Accessible Air Travel Tips with Phoenyx from Phoenyx Travels

If flying feels overwhelming, exhausting, or like you're starting from scratch every single trip — this episode is for you.

This week I'm joined by Phoenyx from Phoenyx Travels — a content creator and accessible travel expert who has built a reputation for honest, practical advice for disabled, chronically ill, neurodivergent and sensory-sensitive travellers. We're talking about her Flight Ready Travel Kit and everything she's learned about making air travel genuinely work for people whose bodies and brains don't follow the usual rules.

This is part 4 of our special 4-part travel creator series — and this one might just be the most important episode of the four.

In this episode: 

✈️ Why most accessible travel advice doesn't actually help on real travel days 

🧳 What the Flight Ready Travel Kit covers and who it's designed for 

🗣️ How to ask for accommodations — even when words or energy are limited 

⚡ How to pace your energy before, during and after a flight 

🔄 Why having a repeatable system changes everything

Guest: Phoenyx — Phoenyx Travels 

🔗 Flight Ready Travel Kit

🌐 Phoenyx travels Website

📸 Instagram

Chapters: 

00:00 — Introduction 

00:29 — Meet Phoenyx from Phoenyx Travels 

15:59 — Truly Expat Travel Introduction 

16:28 — Travel Guides & Destinations

If this episode resonated with you, share it with someone who needs it. And if you have a story about travel you'd like to share on the podcast, get in touch at podcast@trulyexpat.com

Help Truly Expat Travel by leaving a review or making a donation 

Here is the link - https://buymeacoffee.com/trulyexpat

Travel with peace of mind: SafetyWings
Get covered in 180+ countries with flexible monthly subscriptions starting at just $45.08.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Find me on:

Website: Truly Expat Travel 

Facebook: Truly Expat

Instagram: Truly Expat Travel 

TikTok: Truly Expat Travel 

Running this podcast takes a lot of coffee (and countless hours exploring every destination!). If you found this helpful and want to support more honest, detailed travel guides and itineraries, you can buy me a coffee. No pressure though – I'm just happy you're here and hope you have an incredible adventure! 🙂

Transcript

Introduction to four travel creators with unique perspectives

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Four travel creators, four completely different ways of seeing the world, and between them, one tip that genuines me in my tracks and makes me rethink the way I travel. One tip that actually helps me with the planning process, and one piece of advice that I think everybody should know. These are the reels that have been in my folder, my save folder, for some time, months actually.

Announcement of upcoming episodes and theme of intentional travel

SPEAKER_00 0:26

So, what I've done is the next four weeks, I will have four different creators come on and give me some advice.

Featuring Phoenix from Phoenix Travels and her approach to purposeful travel

SPEAKER_00 0:34

And this week is the last of the episodes. This is Phoenix, Phoenix travels, and she is amazing to say the least. She got some amazing advice, and she's very different because her niche is being an intentional traveller. And this is something that's new to me because I've never had to, I guess, experience or travel with someone that needs a little more assistance than most. So listen to what she has to say, and because she gives some really good advice. Anyway, let's have a listen. Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. Welcome aboard Truly Expat Travel, where we're ditching the guidebooks, fastening our seatbelts, and diving into real stories from travellers who have traded the ordinary for the extraordinary, proving the world really is too big to be left on its ball. Cabin crew be seated and ready for takeoff. I've added Phoenix. I'm hoping that I've added her right and I've put her on properly. It's bright and early here in Singapore. It's hot and it's 7am in the morning. So I have a special guest that I met some time ago in T-Vex. For those who don't know what T-VEX is, it's a blogging exchange. Okay. Yay! Yay! I did it. I was so nervous because I've I stuff it up every single time.

SPEAKER_01 2:03

So I couldn't figure it out on my computer either. So it is my phone.

SPEAKER_00 2:09

Perfect, perfect, perfect. So I was just explaining what that how I met you at T-BEX, and I was explaining what T-BEX was, which is a um blogging ex blogging conference. Like well, originally it was a blogging conference, right? But now it's kind of a creator conference. Is that how you would explain it?

SPEAKER_01 2:28

Yeah, I think it would basically be any kind of creator if you're whether just social media or going into the blogging world. I think it's just kind of for everyone, or even someone who's just interested in the idea of possibly doing it.

SPEAKER_00 2:41

Yeah, and exciting news, your speaker there is it the Richmond, because they've got three this year.

SPEAKER_01 2:48

Yeah.

unknown 2:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 2:48

It's gonna be in Richmond, Virginia, in June.

SPEAKER_00 2:51

Yeah, so it'd be honored to have you on today. And we're gonna talk about something a little bit different because you're you've got a very niche blogger, blogging community. And what I will do is I will hand over the microphone to you and explain exactly what your niche is. So yeah, welcome, Phoenix, and welcome, because your handle is Phoenix Travels, right? Yes. Yes. So let's get started. Yes, on everything. So let's get started. Let's find out exactly who you are, and a little bit about you, and then I'll ask you a few questions about what you what you talk about.

SPEAKER_01 3:30

Okay, so I'm Phoenix at Phoenix Travels. It actually was a complete accident that I made this because I was going to school for my doctorate in psychology and then had a near-death motorcycle accident, became disabled overnight to where I had a severe traumatic brain injury, eventually I had an amputation, and now I've added to my gotta catch them all of Pokemon disab disabilities of chronic illness with energy limitations. And so, you know, once I discovered travel after my disability again, it kind of brought me back to life. It gave me passion. And but it was so hard. There were no resources out there. There was no, like there are travel agencies who are like, oh, okay, well, we'll help you book this. But I'm like, no, I want how-to to do it myself. Like, how can I navigate going through the airports? How can I fly? How can I do road trips? How can I actually find accessible hotels? And so I built my website basically walking people through these steps. And it has been quite the journey. I've I'm still learning and I'm almost 10 years out from my accident.

SPEAKER_00 4:43

And do you do you travel alone a lot?

SPEAKER_01 4:46

Yes, actually, it's my favorite way to travel. So I am a I'm married, I'm a we have a blended family, so five kids, two each from a previous marriage and one together. So I either travel solo, which is my preferred way of doing it, or you know, sometimes we'll have like me and my husband and my seven-year-old, or we'll have the whole brood with us, and then it's just pure chaos.

SPEAKER_00 5:10

I think that's in any family, it's pure chaos, more than two people. It is in mine anyway. So let's get started because you've written a guide, and so I want to talk about the guide. And so, what inspired you to write the flight ready travel kit? And what is it?

SPEAKER_01 5:28

So, I made the flight ready travel kit, it's pretty intensive. Basically, uh it's kind of a guide, you download it once, and it talks you through basically from the moment you're thinking about your trip, you're booking your flights, what you need to do from that point all the way up until you're on vacation and you're trying to figure out your energy limitations and things like that, and you're pacing. And and then when you wrap up, kind of just like evaluating how that went and what you can do differently next time. And so it has things like how do you book an accessible flight? Or basically a flight with accessible accommodations, because that's really hard. Like I know a lot of people you can book it and request like wheelchair assistance and things like that, but what happens when they don't show up? And what do you do? Along with there's other things like in the US, we have TSA CARES, which is a very like unlike not well-known system, and I think that needs to be advertised more. So basically, a TSA CARES agent can walk you through the entire security process, so you're not just kind of left like wondering what to do, or like you know, you're struggling with a day with neurofatigue, you're struggling with trying to handle your mobility supports while trying to get your bags. So it kind of tells you how to get those things set up and and what to do when it goes when everything goes wrong, and then also how to track your energy, along with so anyone who brings like a wheelchair, anything like that, it talks about exactly what you need to document and and then what to do in case they damage your wheelchair and what are the protections for you as well.

SPEAKER_00 7:16

Because you don't think of things like that. I mean, like even I I find I'm fatigued every time I get off a flight, so I can't imagine that it added bonus of a damaged wheelchair or a damaged anything, right? And then all people don't show up. So, you know, having that guide or having that book there that you've already done the research for would be very, very handy. So, how do you personally balance packing with being fully prepared? Or packing lightly, I should say.

SPEAKER_01 7:49

I suck at packing. I am not the typical like travel creator or like influencer. I there like it always looks like an explosion. Like like the night I do it the night before, at like midnight, and it is just chaos. And ironically enough, my last adventure to Europe, my bags never made it. I didn't even get them back until a week after I got home. And it was pure chaos. And so, like, also I've been trying to figure out how to incorporate that into the flight ready travel kit. Like, what the heck do you do, especially with like medical equipment? So, my biggest piece of advice is to always just like use a carry-on. It sucks. You'll have to figure out how to condense everything, but at the same time, it's just not worth it not having everything.

SPEAKER_00 8:40

Because it decimated my trip. It's safer when it's on you. I always find that as well. I try, even I don't I don't have all the medical gear that you need, but just not having a bag in general, right? It's just it's just frustrating.

SPEAKER_01 8:56

But as far as like what I would normally bring, as far as kind of like aids for packing, I would always bring like sunglasses, either a noise-cancelling headphones or the noise-reducing earplugs like loop, a portable heavy blanket, or just like one of those bleeded hoodies. I think comfort makes them. Light blocking mask, and the roll-on aromatherapy sticks and a fidget.

SPEAKER_00 9:30

Ah, that I mean, I didn't realize you could get a hoodie as well. I I have a blanket, but I didn't realize you could get a hoodie. And so they're I guess would you wear them? You wear them on the plane, right?

SPEAKER_01 9:42

Yeah, so like I debated on bringing like my weighted blanket because it's not huge, but like at the same time, I don't like I get really hot on airplanes, and so I like putting it in my bag will make it overweight. But also, like, like I was trying to figure out an in-between. I don't have the weighted hoodie yet. I've been debating on purchasing it, but I've heard so many good things. Like my son has a version of their hoodie, and since touching his and like seeing his up clothes, I'm like, okay, maybe I might make the commitment to it. But you just wear it, and so I think it kind of helps it helps the sensory sensitivities, especially with overwhelm um and overstimulation, but also you know, you're not lugging around a giant blanket, especially if you're backpacking through Europe or something like that. You can just wear it.

SPEAKER_00 10:30

Yeah, I like that idea. I think my might even get one. So, what was one item you never travel without?

SPEAKER_01 10:39

I mean, if I'm being funny, it would be my leg, my prosthetic. But I would say the loop earplugs, because I get like because of my severe traumatic brain injury, I get overstimulated by noise, especially. Okay, and so I'm always wearing those, the loop experience two plus earplugs. And so they're great because you can take out the little inserts and you can just wear them through the airport. You can still hear people clearly. It just dulls the noise, it's not as bad.

SPEAKER_00 11:07

Okay, I've never heard of them. So is Loop the brand or Loop is the Okay.

SPEAKER_01 11:12

You can use them on Amazon or through their website, but they're great. I even use them at home, especially when like all the kids are here. I'll just put them in. And then if I really don't want to hear them, I can put the insert in. It's just a real quiet then.

SPEAKER_00 11:26

Oh, I like that. I'm gonna get I'm gonna give it a try. So, what are the benefits of using your flight-ready travel kit?

SPEAKER_01 11:35

So, the flight ready travel kit, like I said, I had made through almost 10 years of experience with trying to figure out the systems that are in place to fly with access needs. And so this kind of puts everything all in one package. It tells you, you know, how to book it with the airlines, you get the TSA cares, it has a hidden disabilities lanyard information, which is the sunflower one that you can you kind of see when you're flying to help indicate that you have a hidden disability. And most airport personnel know about that, especially over in like abroad. Yeah. Our people over here in the US see more training. And then PRM Assist, which is another app where you can like basically triple make sure that people or that people will be there with your wheelchair assistance or anything that like any kind of special assistance when you are flying. Because I've gotten stranded, I've like basically been left at a gate, like I had set it up for connecting gates, and then I had to run a mile to get to my connecting gate in Denver airport. And so by having this kit, you're kind of just like not having to do the mental gymnastics of doing it every single time.

SPEAKER_00 13:00

Yeah, yeah. It sounds like a really good kit. So can you just uh repeat your your website for people so that they can click on and and purchase this kit for themselves?

SPEAKER_01 13:13

Okay, so my website is Phoenix Travels, but Phoenix is spelled differently because it's my name. So it's P-H-O-E-N-Y-X, T-R-A-V-E-L-S.com, and then slash flight ready travel kit with a dash in between each word.

SPEAKER_00 13:32

Excellent. Thanks for coming on, Phoenix. It's lovely to catch up with you, and uh I can't wait to hear all about your experience in T-Bex. Hopefully I'll get there. I'm hoping to get there. Yes, definitely.

unknown 13:44

Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 13:45

Thank you for having me. Bye. Thank you for joining me on the Truly Expat Travel podcast. If you liked this episode and you found it valuable, then why don't you go ahead and like and subscribe so that you don't miss an episode moving forward. I've got some amazing guests and some fantastic destinations coming up. But if this is the episode and this is the destination destination that you really want to go to, then I suggest you head over to truly expatravel.com where you'll find travel guides and deep dive into this sort of destination.

unknown 14:25

Okay.

Listener call to action: subscribing, visiting the website, and following on social media

SPEAKER_00 14:26

If that's not what you want and you can't find an episode that is a destination you want to travel to, then head over and follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, because I'm pretty sure you'll find something there. In the meantime, safe travels and I'll see you next week.