What is Bleisure Travel and why is it a trend? 

What is Bleisure Travel and why is it a trend?

FOR THOSE WHO MUST TRAVEL FOR BUSINESS PURPOSES, BLEISURE TRAVEL HAS BECOME AN EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY.  IN FACT, MORE AND MORE BUSINESS TRAVELERS PREFER BLEISURE TRAVEL, WHICH IS PRECISELY WHY THE HOTEL INDUSTRY MUST CONSIDER IT IN ORDER TO PROVIDE THE BEST POSSIBLE COMFORT TO ITS USERS. […]

For those who must travel for business purposes, bleisure travel has become an excellent opportunity.  In fact, more and more business travelers prefer bleisure travel, which is precisely why the hotel industry must consider it in order to provide users with the best possible comfort.

In this article we will explain what bleisure is and what its main benefits are. Knowing this, you will discover how your hotel can take advantage of this increasingly popular form of travel.

What is Bleisure travel

The phrase Bleisure travel is the result of combining “business travel” with “leisure travel”. Consequently, Bleisure travel is now used to refer to travel that combines the characteristics of business travel with those of leisure travel. 

In other words, people travel to certain destinations mainly for business commitments and extend their stay for a few extra days to enjoy activities like an ordinary tourist. These activities can be walks through places of historical and cultural importance, walks through parks or visits to the beach. 

This type of travel can bring advantages for business travelers and their employers as well as for those who work in the tourism industry. For the business traveler, a few days of leisure can translate into reduced stress and increased motivation and productivity. In this way the employer would also be earning more.

And of course, for the owner of a tourist accommodation, the growth of bleisure travelers means more hotel occupancy.

Bleisure Travel: a growing market segment

Bleisure travel has been showing good growth in recent years. It is estimated that since 2015, business travel spending has been increasing by 6-7% every year. For this reason, the tourism and hotel market has put its focus on this type of travelers. 

On the other hand, according to some studies conducted by travel agencies, such as Expedia, it is estimated that at least 40% of business travelers add a leisure element to their trips.  It is also estimated that most bleisure travelers take at least 1 trip every 2 to 3 months. This indicates that bleisure travel is growing considerably.

In addition, according to a study published by the Global Business Travel Association, among business travelers, millennials are the group most likely to extend their business travel with leisure activities. This group is followed by Generation X and Baby Boomers.

Why Bleisure Travel is becoming so popular 

There are several reasons why Bleisure Travel is catching on, here are some of them:

• When business travelers add bleisure time to their travel, their trips tend to be more enjoyable and therefore create a very favorable outlook on work. In this sense, the end result is that travel will be less stressful and productivity can be much higher.
• Bleisure travel is an excellent opportunity to visit certain destinations at a lower cost. This is because in many cases the employer pays for the main costs of the trip, such as airfare and hotel days for the duration of the work engagement. Therefore, the traveler will only have to pay for hotel days in addition to business time and leisure activities.  
• Hotels receive additional revenue from bleisure travel guests, as they extend their stay to enjoy the area’s tourist attractions. In turn, this translates into higher hotel occupancy.

Conclusion

With all the benefits offered by bleisure travel, which affect the travelers as well as the company they work for and the hotel, there is no doubt that this type of travel is here to stay. 

In fact, according to a survey conducted by the American Hotel and Lodging Association, nearly 89% of business travelers want to take some time off on their next trip.

Undoubtedly, this is a type of guest that every hotel should consider, in order to design plans, offers and services tailored to their needs.