Places to take the kids this holiday season that are autism friendly

Did you  that more than 25,000 people live with autism in and around Tampa Bay. The University of South Florida has a community-based project called The Center for Autism & Related Disabilities (CARD) that provides information and consultation to individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders and related disabilities. They have a fabulous website full of information and a variety of resources, materials, online trainings and tutorial and even community events.

There is a special section called Autism Friendly Business Directory. This is where they give you a list of businesses that are autism friendly including restaurants, entertainment, faith based organizations, health & wellness, travel, public parks and recreation and others.

Maybe you are looking for places to take the kids this holiday season. If you go on the website at http://card-usf.fmhi.usf.edu/index.html you will find Dinosaur World, Lowry Park Zoo, Great Explorations Children’s Museum, Glazer Museum, Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) and The Florida Aquarium.

Maybe you are thinking about staying at a hotel on the beach or in Tampa. There are several hotels including the TradeWinds Island Resort on St. Petersburg Beach, the Crowne Plaza Tampa Westshore and Wyndam Hotel Westshore. You can also book a vacation with ASD Vacations and be linked with a personal special needs travel agent.

When you click on the links to the locations you want to visit, you will find a page with information for adults and then pages you can review with your child prior to visiting the location. This is to help your child so they have advance knowledge of rules and potential sensory issues.

If you are a business or you know of a business that wants to become a part of the CARD Business Directory, you can go onto the website or call 813-974-2532.

I would love to find out what you think about this program and if this helps you with your planning for fun adventures with your child. Email me at scottrussell@tfamail.com or comment below.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!