St. Johns County earns status as Florida’s first Certified Autism Destination

St. Johns County has officially become Florida’s first Certified Autism Destination. The designation was announced Tuesday morning during an event at the St. Augustine & St. Johns County Visitor Information Center.

The initiative was led by the St. Johns County Chamber of Commerce in partnership with St. Johns County and the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards.

Based locally in the area, IBCCES sets the international standard for training and certification in the fields of autism, neurodiversity and accessibility.

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To encourage local participation, the county provided a matching grant to subsidize certification costs for participating businesses.

To earn certification as Certified Autism Centers, participating tourism and hospitality staff completed specialized training developed by leading autism experts, along with an on-site review by IBCCES.

Customer-facing staff learn how to better serve guests with autism and sensory needs and each designated location designs specialized programs or accommodations.

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For the tourism industry, the designation allows families of individuals with autism to plan travel to St. Johns County with confidence.

According to an IBCCES survey, 94% of families stated they would take more vacations or visit more new destinations if they had access to options that are trained and certified in autism support.

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More than 20 local tourism and hospitality entities completed the process, including:

• DoubleTree by Hilton
• City of St. Augustine Visitor Services
• Disease Vector Education Center
• First Coast Cultural Center
• Fury Water Adventures
• Hilton Garden Inn St. Augustine
• Hilton St. Augustine Historic Bayfront
• Ola Restaurant at Castillo Real St. Augustine Beach Resort
• Old Town Trolley Tours & Attractions, including Old Jail, Potter’s Wax Museum and St. Augustine History Museum
• Renaissance St. Augustine Historic Downtown Hotel
• Sawgrass Marriott
• St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum
• St. Augustine Sailing
• St. Johns County Chamber of Commerce, operator of the Ponte Vedra Visitor Information Center
• St. Johns County Parks & Recreation
• St. Johns County Visitors and Convention Bureau
• The Waterworks, operated by St. Johns Cultural Council
• Third Space Improv

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