Business travel has been one of the hardest-hit sectors of the industry during the global pandemic, with a new study of 1,400 regular business travellers showing 93% have reduced travel for work by an average of 60% since the COVID-19 pandemic began. However, 84% of business travellers confirm they would travel now if the correct safe travel measures are in place, rising to 87% for frequent flyers.
The desire to travel for work is driven by human factors, with travellers most missing ‘seeing customers and colleagues face-to-face’ and ‘sharing ideas at in-person meetings’, closely followed by social aspects like ‘sharing a meal’.
When it comes to rebuilding confidence, frequent travellers highlighted the relevance of information sharing, contactless payment technology, and comprehensive medical insurance as the main safe measures to implement. Additionally, travellers prioritise information on health and travel restrictions as well as contactless payments over testing and vaccination certificates, suggesting they seek the tools to safely manage their own trip and the associated risks.
The research was conducted during February 2021 with 1,400 people that travelled at least three times for business in 2019. ‘Frequent travellers’ refers to those who travelled more than 15 times for business during 2019. Respondents were drawn in equal numbers from seven representative global markets: France, Germany, India, Japan, Spain, the US, and the UK. The research was conducted by the market research firm Opinium.
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