Jordana Izzo has always been a traveler, well before the West Warwick, R.I., resident decided to become a travel advisor in 2019.
Jordana Izzo is Travelmation's director of accessible travel. Source: Jordana Izzo
Then, just shy of her first son's second birthday in 2020, she learned he had autism.
"When my son was diagnosed, there were so many people that told me, 'You're going to have to slow down' and 'You're going to have to stop traveling,' and I was like, well, why?" Izzo said. "Why can't I travel? Why can't I do that?"
Salvatore is now 5 and a big brother to 2-year-old Leonardo. And the Izzos all travel.
"Even though my plans might look a little bit different and our travel might look a little bit different than the typical family, we still want to go out and have experiences," she said.
Izzo is now channeling her family's experience into a new endeavor: director of accessible travel with her host agency, Travelmation (No. 55 on Travel Weekly's 2023 Power List).
"Travelmation aims to provide opportunities for everyone to travel," said president and founder Adam Duckworth. "We know some people have experienced barriers and roadblocks between them and their desire to see the world. It's time to change that."
Izzo started her travel career as an advisor with Travelmation in September 2019, focusing on Disney.
Like so many others, her business took a big hit from the Covid shutdown but then really took off in the past two years. She added all-inclusives, cruises and groups to her roster. In 2023 she hit $1 million in sales and was named a supervisor at Travelmation.
A new role, director of accessible travel
Izzo in January became the director of accessible travel, a new role for Travelmation. She focuses on educating advisors and giving them support in selling to families with different needs.
Last fall, before officially stepping into her current role, she released a training course for Travelmation advisors called the Accessible Travel Certification. It proved popular: More than half of the agency's 1,800 independent contractors are now certified.
The course focuses on a number of topics, including sensitivity training and asking the right kind of questions, Izzo said.
Jordana Izzo and her family at Disney World. Source: Jordana Izzo
"Some people think that it gets a little awkward, or there are questions you wouldn't think to ask, like, 'Is your 8-year-old potty trained?' or 'What size is your wheelchair? Will it fit into these accommodations?'" she said.
But those qualifying questions are key in travel planning, especially when a family member has a disability, Izzo said. Advisors are taught to ask early on whether anyone in a group has accessibility needs. While things might not come up right away -- for instance, Izzo said, one of the travelers might not have an official diagnosis but has trouble walking long distances -- it gets the clients' wheels turning to share information with their advisor.
If there are needs, the course instructs advisors on how to ask more specific questions about accommodations and set expectations.
The course also teaches advisors how to be a "cheerleader" for their clients, Izzo said, telling them that travel might look different for them with a family member with a disability but that "you guys are going to make some great memories."
It also highlights preferred suppliers and what they're doing for travelers of differing abilities.
For example, Izzo said, Royal Caribbean International ships offer a range of products and services for families with developmental disabilities; Beaches Resorts has partnered with the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards to create autism-friendly resorts; and Disney and Universal both offer disability passes that enable guests to skip lines.
Izzo's goal is to give more families the confidence to travel and to make Travelmation "the place to go for accessible travel."
She also wants to keep expanding resources available to advisors.
"Accessibility used to be thought of as people in wheelchairs and things like that," she said. "It's not just that anymore. It's cognitive disabilities. It's even food sensitivities and food allergies. So I want to continue my education and continue [to work] on the certification, because I feel like it's constant learning. It's a journey."