by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 5:35 PM ET, Tue August 5, 2025
California has long been known for its iconic coastlines, welcoming laid-back culture and broad range of entertainment and adventure.
And now the progressive state is working to make more of its offerings are accessible for travelers with disabilities.
To help achieve that goal, Visit California has just launch a new "Accessibility Hub," a comprehensive online resource that’s designed to “empower travelers with disabilities to explore the Golden State with greater ease and confidence,” according a press release from Visit California.
The new platform was created for both travelers and industry professionals and includes tools, tips and curated content aimed at making California even more inclusive and navigable for all.
“Road trips in California are all about traveling without compromise. There really is something for everyone thanks to the state’s abundance of experiences and inclusive culture,” said Caroline Beteta, president and CEO of Visit California.
To help promote its accessibility efforts, Visit California partnered with BAFTA Award-winning presenter and renowned disability advocate Sophie Morgan on a new original series, Joy Diversion, which premiered July 28 on Visit California’s YouTube channel.
The three-part road trip series offers an inspiring, unscripted look at the state’s diverse landscapes and the many accessible adventures to be found along the way.
In Joy Diversion, Morgan teams up with friends to explore different corners of the beautiful state, which is the country’s number one tourist destination - from its desert hideaways and alpine lakes to coastal towns and wine country. All along the way, the series seeks to? highlight the state’s inclusive spirit.
“Since moving to California, I’ve been blown away by how easy and joyful road tripping can be,” said Morgan. “This series is a reflection of that, it’s about celebrating movement, spontaneity and the joy of the open road."
The new Accessibility Hub also features work from other industry experts and creators. Among them, award-winning accessible travel writer Cory Lee, whose insights offer practical tools and first-hand advice for travelers seeking barrier-free experiences across California.
As the state prepares to host the FIFA World Cup in 2026 and the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028, Visit California is doubling down on its commitment to welcoming all travelers. This is an especially important message at a time when international visitation to the United States has been declining under the Trump Administration in response to the president's policies and rhetoric. Many would-be visitors say the U.S. has lost its appeal.
Canadian visitation to the United States has been plummeting amid President Trump’s new tariffs and his talk of annexing our neighbors to the north. But it’s not just Canadians who are put off by President Trump’s policies and rhetoric. A new survey conducted by CNBC reveals that nearly 80 percent of Southeast Asian travelers say the United States is “losing its appeal as a travel destination.”
California has been working to set itself apart from the U.S. presidential administration. In April, California Governor Gavin Newsom offered a message for Canadian travelers in particular:
Don’t let “you-know-who” in Washington D.C. disrupt your plans to
vacation in the Golden State. The “you-know-who," is
of course President Donald Trump.?
“California
is 2,000 miles away” from Washington D.C. and “a world away in
mindset,” Newsom stressed in a marketing video for
California that was posted on X, a few months ago.
The good news is the state continues to be a major attraction for visitors, including being the number one destination in the United States. In 2024, for instance, visitors spent $157.3 billion across California, whose state economy is the fourth-largest globally.
The Golden State’s new Accessibility Hub and Joy Diversion series are part of California's broader Playful Journeys platform, reinforcing California’s unchanged stance as a destination where freedom, inclusion and adventure go hand in hand.
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