Business Travel's Share of Domestic U.S. Travel Declined in 2016

Business travel's share of domestic U.S. trips decreased from 14 percent in 2011 to 11 percent in 2016, according to a U.S. Travel Association analysis of travel data from public and private sources and survey data collected by TNS TravelsAmerica.

The report defines a trip as any journey in which an individual or members of a household traveled 50 miles or more from home one way or spent one or more nights away from home. A business trip is defined as any trip with the primary purpose of general business, an employee training or seminar, a client or customer meeting or service, an internal business meeting, sales and marketing, an incentive or reward, international operations or equipment repair or service, a convention or tradeshow or a conference or seminar.

Total domestic trips rose by 27.8 million trips, or 1.3 percent, from 2015 to 2016 to reach 2.2 billion. However, that growth came entirely from leisure trips, which grew by 28.6 million trips, or 1.7 percent, to 1.75 billion. Business trips, on the other hand, fell by 800,000 trips, a 0.2 percent drop, to 459 million.

The report noted that from 2006 to 2016, the number of domestic business trips declined by 9.8 percent and business trips' share of total domestic trips fell 18 percent. David Huether, senior vice president of research at the U.S. Travel Association, cited the sluggish recovery from the Great Recession, the advent of information technology and higher worker productivity as reasons behind the fall in business trips' share of domestic trips.  

Demographic & Behavioral Findings

Average general business trip spending increased by 43 percent from $699 in 2011 to $999 in 2016. Average convention trip spending hit $1,113 in 2016, matching the figure from five years ago.

The report found Millennial business travelers were more likely to extend business trips for leisure compared to other generations. Twenty-three percent of Millennials took bleisure trip extensions, compared to just 17 percent of business travelers overall.

Business travelers also are getting younger. The average age of a business traveler was 42.9 years old in 2016, compared to 46.5 in 2011, and 36 percent of business travelers were under 35, compared to 22 percent in 2011.

Bright Outlook for Business Travel

In a newly released U.S. Travel Outlook Summary, the U.S. Travel Association's outlook for business travel from 2017 to 2020 is optimistic. Business travel is expected to grow faster on a year-over-year basis than leisure travel in 2018 and 2019, with 2 percent compared with 1.8 percent, respectively, in 2018 and 1.9 percent compared with 1.8 percent in 2019. In 2020, the forecasted number of domestic U.S. business trips is 490 million, near its pre-recession level of 494.3 million.

Huether cited the recently passed U.S. federal tax cut plan as a major reason for the forecasted turnaround in business travel. The tax cuts will make "U.S. corporations more globally competitive and encourage business investment," he said. "These two things will accelerate business travel."