autism Travel Tips

For a successful autism-friendly vacation to happen, careful planning and preparation will go a long way. Examine potential challenges and the autistic individual’s needs to help put strategies into place. Here are some tips for how to plan autism-friendly vacations.

Create an Itinerary

Itineraries are a planned travelogue that details what will happen during vacation. They can include detailed plans for what traveling, activities, and downtime will look like. By using an itinerary, autistic individuals and their travel companions can set expectations. For example, when I was younger, my parents would give me a binder that detailed our vacation so I understood what was going on and could plan ahead.

Use Daily Planners

Visual schedules or planners also provide a method for scheduling individual days. Like itineraries, these can help autistic individuals set expectations for what each day will look like. Daily planners provide expectations of the day’s events instead of the whole vacation.

Maintain Routines Wherever You Can

Vacation days don’t have to be devoid of routine. Autistic individuals can still schedule times for sleep, meals, and self-care. For example, taking medication after breakfast (or whatever morning routine you use) can often be done both at home and on vacation. Find which parts of your routine can carry over to vacation so you can retain some stability while on the trip.

Practice Flexibility

It’s also important to know that you may need to change your plans while on vacation. On an unexpectedly rainy day, you may need to do an indoor activity instead of the outdoor one you were planning to do. One way to practice flexibility is by role-playing situations like a flight that is running late. Mentally practicing setbacks can help prepare autistic individuals for a sudden change in plans.

Research Sensory-Friendly Options

Find out which locations accommodate sensory sensitivities. This could be quiet floors at a hotel or places with accessibility features. When you know these options, go for those autism-friendly resorts and attractions when figuring out where to stay or visit.

Bring Sensory Tools

Put together an autism travel kit: sunglasses for bright lighting, noise-canceling

headphones for loud environments, fidgets, or familiar calming objects like a treasured item. It’s better to have them on hand than regret leaving them behind. While it would be nice to go somewhere that doesn’t disturb your senses, you never know when somewhere may be too loud or filled with bright lights.

Plan for Downtime

There are only so many activities people can do in a day before becoming exhausted, so it’s important to plan some downtime for each day. Downtime gives everyone a chance to recharge their energy before going out again. It can also provide some moments when autistic individuals aren’t spending their limited energy supply.

Schedule Quiet Days

Although major activities are a big appeal of going on vacation, sometimes people just want to relax somewhere that’s different from their home lives. Quiet days are often the most calming days of vacation because they don’t come with the need to visit somewhere at a specific time. You can just focus on regaining your energy before the next day.

Work with an Autism Travel Specialist

Autism travel specialists are trained to help autistic individuals and their families to craft autism-friendly vacations. This way, you can get extra help when figuring out how to make vacation fun for everyone.

Although autism travel specialists can help you find places to stay, they may be unable to help with everything. If you want help figuring out a sensory toolkit or how to adapt to a mindset, you can do so by meeting with one of Thrive Autism Coaching’s specialized coaches. You can click here to schedule a complimentary consultation.

Final Thoughts on Autism-Friendly Vacations

Autistic individuals deserve relaxing vacations as much as everyone else. It just sometimes takes them more work to unwind. Challenges like sensory sensitivities and a need to follow routines don’t have to cause disastrous vacations. Instead, they can be one of many things to consider when planning a trip.

Autism and vacations don’t have to have a negative relationship. By preparing in advance and staying flexible, you can create a vacation that’s accommodating as well as enjoyable. Once you overcome these challenges, you’re free to experience some of the best parts of vacation. I know I’ve been able to enjoy vacations thanks to how my parents accommodated me, and I hope these tips help you have a comfortable vacation.