Inclusive Adirondack Access
Accessible Saranac Lake
Saranac Lake is for everyone
Find accessible fun across the region
Saranac Lake's waterways, trails, and attractions make any vacation fun and bursting with opportunities to explore. Your vacation should only be limited by how much fun you want to have, not accessibility. To ensure that your next vacation is as much fun as can be, and to help you plan, we've put together this guide to some of the region's experiences that no one should miss and which are welcoming and designed with visitors with disabilities in mind.
Find your lodging
Many of Saranac Lake's hotels and motels feature ADA-compliant rooms. Choose a stunning lakeside spot at the Saranac Waterfront Lodge or downtown's historic Hotel Saranac as your home base.
Want to go camping? There are a number of campgrounds in the area that offer ADA-friendly camping for a wonderful outdoor experience. These state-run campgrounds are very family-friendly and are easy to get around, with gentle paved roads, plus a variety of amenities, including playgrounds and free activity programs.
Buck Pond State Campground in Onchiota features wheelchair accessible camping, camping pads, showers, restrooms, bathhouse, and picnic areas.
Fish Creek State Campground, located between Tupper Lake and Saranac Lake, offers wheelchair accessible day use areas, camping, picnic pads, grills, picnic tables, camping pads, showers, rest rooms, pavilion, and a fishing pier!
Rollins Pond State Campground, located adjacent to Fish Creek, offers wheelchair accessible bathrooms, fire places, day use areas, and picnic tables.
Meadowbrook State Campground in nearby Ray Brook offers wheelchair accessible bathrooms, fire places, day use area, and picnic tables.
Attractions
One of the best ways to learn more about the area is with a visit to Historic Saranac Lake and the Saranac Laboratory Museum, which tells the story of the village's role as a tuberculosis cure center and other local histories. Because the building is a historic landmark and was built in the 1800s, not all of it is accessible. However, the John Black Room, where rotating exhibits are displayed, is wheelchair accessible, as is the Cure Porch on Wheels, a new exhibit space and oral history booth. The staff here is always happy to spend time with visitors who are not able to see the entire space but wish to learn more.
You don't have to be a kid to enjoy the Adirondack Carousel! Visitors of all ages adore this carousel, which features hand-crafted carousel animals, all of which you'll find in the Adirondacks. The building in William Morris Park is fully wheelchair accessible, and so is the carousel! Instead of a chariot, visitors who can't or don't wish to climb aboard an animal can ride in the mini Chris Craft boat for a sweet ride.
While you're in the area, be sure to drive over to Tupper Lake to visit The Wild Center. One of the most beloved attractions in the whole state, The Wild Center is an interactive natural history museum with live otters, raptors, Adirondack amphibians, nature trails, and the Wild Walk, a raised series of wooden walkways that bring you up to the treetops! All of the indoor exhibits and most of the Wild Walk are wheelchair-friendly and were designed with everyone in mind! The Wild Center also offers special guided tours for the visually impaired and days dedicated to those with sensory issues.
Beyond Saranac Lake
An easier way to travel the region.
The Tri-Lakes Center for Independent Living is a regional organization that provides many services to individuals and their families with accessibility concerns. The TLCIL even has a "Loan Closet," consisting of items such as wheelchairs, walkers, temporary ramps, and more, which may be loaned out. If you find yourself trying to plan a trip to the area and want to borrow an item or simply ask for information, the TLCIL welcomes your call or email!
Accessible Adirondack Tourism focuses on tourism in the Adirondacks for people with disabilities, their families, friends and companions. They provide a single-source website for people with disabilities to locate recreational, dining, lodging, retail, outdoor and other accessible resources within the Adirondack region, including the 14 counties of Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence, Saratoga, Oneida, Oswego, Warren, and Washington.
Information that can make your stay seamless.
Questions? Please feel free to call ahead to chat directly with a hotel, restaurant, or attraction.
If you have special needs, please mention them at the time of reservation, and call the provider 24 to 48 hours before your arrival to confirm that proper accommodations have been made. Don't hesitate to ask for specifics such as door and bathroom measurements if you question whether or not your wheelchair will fit.
Please be specific and clear when describing a disability. Not all service providers know the "lingo" of accessible travel but they do want to help make sure you have a wonderful experience when you visit. Give as many details as you can about your needs. The more information a service provider has, the better they will be able to accommodate you and make your visit as easy and comfortable as possible.
