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Navigating the Rise of Bleisure Travel
A guide for mid-sized companies
Employees have been combining work and leisure since the advent of corporate travel, a trend now known as bleisure— where work trips are extended to include personal downtime.
Bleisure travel generally falls into two main categories: extending a business trip either before or after your work itinerary wraps, or inviting friends or family to join you while you’re there.
This concept has gained traction and is here to stay. Companies that embrace this trend can not only enhance employee satisfaction but also create new opportunities to optimize travel policies.
But how do you harness this opportunity? We’ve created a primer so you can make the most of the bleisure boom.
The Evolution of Bleisure Travel
Motivated to find a better work-life balance and facing increasing cost-of-living expenses, many employees now see bleisure as a critical and affordable way to wind down and relax. With the bleisure trend set to grow in the coming years, companies should proactively plan for and capitalize on it.
Motivations Behind Bleisure Travel
70% exploring new destinations
58% making new connections
57% change of work environment
Who Are Bleisure Travelers?
To realize the potential of bleisure travel, companies have to understand who bleisure travelers are and what drives their preferences.
Recent research shows that a growing number of business travelers are eager to combine work with pleasure. This trendis particularly noticeable among younger generations with 86% of millennials reporting that they’re likely to add leisure time to their work travels. Senior executives are twice as likely to mix business with leisure compared to non-management employees, and women increasingly want options to bring their family along when they travel for business.
89% of US employees want to add leisure time to work trips
The motivations behind bleisure travel are as diverse as the travelers themselves. But for many, the appeal of bleisure travel is its promise of both professional and personal development.
A Win-Win for Employees and Employers
Bleisure travel offers many perks for employees, balancing the demands of work with the varied benefits of leisure travel. Here are just a few ways employees benefit when they extend their work travels.
Work-life balance
Employees who blend leisure with business trips report a 64% improvement in work-life balance. This boost in personal time management translates to increased job satisfaction and productivity.
Personal cost savings
In today’s cost-conscious environment, bleisure travel also offers financial perks. Nearly two-thirds (62%) of workers feel that extending work trips for leisure benefits their pocketbooks, allowing them to have experiences they could otherwise not afford to have.
Expanded opportunities
Beyond financial and balance benefits, bleisure travel enhances employees’ personal and professional growth. Relaxing outside conferences and meetings settings allows employees to forge strong business relationships, and downtime breeds new and innovative insights that they can bring back to the workplace.
“When bleisure policy is clear and well understood, it can be a great benefit to the organization—and to employees. Our corporate travelers are grateful to have the option to unwind and take advantage of where the work takes them—we hear it from them and see it pay off in their productivity.”
– Michelle Amos, Associate Director of Travel, Qualtrics
Uptick in employee satisfaction
Combining business trips with leisure activities can make a big difference in employee happiness. In fact, 76% of U.S. travelers report negative outcomes like burnout and depression from prolonged work without breaks. Bleisure travel helps prevent burnout and fosters a more content, engaged, and productive workforce.
Reducing excess travel costs
Bleisure travel can also bring financial benefits to companies. The vast majority of bleisure travelers prefer to stay in the same hotel for both the business and leisure portions of their trips, which can help businesses negotiate better rates for extended stays and provide added benefits to employees.
Rested employees are innovative employees
Over half of bleisure travelers return to work feeling refreshed, leading to increased creativity and innovation. By supporting this travel style, companies can tap into their employees’ renewed energy and drive new ideas, ultimately improving work quality.
Challenges and Risks of Bleisure Travel
For all the benefits of bleisure travel, there are also challenges. Developing a bleisure travel policy should be done with a clear understanding of the following issues:
Duty of care considerations
Employees traveling outside of official company time can create duty of care issues for companies that are legally responsible for the well-being of their workers. It can be difficult to create a bleisure policy that spells out the obligations you have to employees on and off the clock, and to manage the expenses that come with footing travel bills.
Compliance headaches
Companies might also struggle to balance their desire to support bleisure travel with the reality of their company policies, which can require employees and approvers to jump through hoops or sift through a lot of small print.
Blurred lines between work and travel
If your employees are trying to work on a tropical island, there’s a risk that they’ll be more inclined to the beach than the laptop, making productivity and focus difficult.
How to Create a ‘Just-Right’ Bleisure Travel Policy
With all the benefits of bleisure travel for both employers and employees, it’s no wonder that many companies are encouraging it. But bleisure travel is only as good as your bleisure policies—and creating one that is simple, effective, and legally foolproof isn’t always easy.
Successful bleisure policies strike a balance between employee preferences and company goals, providing workers with the flexibility and clarity to book travel confidently while ensuring the company remains financially responsible and maintains employee productivity. By following these best practices, you can create a bleisure travel program that benefits both your employees and your company:
Communicate and educate employees
First things first—make sure your employees know what options are available to them. Create easy-to-understand materials or host a workshop to explain the benefits and process of bleisure, helping everyone get on the same page.
Collaborate with HR, finance, and travel management
Bleisure travel programs are most successful when teams collaborate. HR can craft the policy and communicate it to employees, finance can handle budgeting and costs, and travel management can oversee bookings and logistics.
Use modern tools for booking and tracking
Technology can be your best friend in managing bleisure travel. Utilize booking platforms and travel management tools that support both business and leisure components of a trip. Card-first integrated travel solutions can help manage complex travel scenarios, streamlining the booking process, tracking expenses, and ensure that all arrangements are in line with company policies.
Keep policies current
The travel landscape is always changing, and your bleisure policy should keep pace. Regularly review and update your policy to reflect new trends, employee feedback, and any changes in travel regulations or company needs.
The Role of Payment Solutions in Bleisure Travel
When it comes to managing bleisure travel, the right payment solutions can make all the difference. From clarifying business and personal expenses to improving visibility and control, effective payment strategies can streamline the entire process. Here’s how you can make payment solutions work for your bleisure travel program:
Card-first travel and expense management
A card-first approach can simplify travel and expense management for both employees and employers. Providing company credit cards or travel-specific cards helps employees track expenses accurately while avoiding the hassle of reimbursement claims for business-related spending. As an added perk, many corporate cards come with benefits like travel insurance, rewards points, and discounts, making them a valuable tool for your bleisure travelers. Additionally, a card-first approach offers the best duty of care solution, allowing for on-trip spend tracking that keeps everything above board.
Visibility and control
Payment solutions also offer improved visibility and control over travel spending. With the right systems in place, employers can monitor and manage travel expenses in real-time. Integrated corporate card, travel, and expense management platforms come with detailed reporting features, allowing you to track spending patterns, set budgets, and analyze travel costs.
Bleisure: Your Ticket to Happier Employees
Bleisure travel is on the rise—and it shows no signs of stopping. Employers who develop a strong bleisure policy will stay ahead of the curve, attracting employees who care about work-life balance and investing in teams that are healthier, happier, and more productive. A modern, flexible policy that balances employee and employer priorities, while weighing challenges against benefits, will help employees embrace the perks of bleisure travel without the downsides.
Travel Your Way with Center
Center reimagines business travel by streamlining processes that benefit both the traveler and the business. Our platform provides flexibility, control, and ease to make informed travel decisions that comply with company policies and meet personal preferences.
Want to learn more about how Center can transform your company’s travel management?