Accommodations for Persons with Disabilities

General information and resources: wheelchairtravel.org/chicago

All meeting hotels have accessible lobbies with at least one entrance with auto-slide doors; door-service personnel are available at other entrances. Thresholds and doormats are in compliance with American with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations. Lobbies have marble floors and/or low-pile area carpeting. Elevators connect all levels of each property. Each elevator has a wheelchair-accessible keypad, and Braille numerals beside each control button. Restrooms in lobbies and on meeting room floors are wheelchair accessible and have tactile signage.

All hotels have accessible registration desks or provide clipboards to guests to complete registration documentation. All hotels have accessible guest rooms. The number of such rooms at each property is noted in the listing below. Among other amenities, these rooms feature wheelchair-accessible doors, lever door handles, security peepholes, ample room space, grab bars in restrooms, low sinks with insulated pipes, accessible towel racks, and accessible mirrors. The following auxiliary aids are available at most properties: flashing fire alarm, doorbell, and telephone; vibrating alarm clock; closed-caption decoders; Braille signage; and TDD telephones.

Hilton Chicago

Parking: The self-parking garage has a height of 6’3” and the valet garage has a height of 8 feet.

Guest rooms: The hotel has 77 ADA rooms distributed throughout the guestroom floors.

Entrances: Automatic doors are available at the Balbo Street Porte Cochere entrance.The historic Michigan Avenue entrance and 8th Street entrance are not equipped with automatic doors. Bell staff are available to assist.

Meeting Rooms: All meeting rooms of the historic hotel are accessible via ADA lifts or elevators. Consult the hotel map for details. A direct elevator to the International Ballroom and Stevens D is located on the lobby level near the Buckingham Room. The lower level, where the Stevens rooms are located, is accessible via the main elevator bank, as are all other meeting levels. Stevens A can be accessed from the lower level via a ramp or an ADA lift. Stevens C is accessible from the lower level via wheelchair lift or by taking the elevator to Stevens D and entering Stevens C through the double doors. The Continental Ballroom and Boulevard Rooms are accessed via ADA lifts.

Restaurants: All of the restaurants are located on the lobby level.

Other Amenities: The fitness center is accessible via ramp.

Palmer House Hilton

All areas of the facility are wheelchair accessible. Electronic doors are located at all main lobby entrances. All elevators are equipped with Braille signage, however, they do not have audible direction. Additionally, restrooms and drinking fountains are ADA accessible.

Parking: Self-parking has ADA spots available.

Guest Rooms: There are 78 ADA rooms distributed evenly throughout the guest room floors, with an average of 4 rooms per floor. These rooms come equipped with roll-in showers with support bars, wheelchair height peepholes, display TTY, telephone ring signaler, clock with telephone signaler, bed shaker, telephone amplifier, door knock alert, and a visual strobe smoke detector.

Meeting Rooms: All rooms and floors of the historic hotel are accessible. Consult the hotel map for the elevator that serves a particular room. There are ADA lifts for wheelchairs in the Honoré and Empire Ballrooms. All other areas are accessible by elevator or ramp. 

The hotel has 11 elevators in the main bank that service between the street level and the 23rd floor. There are also three elevators in the State Street bank that service between the street level and the 11th floor. Use the State Street elevators to access the Salons on the third floor and the Chicago, Price, and Buckingham Room on the fifth floor. Accessible transfers between the main elevator bank and the State Street elevator bank are located on the street level, the sixth floor, the seventh floor, and the eighth floor. 

Restaurants: The restaurants have ADA seats available.

Other Information: There are ADA lifts for the pool and fitness center.

Accessible Transportation

Wheelchair-accessible, ADA compliant taxis are available through a centralized accessible dispatch, Open Taxis, at 855-928-1010.

The public transportation system in Chicago is accessible. Details are available at transitchicago.com/accessibility.

All trains and buses and 102 of 145 rail stations are accessible. Railcars feature braille signage, LED signage, priority seating, wheelchair securement areas, and auditory announcements. Stations feature audio and braille fare machines, wheelchair accessible gates, braille signage, elevators, tactile platform edging, and gap boards for gaps in the platforms. CTA maintains a list of accessible stations and accessibility outages. Bus stops feature auditory schedule announcements and the vehicles announce route information. Buses are equipped with ramps, priority seating, and wheelchair securement areas.

SuperShuttle has wheelchair-accessible vehicles and can provide assistance with prior notice and reservation. For information about these services or to book a reservation, contact:

SuperShuttle (800-258-3826)

Scooter rentals are available by contacting Scootaround (888-441-7575).

Service Animals Welcome

Service animals are welcome at all meeting events, sessions, and venues. The ADA protects the right of people with disabilities to be accompanied by trained service animals in public places. Remember, not all disabilities are visible and service animals are not required to wear special equipment or tags. Service animals are working and should not be distracted without permission.

Fragrance

Please help us to accommodate attendees who are sensitive to fragrances by refraining from wearing scented products.

Sign Interpreting

Members with hearing impairment who will need sign-interpreting service at the AHA annual meeting must notify the AHA Headquarters Office and register for the meeting by December 1, 2018. The request should include the sessions they plan to attend. The AHA will, with the assistance of the Registry of Interpreters, secure the services of appropriate interpreters. The AHA will assume the cost for up to nine hours of sign language interpreting service.

An interpreter may also be provided upon request for the presidential address (Friday, January 4) and the annual business meeting (Saturday, January 5).

Assistive listening devices are also available on request.

Please contact annualmeeting@historians.org by December 1, 2018, if you would like to request an interpreter or assistive listening device.

Other Resources

US Department of Transportation’s Aviation Consumer Protection and, New Horizons: Information for the Air Traveler with a Disability (airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/publications/horizons.htm).

Barrier-Free Travels: A Nuts and Bolts Guide for Wheelers and Slow Walkers (barrierfreetravel.net)