Blended travel is providing a "tangible benefit" to companies in the form of more cost-conscious travelers, according to American Express' most recent Amex Trendex report, focusing on business travel.
The report, based on responses from 1,012 U.S. business travelers and 502 U.S. business travel decision-makers, showed that 80 percent of travelers like to take time to explore their destination when traveling for business. Among those who have done blended trips, 85 percent said the fact that they are paying for part of it makes them more cost-conscious when planning travel, according to Amex.
Eighty percent of companies surveyed said their duty of care covers all elements, business and leisure alike, in blended trips, while 55 percent of travelers surveyed thought they should be responsible for duty of care in leisure portions of business trips.
Companies surveyed were even more likely to pay for business-class seats on longer flights, with 85 percent saying they do so at least on a case-by-case basis. Seventy-seven percent of travelers, meanwhile, said they have covered the cost of their own flight or hotel upgrade either with money or loyalty points, with younger travelers more likely to do so frequently, according to the survey.
Most companies said they cover early check-in (80 percent) and in-flight Wi-Fi (78 percent) percent at least on a case-by-case basis, but the biggest disconnect between what amenities travelers want and what companies cover is gym access, the report showed. Twenty-seven percent of travelers surveyed said it was a "must have," but 47 percent of companies said they do not cover the cost.
The survey also found that companies are nearly evenly divided in their approach to covering travel costs to the office for hybrid or remote workers, even as 72 percent of companies with hybrid or remote employees said those employees are expected to come to the office more often this year compared with last year. The biggest slice, 37 percent, said they cover such expenses on a case-by-case basis. Thirty-two percent said they generally cover those costs, while 30 percent said they do not cover them at all.
AI adoption for business travel management is on the rise, according to the survey, with 82 percent of companies surveyed using it, up from 69 percent in Amex's survey last year. Adoption is up in use for policy management (75 percent, up 14 percentage points from the year prior), for travel booking (61 percent, up 14 percentage points from the year prior) and travel recommendations, support or contingency planning (57 percent, up 16 percentage points from the year prior).
In addition, Amex's report identified the top five trending destinations in the U.S. for business travel, based on year-over-year growth of Amex commercial customer hotel transactions over a one-year period. Those destinations include Princeton, N.J.; Sacramento, Calif.; Durham, N.C.; Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, Mich.; and Honolulu.
Amex conducted its survey from June 7 through June 14. Business travel decision-makers represented companies with at least 50 employees, and business travelers were full-time employees who traveled by air for work at least twice over the previous 12 months.