Bleisure Travel

Business travel + leisure travel = bleisure travel.

Bleisure is a trend that combines business travel with leisure activities. The term has been around for a decade (entering 2009), but in recent years it has been picking up pace with artificial intelligence, “smart hotel rooms” and the use of robots as one of the new trends in the hospitality industry.

The main goals for the travel of bleisure tourists are: conferences, meetings with clients, team buildings and presentations.

World statistics show that around 16% of business trips continue on a Saturday night, and about 10% of business trips include an entertainment feature. 1 out of every 10 business travelers is inclined to spend another 1 night in the destination for leisure.

A number of demographic and behavioral factors also influence:

The Millennium Generation (born between 1980 and 2000) is becoming a growing workforce, and from there, their influence on the way in which the modern man balances work and leisure during business travel is increasing. About 38% of bleisure guests are tourists from the Millennium Generation. Generation X and Baby Boomers also contribute about 31% of travel.

Statistics show that women are more likely to be bleisure tourists than men.

The months with the most pronounced bleisure trips are September and October, and Airbnb is the most attractive overnight accommodation platform because of the more competitive rates for accommodation offered there.

Increasingly, employers are also seeing bleisure travel as a good trend that affects employee satisfaction with a business trip and increases their motivation and effectiveness. The opportunity for an employee to be accompanied by a family member during the trip or to have fun on a business trip is also a good reason for the business trip to be more relaxed and productive.

Worldwide there are a number of private examples of how, on long business trips (3 to 6 months), the wives of the posted employees visit them for 3-4 days each month, how the general manager of an environmental company has a hobby of photography and uses every possible moment, traveling on a business trip around the world, to explore and shoot new unknown destinations. Business travelers often stay at their destination for the weekend, after completing their work assignment, in order to get to know the place and have fun.

For hoteliers and local businesses, this is a great opportunity to offer additional services such as:

• tours to the destination
• rent a car or bike
• reservation for a local restaurant
• sightseeing
• tickets for concerts, museums, theater productions

In conclusion, business travel has long been transformed and is now reaching different scales, creating new needs for tourists and favoring hoteliers willing to offer a variety of leisure activities for their guests.