Business Travel is back... and the destination is wellness

Business is all about connecting. When we build relationships with clients and colleagues, face-to-face communication can be crucial. So, it’s good to know that, after a few challenging years, business travel is back in a big way… and the stats are there to prove it.

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People are meeting people again

After years of Zooming, virtual meetings and working exclusively from home, we’re getting out there and hitting the road to meet with customers, prospects, colleagues and attend events. In fact, according to a recent report from Skift, 60% of business travellers either strongly or somewhat agree that they will attend more in person business meetings in 2023... a far cry from the past few years.

Other analysis backs this up, like Morgan Stanley’s Global Corporate Travel Survey: 2023, which found that corporate travel budgets are recovering to pre-Covid levels, with the biggest demand coming from small companies. Or a 2022 research report from American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), which found that business travel had already been seen as a “valuable and powerful generator of company culture” with “travel programs becoming the core way through which remote teams gather”.

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What’s driving this surge in business travel?

Jenny Southan, founder and editor of Globetrender, reflects on the reason for this renewed interest in business travel: “I think we all know that the mass adoption of video calling made a huge difference in terms of enabling remote working during the lockdown. Of course, since then, we've seen the downsides and that we do need time together as teams, to be face-to-face, to gather in an office at least for a proportion of the week.”

“I think generally there is a bit of fatigue now with video calling. It's part of our lives, it's here to stay but in terms of business travel, I think people are really keen to get out into the world again. In fact, they are already doing it... having face-to-face meetings and actually connecting with each other.

“Although some of those day-to-day interactions can be done on Zoom, I think business travel is really booming again, and will continue to because we've all just realised the value of physical human interaction and engagement. Those relationships can't be built in the same way in the virtual space.”

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Wellness and wellbeing are key

So, we’re travelling for business again... but at the same time we’re also putting a greater emphasis on wellness and wellbeing. Ongoing health issues (including long Covid), anxiety about meeting new people, increased caring responsibilities and environmental concerns are now more in people’s minds than they were before – and certainly more so than before the pandemic.

Additionally, the effects of insufficient sleep on our health have been extensively documented. As Jenny Southan pointed out, "Generally, people are not getting good sleep, often due to excessive screen time, especially when travelling for business.”

In fact, according to research from American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), more than half (55%) of business travellers say their wellbeing suffers when they travel too frequently, and seven in 10 (71%) even admitted they’d leave a role if they felt their wellbeing wasn’t sufficiently supported while they are away for work.

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Combining business with leisure is important too

All of this sits against a backdrop of difficult and uncertain economic times. No wonder then, that “bleisure” (blending business and leisure in a single trip) is also high on people’s list of priorities when thinking about travelling on business.

According to a recent survey from Swissport, a staggering 18.5 million Britons have been considering a trip that combines business with leisure this year. It’s no surprise that cost-savings are a big motivation, with the attraction of company budgets covering flights and hotels appealing to 33% of Brits to try the trend. Other motivations include to de-stress around a work trip (29%) and to take time to explore a destination visited for work (29%).

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Helping business guests rest easy

At Premier Inn, we’ve been focusing on the needs of travel managers and business stayers for a long time. Before, during, and after Covid, we’ve always worked hard to ensure that our bookers can rest easy knowing that their colleagues get the most comfortable and productive stay possible with us.

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Today, we offer everything you need for both hybrid working as well as bleisure… investing significantly in designing our own beds... super-comfy pillows and duvets... quiet, relaxing rooms with black-out blinds... and power showers with Baylis & Harding toiletries, so you can relax and wake up ready to go.

Recharge and refuel over breakfast with your first cuppa of the day. Get off to a healthy start with tea choices including decaf, green and mint. Or give yourself a natural boost with cranberry, apple or orange juice. We have all the options you need to start your day right.

All of our rooms also give you a choice of tea or coffee, whilst our Premier Plus rooms offer complimentary water, tea and coffee pods complete with a machine for the perfect pick me up.

It’s a new era of healthier business travel for everyone. We’re ready when you are, delighted to see you and always ready to put your wellbeing first... rest easy whenever you visit us on business.

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November 2023

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