Blue Trunk Foundation is  dedicated to providing information about accessibility to make it easier for people to travel regardless of their age, disability, or health conditions. Our vision is to be the premier source of reliable information about accessible travel worldwide. We are a non-profit organization based in Charlottesville, VA. Please follow us on social media and contact us to get involved!

How we got started

Rupa Valdez created Blue Trunk Foundation in response to her personal experiences traveling with and without a disability. Before developing mobility restrictions Rupa was spontaneous. She booked trains and hotels at the last minute and sampled fare at any restaurant on a whim. 

Traveling in a wheelchair is different. It means going to the train station a day in advance to coordinate how to get on and off. It means eating at a restaurant then realizing a bathroom is only available down a flight of stairs. And it means being stuck in an airport’s separate waiting room for hours. It’s not all bad. There are businesses that make traveling with a disability so easy that she forgets her special needs. 

Rupa thought about how much easier it would be to know the good, bad and the ugly ahead of time. It would great to have one place where you could find all this information. Today Blue Trunk is dedicated to filling this need by providing resources about accessibility to make it easier for all people to travel regardless of age, disabilities or health conditions.

Why Blue Trunk?

We wanted a name that would resonate. The international color of accessibility and the idea of "blue planet" inspire the first half of the name. A travel trunk inspires the second half. Together, Blue Trunk also refers to Ganesh, the Hindu god with a blue elephant head who is the remover of obstacles, which is a role we hope to play for all people who want to travel.

Blue Trunk Foundation

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