Have you received the interior and exterior signs you bought for your hotel? Fantastic, congratulations! What’s next? Installing your brand-new signs, we hope. Speaking of which, did you know that the Americans with Disabilities (ADA) and specifically the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design dictate specific requirements for interior signs, particularly tactile signs? When it comes to installing hotel signs, hoteliers must consider the requirements for both tactile and visual signs. As these signs serve different purposes, you must consider your needs and goals to evaluate and determine the specific installation rules. In this blog post, we’ll help you digest hotel sign installation requirements and provide resources to help you determine which hotel signs you will need for your property.
Visual vs. Tactile Signs
First, let’s briefly go over the difference between visual and tactile signs.
A tactile sign is any sign that can be read by touch through raised text and Braille. Federal regulations specify that a tactile ADA sign must mark every permanent room or space within public accommodations. These signs include room number signs, restroom signs, and exit signs. Additionally, you’ll find that all tactile characters are uppercase with proper color contrast between the characters and background.
Visual signs, on the other hand, are signs which do not indicate a permanent room or space. They may provide rules, such as pool signs, or help with wayfinding, such as directional signs and overhead signs. They do not require raised text or Braille but do still require proper color contrast. In addition, they can either be uppercase, lowercase, or a combination of both.
Where Should Visual and Tactile Signs Be Located?
You can’t just place visual and tactile signs anywhere within your hotel—there are rules in place for visibility and accessibility.
Tactile signs: According to 703.4.2 of the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design, tactile signs should be placed on the latch side of the door. If the latch side of the door is obstructed or unavailable, then the signs would be placed on the next adjacent wall. Or, if the door is a double door, the sign would be installed to the right of the door. But, as an exception to the general rule, if a single door pushes inward and is an automatic closer with no hold-open device then the sign can be placed on the door.
Visual signs: Unlike tactile signs, there isn’t much regulation when it comes to the location of visual signs. Best practice would be to ask for these visual-only signs to be placed in logical/relevant locations that would be visible easiest to passerby.
There are also height requirements for both visual and tactile signs. We’ll go through them now.
How Do I Select My Sign’s Height?
Tactile signs: According to the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design, tactile characters shall be located 48 inches minimum above the finished floor, measured from the baseline of the lowest line of tactile characters and 60 inches maximum above the finish floor, measured from the baseline of the highest line of tactile characters.
HOTELSIGNS.com tip: We recommend that the center of the sign is at 54 inches for maximum visibility of your sign to guests. And while there’s no rule about how far from the door you hang your ADA sign, we recommend 2-3 inches from the door.
Visual signs: Since the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design has been in effect, visual character signs shall be mounted 40 inches minimum above the finished floor, per the chart below, there are specific parameters in place that determine a visual character’s minimum character height.
HOTELSIGNS.com tip: As a best practice, we recommend installing all visual and tactile signs at 54’’ from the center of the sign to the floor.
Exceptions for California
It is important to briefly consider California’s hotel sign installation requirements, as they are the only U.S. state with slightly contrasting requirements. One of the requirements is tactile height. As mentioned above, standards dictate tactile characters shall be located 48 inches minimum above the finished floor, measured from the baseline of the lowest line of tactile characters and 60 inches maximum above the finish floor, measured from the baseline of the highest line of tactile characters. However, tactile installation requirements for California require that the top baseline is 60’’, with the lowest baseline being the baseline of the lowest line of Braille at 48’’. So the difference? Mere technicalities.
Another California-specific requirement focuses on double doors. When restroom signs require double signage, one sign can be mounted on the door’s latch side, and the other sign, geometric restroom symbols, is permitted to be mounted directly to the door. You can shop California geometric visual restroom signs here.
Ordering Your Hotel’s New Signs
Keep in mind that sign installation is not based on the sign itself but on the sign’s text; so, when you take measurements, your measurement should be oriented based on the sign text.
Now is the time to order your interior and exterior hotel signs. If you operate a branded hotel property, you can scroll to find your specific brand store here. We understand figuring out the signs you need for your hotel is a daunting task. As a hospitality administrator or executive, your time is precious, so we encourage you to utilize our SignSpec© Planning Service to receive a free, no-obligation full property quote!
Thank you for trusting HOTELSIGNS.com as your dedicated and knowledgeable sign expert? Once your signs have arrived, it is time to install your signs! Refer to our ADA general, California, New York City, and NFPA sign installation guides for additional instructions, or reach out to our dedicated customer service or your trustworthy account expert.
Congratulations on your brand new & ADA-compliant hotel signs!