Red Rocks, Commuting and One Last Passport Stamp
Acoustics in a Mile High music venue, plus the cost of a hotel's location and an accessible air travel summit.
Hello from Denver, Colorado!
I arrived to the Mile High City with two objectives in mind: attending my very first concert at the iconic Red Rocks Ampitheatre, and meeting up with two Wheelchair Travel readers, Karen and Steve, who will be joining me on the Wheelchair Travel Group Trip to Spain next week!
Karen and Steve invited me to their home, where we enjoyed a late lunch of freshly baked pizza and drinks. I had the pleasure of meeting their son, and we all shared stories about our accessible travel experiences. One of my favorite things about this work is the opportunity to meet and connect with people who have a similar passion for exploration and adventure! It is even more of a joy when good people like Karen and Steve travel to explore the world with me on a group trip!
The Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre is located about 30 minutes’ drive from Downtown Denver, and I had planned to get there via a shuttle bus. The shuttle, operated by a company whose business is transporting concertgoers between Downtown Denver and the iconic venue, refused to provide service to me on account of my wheelchair (a very clear violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act). I have the receipts and will be digging into this further next month.
When it became clear that the shuttle bus company would not take me to the concert, Karen stepped in and offered to drive me — she made sure that I did not miss the concert, and I am so grateful for her help!
Performing was one of my favorite folk rock artists, Gregory Alan Isakov. I had purchased tickets nearly a year in advance, and was able to score seats in the first row, which is wheelchair accessible!
Red Rocks is widely regarded as one of the world’s top outdoor music venues — its 70 rows of seats are chiseled into the side of an ancient rock formation, the ampitheatre overlooks the City of Denver’s colorful skyline, and its acoustics are unmatched. Seeing one of my favorite artists perform there was a bucket list experience! It was a truly magical night that I will not forget.
Russ, a veteran who I struck up a conversation with at the concert, bought me a beer and, if he is reading this, I would simply like to say — thank you! I love how travel and music bring people together, and it is always my goal to meet a new person every day. Even better to do so at a place like Red Rocks!
Commuting to save on accessible hotel rooms
When traveling, I prefer to stay in the city center — being within walking, rolling or wheeling distance of popular attractions is extremely convenient, and it certainly offers some value. But when I traveled to Paris last month for the Olympic Games, I had to weigh the cost of that convenience. Hotels at the center of Paris were extremely expensive, priced hundreds of dollars more than is typical for late summer, and they were simply outside of my budget. I needed to expand my search.
In preparation for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Paris expanded its wheelchair accessible metro Line 14 in both directions, with the southern terminus now extending to Paris Orly Airport, where many low-cost airlines operate. This expansion provided me a convenient way to get around the city — and to the hotel I ultimately selected near the Orly Airport.
Rather than spending $500+ per night for a hotel in central Paris, I commuted about 45 minutes each way using an accessible tram and metro Line 14, and was able to secure a very accessible Hilton Garden Inn for less than $200 per night. Those savings were critical to making my trip possible, and in the process I found a hotel that I can most certainly recommend.
Take a tour of my room in this Wheelchair Accessibility Review of the Hilton Garden Inn Paris Orly Airport — perhaps you might consider it on a future trip to the City of Lights!
A quick note on artificial intelligence: Obviously, the image of a wheelchair user holding a cardboard sign featured above is not me — or any living person, but it is in fact an AI-generated image. I have occasionally taken to creating images with services like OpenAI’s DALL-E, but remain committed to publishing content that has been written by human beings with lived experience of disability. You can read about my thoughts on the dangers AI might pose in the world of accessible travel in this article: Impact of AI on Accessible Travel Will Be Negative Before It Is Positive. It’s an interesting article, and I look forward to hearing your thoughts!
I may collect my final European passport stamp this year
Renewing my passport is bittersweet — on the one hand, I’m happy to have a new book of empty pages waiting to be stamped, and on the other, I am sad to retire a passport already filled with stamps that remind me of my adventures.
My last renewal, in 2017, came not because the passport was expiring, but because I had run out of space for entry and exit stamps.
A recent decision by the European Union to eliminate passport stamps all but guarantees I will never run out of space again. On November 10, 2024, the EU will transition to an electronic Entry/Exit System (EES) which will make passport stamps obsolete — from that date, stamps will no longer be provided to travelers entering or exiting its 27 member states.
The new system aims to increase efficiency for travelers at border checkpoints, but it is nonetheless a sad end to an era of collecting ink in our passport booklets. It leads me to wonder, as more countries adopt digital systems, how much longer will passports as we know them exist? Could the passport booklet be reduced to an identification card — or worse, a digital ID — that is recognized everywhere, even at international borders? We’ll have to wait and see.
For now I am left to consider, which European country will be the last to stamp my passport? Could it be Spain or Portugal, where I am soon traveling with a group of Wheelchair Travel readers, or will I manage to sneak in another European adventure before the November 10 deadline?
How many European passport stamps have you collected, and which is your favorite, or associated with memories of a trip you especially enjoyed? I would love to know!
Boston, then Spain
I am returning to Boston tonight, and getting right back to work tomorrow in nearby Cambridge, Massachusetts. The All Wheels Up Global Forum on Wheelchair Accessible Air Travel is taking place at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center and, over the next two days, I will be busy discussing accessible travel with industry leaders and disability advocates from around the world.
You can read about what occurred at last year’s event in my Recap of the 2023 All Wheels Up Global Forum, which attracted special guests including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Senator Tammy Duckworth.
With less than a week until I depart for Spain, my attention will quickly turn to preparing for the arrival of Wheelchair Travel readers, who will enjoy an accessible tour of Barcelona and Madrid, with some following me into Portugal thereafter. I expect it will be the best Wheelchair Travel Group Trip yet, and I am looking forward to announcing the first of several 2025 tours later this month.
Wishing you safe travels and a great week ahead,
—John
We were at the same concert on Labor Day. We drove and parked in the upper south lot. There was an accessible shuttle, took us right to the entrance for the front row. It was a great concert. It was a little loud sitting in the front row. I had to turn off my hearing aids, lol
I love Red Rocks! It's definitely an experience. The last time I went I wasn't in a wheelchair yet and could walk, even in heels! I want to go back and your article in encouraging. I'm leaving for Curacao next week. I'm worried about my chair. Fingers crossed we don't run into any major issues! They have brought it up with parts missing every time I've flown. This time I'm removing everything that can come off and carrying it in a duffle bag on the plane. My chair is a Whill F1 and I can check it at the gate. They must not secure it at all and it gets bounced around like crazy. I wish I could take it on the plane.