As a traveler disabled due to chronic illness, I’ve learned that some destinations are more challenging to navigate than others. Mexico is one of them, especially in rural areas where there’s less awareness and infrastructure for disabled travelers. For me, this means pre-travel research becomes a part-time job as I peruse hotel reviews for mentions of mold, plan how to keep my medication chilled, and message restaurants about gluten-free options.
For travelers with disabilities different from mine, the barriers are far greater. Many buildings may not have wheelchair ramps, cobblestone streets aren’t wheelchair-accessible, and accommodations for deaf or blind visitors are unreliable beyond airports and major tourist attractions. One farm stay, in Zacatlán de las Manzanas, a Pueblo Mágico in central Mexico, is hoping to inspire more widespread inclusion in the country.
During a trip to Puebla, I visited the organic farm, called Finca La Concordia, and its Berries Club in the nearby Sierra Norte mountains, an area known for many fruit orchards and the neblina, mist, that sits low over the ground much of the year. Here, accessibility at the farm starts at arrival with the Berry Bus, a school bus retrofitted for wheelchair users with a wide entrance and attachable ramp. Once at the orchard, wheelchair users can tour the grounds on horseback, thanks to a wheelchair ramp that goes right to the horse’s back, or on an adaptable golf cart.
Stephanie Núñez boards the Berry Bus, a wheelchair-accessible golf cart that reflects Finca La Concordia’s mission to make the outdoors more welcoming for travelers with disabilities.
Courtesy of Finca La Concordia
As the owner, Federico Núñez Perea, told me later, accessibility has been part of the design of the orchard since the beginning. His daughter, Stephanie Núñez, was born with spina bifida and uses a wheelchair. “In everything I do, I have to consider making it accessible for her,” he said. Stephanie has participated in each activity on the property.
“Since I was very little, I haven’t had any limits on what I can do thanks to my parents and their desire to include me in everything,” Stephanie said. But this isn’t always the case beyond the farm. “I’ve traveled,” she said, “and of course I’ve come across places that aren’t very accessible. It’s difficult and frustrating sometimes because we don’t have the same opportunities.” In her role as the farm’s Inclusion Director, she’s working to change that.
There is a flat and grassy section of the orchard designated for wheelchair users to pick their own blueberries, a wheelchair-accessible star observatory set to open soon, accessible camping, and more. For visually impaired visitors, there are audio materials and forest trails lined with fallen leaves to be navigable with canes, and staff members are in the process of learning Mexican Sign Language to welcome deaf guests. These optimizations stem from Federico’s belief that “with small adjustments, people with disabilities can do what people without disabilities can.”
After our breakfast, we took a quick tour of the horse stables. We learned how to make and jar blueberry jam before sampling apple wine, honey, and chocolate-covered berries. I felt like I’d found a rare treat while standing outside one of the wheelchair-accessible guest rooms at the property’s Frutos del Bosque boutique hotel, watching the mist swallow the sprawling grounds: a place that doesn’t perform accessibility, but deeply understands it.
