Bleisure travel trends and what they mean for your business

Is the occurrence of bleisure travel — incorporating leisure into a business trip — growing? The answer depends on your perspective. One thing is for sure: bleisure is not slowing. But what is bleisure? And what’s trending in bleisure travel today? Let’s explore everything you need to know about bleisure and what a bleisure traveler consists of. 

What is bleisure? 

Bleisure is the fusion of business and leisure travel. It refers to the growing trend among business professionals who extend their work trips to include elements of relaxation and exploration. In essence, bleisure transforms the traditional notion of business travel into a more enjoyable experience. Here are some key features of bleisure travel:

• Extended stay: Bleisure involves prolonging your stay at a destination beyond the duration of your work commitments. This extension allows you to immerse yourself in local culture and unwind after the hustle of business meetings.
• Flexibility: Unlike traditional business trips that strictly adhere to a tight schedule, bleisure travel offers flexibility. Professionals can tailor their itineraries to include downtime, giving them the freedom to make the most of their time away. 
• Networking opportunities: Bleisure also opens up unique networking opportunities in a more relaxed setting. Building connections over a shared meal or exploring a new city together can foster stronger professional relationships.

What’s trending in bleisure? 

The global bleisure travel market, valued at $315.3 billion in 2022, is expected to reach an estimated $731.4 billion by 2032. With such emphasis on bleisure travel, let’s take a closer look at insights into bleisure travelers and their bleisure behavior. 

• Increased engagement: 79% of bleisure travelers state they volunteer more frequently for business trips where they can extend and enjoy some vacation time.
• Trip length: 17% of bleisure trips last four nights or more, 31% are three nights in length, 39% are for two nights, and just 12% of bleisure travelers are away for only one night.
• Age: Engagement with bleisure travel varies from generation to generation with Millennial employees (86%) more likely to add on leisure time than Gen Xers (76%) or baby boomers (73%).
• Destination: New York City generates the most bleisure trips each year, with Paris coming in second and London third.

Another important trend to note is that 36% of bleisure travelers have family or acquaintances at the destination they are traveling to. 

What bleisure opportunities are out there? 

Bleisure travel has become a game-changer for the travel industry and offers opportunities for travel agencies, hotels, and airlines. The rise of bleisure has led to a notable increase in overall travel spending, with travelers extending their duration of bleisure travel by three times within the last three years as the majority of travel now lasts for 10 or more days. 

For travel agencies, this trend translates into a growing market for personalized itineraries that seamlessly blend business and leisure experiences. Hotels have witnessed a surge in bookings. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, 60% of business travel was extended for leisure purposes. This presents an opportunity for hoteliers to promote exclusive packages and amenities catering to this dual-purpose audience. Airlines, too, benefit from the bleisure boom, as the demand for flexible and extended travel arrangements continue to soar. 

Travel suppliers

The bleisure traveler is practically a new category of traveler — with two-in-one possibilities. Industry suppliers can cross-sell leisure-related products and services to business travelers and vice versa.

• Hoteliers can develop packages and marketing campaigns to delight guests’ spouses and families with other amenities, from in-room dining to spa services. This means they can boost their concierge services — partner with local package tour vendors, for example — and attract the interest of business travelers they may not have thought to target with recreational offers. And there’s the obvious opportunity to sell more overnight stays to business guests who want to stay in town after their work is done. Or, if a meeting or convention is booked at the property, the event planner can suggest pre- and post-event activities for participants, in and around the hotel.
• Airlines, too, can benefit from bleisure travelers, selling additional seats to business flyers’ family members — working with their corporate travel managers to enhance the booking experience and make trip planning easier.

Employers

The companies who send their employees out on the road or abroad are the parties to thank for the bleisure phenomenon: They’re enabling their road warriors and jetsetters to have some non-business fun on their trip, enhancing their work/life balance. Employers are looking for ways to boost employee engagement, build loyalty, and increase employee satisfaction — bleisure trips fit the bill. According to TravelPerk, 79% of bleisure travelers state they volunteer more frequently for business trips where they can extend and enjoy some vacation time.

Happier employees who are more satisfied with their company’s travel program might even be more productive — and even contribute to better business outcomes. There may not be a study to back up the claim, but it’s possible that when compared with an overtired, disgruntled salesperson, a relaxed, loyal salesperson puts more energy into their customer relationships, isn’t it? 

Another consideration for employers is the “bleisure effect” of stronger relationships with suppliers. If a travel policy encourages employees to use preferred suppliers while exploring a city after business is done, the supplier benefits. This win-win arrangement might lead to more favorable contract terms or discounts for bleisure bookings. 

Destinations

Business travelers may extend their trips into the personal realm to explore a new city, get some much-needed rest in fresh surroundings, or spend time with family and friends. In any case, it results in more business for the destination city — hotels, restaurants, tourist attractions, and more. 

Bleisure traffic has led to destinations taking on new marketing strategies to help visitors get the most of their trips. Being aware of the phenomenon is the first step, and the second is reaching out to travel industry partners to devise and promote special offers, including those that encourage repeat visits — for business, leisure, or both.

The information in this blog post is for educational purposes only. It is not legal or tax advice. For legal or tax advice, you should consult your own legal counsel, tax and investment advisers.