What the ADA says about hotel reservations
Private businesses that are open to the public are covered by Title III of the ADA. The Department of Justice has not adopted a technical standard for private business websites, but its guidance says the ADA's requirements apply to web content, and WCAG is commonly used as the yardstick for accessibility work.
Hotels, inns, and motels are listed public accommodations. A specific regulation, 28 CFR 36.302(e), says a place of lodging must allow people with disabilities to reserve accessible guest rooms during the same hours and in the same manner as others. It must also identify and describe accessible features in enough detail for a guest to judge whether a room meets their needs, and it must hold accessible rooms for people who need them. That includes reservations made online and through third party sites a hotel works with, within the terms of the regulation.
Where hotel sites fail
- The booking engine. Date pickers that cannot be used by keyboard, unlabeled guest count fields, and error messages that are not announced.
- Room descriptions. No mention of roll in showers, grab bars, door widths, visual alarms, or bed heights.
- Photo galleries. Carousels that autoplay and images with no description.
- Maps. Directions given only on an embedded map.
- Offers. Banners that disappear before they can be read.
- Check in information. Details placed in images or in hard to reach PDFs.
Describing accessible rooms well
The best accessibility content on a hotel site is not code. It is description. A guest who uses a wheelchair wants to know whether the shower has a threshold, whether a transfer space exists next to the bed, and how far the room is from the elevator. A guest who is deaf wants to know about visual notification for the door and fire alarm. Describe what is actually in each room type, in plain words and in text, not only in a table image or a vague "accessible room" label.
Putting it together
Scan your home page, then try to complete a booking by keyboard alone, and again with a screen reader if you can. Ask your booking engine vendor for its accessibility documentation. Our testing and remediation services cover the site and how it connects to the engine. For seasonal rate changes, maintenance helps new content stay accessible. See also nonprofits that run lodging or events.
General information, not legal advice. Automated testing cannot establish full ADA compliance or guarantee protection from lawsuits. It finds some kinds of barriers quickly. A person still has to test the rest. Ask a qualified attorney how the law applies to you.
Frequently asked questions
Does the hotel reservations rule apply to online booking?
The regulation covers reservations made by any means, including online, subject to its terms. Ask your attorney how it applies to your property.
What must the website say about accessible rooms?
The regulation requires identifying and describing accessible features in enough detail for a person with a disability to assess whether a room meets their needs.
Is the booking engine our responsibility?
A tool you place on your site is part of your guests' experience. Ask the vendor about accessibility and keep their answers.
Is there a technical WCAG rule for hotels?
There is no DOJ technical website rule for private businesses. WCAG 2.1 AA is a common benchmark.