What a hotel means when it says "accessible"

Here’s a small thing that costs travelers a lot: the word “accessible” on a booking site is not a promise. It’s a filter tag. Nobody at the property measured anything to earn it.

So I don’t trust the listing. Before you book, I confirm the details that actually decide whether a room works — directly with the property, in writing:

• The door widths and the bathroom. Roll-in shower or a lip? Where are the grab bars, really?
• The path to the room. Step-free from the entrance, or three stairs and an apology?
• The bed height, the turning space, the light and noise. The things that don’t show up in a photo.

None of this is glamorous. But it’s the difference between arriving relaxed and arriving to a problem you have to solve on day one of your vacation. Verifying it is the whole job — and it’s the part I never hand off.