Study Identifies Most Accessible U.S. Vacation Destinations in 2026

Accessibility greatly determines whether or not a destination is suitable for many travelers. Upgraded Points, accordingly, did its best to identify the most accessible U.S. vacation destinations, looking at factors such as accessibility in hotels, home rentals, restrooms, restaurants, bars, on trails and more.

As a result, the study identified a few vacation towns as the most accessible overall:

• Pensacola Beach, Florida
• Gatlinburg, Tennessee
• Rehoboth Beach, Delaware
• Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
• Cape May, New Jersey
• Ogunquit, Maine
• Kaanapali, Hawaii
• Carmel-by-the-Sea, California
• Leavenworth, Washington
• Bar Harbor, Maine

Beyond overall destinations, the study also looked at destinations with the most Airbnb listings with step-free access, and found Gatlinburg, Rehoboth Beach, Pigeon Forge and Kaanapali still take some of the top spots, with Mackinaw City, Michigan, coming in at fifth place.

“Accessible travel planning takes real research, because truly accessible means looking well beyond lodging,” said Keri Stooksbury, editor-in-chief, Upgraded Points. “It’s whether an entire town is prepared for a traveler with mobility needs. So we wanted to look at the full picture: where people stay, eat, explore and everything in between.”