| Business travel has become so common that a | | | | conversant; hence, choose to handle all their traveling |
| considerable proportion of the corporate world of | | | | arrangements through the Internet, limiting the necessity |
| America is spending more time in airplanes and hotels | | | | of having to interact with travel agents and |
| than on their couches or in their automobiles. | | | | professionals dealing with customer service. |
| According to a recent estimate, about 40 million adults | | | | Most tourism related sites offer one-stop travel |
| in the US travel on business at least once a year to a | | | | facilities for reservations of flights, booking rooms in |
| location about 50 miles from home. More than 20 | | | | hotels, and providing transportation on the ground. |
| percent of the trips made by African Americans, for | | | | Major airlines like Delta and American have included |
| instance, are related to their work. | | | | travel-friendly features like locating cheap fares, finding |
| Those who do not need to travel frequently on | | | | economical hotel accommodation, and hiring cars on a |
| business consider business travel glamorous and | | | | rental basis inexpensively on their websites. |
| exciting. However, in reality, business travel is often | | | | Travelers, thus, can make arrangements for an entire |
| arduous. | | | | business trip, which includes seating preferences, |
| It is tough physically, tough on the family, and especially | | | | confirming special food requests, and a text message |
| tough on the pockets of businesspersons who do not | | | | or e-mail verifying their flight status and information |
| have the luxury of generous expense accounts to | | | | about the departure timings with a few clicks of the |
| take care of their travel expenses. | | | | mouse button. |
| In addition, those who travel on business regularly, | | | | Most of these sites provide boarding passes that can |
| quickly wise up to the fact that a stress-free and safe | | | | be printed out and online check-ins within 24 hours of |
| journey requires the smooth functioning of a number | | | | the departure of the flight. |
| of interconnected factors, which includes the vagaries | | | | At the airport, those travelers in a hurry can take |
| of the weather. | | | | advantage of check-in kiosks in order not to have to |
| According to a study conducted recently, monitoring | | | | wait in long lines, and get their boarding passes and |
| business travel trends: | | | | their seating information. |
| > 58 percent of business travel is undertaken for | | | | Frequent Flyer Miles, Automatic Upgrades, and |
| association meetings and conferences, | | | | Comfortable Seating: |
| > 43 percent comprising of business travel made by | | | | One of the biggest perks of traveling frequently on |
| individuals, | | | | business is the facility of accumulating points, which |
| > and 29 percent for corporate meetings. | | | | can be exchanged for vacations. Travelers, therefore, |
| The study also identified some of the most popular | | | | are always on the look out for hotels offering |
| destinations within the US for business travel. They are: | | | | generous points facilities. |
| > Washington, D.C., | | | | Frequent air travelers also favor automatic upgrades |
| > New York, | | | | and comfort inside the airplane, such as generous |
| > Los Angeles/Long Beach, | | | | legroom and additional storage facilities overhead. |
| > Chicago, | | | | Business traveler programs like EliteAccess provided |
| > Atlanta, | | | | by Continental Airlines offer comforts like guarantees |
| > Boston, | | | | of no-middle-seat and upgrades to the first class if |
| > Houston, | | | | possible. |
| > Minneapolis-St. Paul, | | | | Getting Value for Money: |
| > Detroit, | | | | Companies are constantly curtailing overhead |
| > and Dallas. | | | | expenses by cutting down on the travel allowances |
| Irrespective of what the destination is, business travel | | | | they give their executives, while business travelers look |
| is seldom an enjoyable experience. Some companies | | | | for ways in which they can maximize their allowances |
| will allow their business travelers the opportunity to | | | | to the fullest. |
| enjoy their travel surroundings but this is usually short | | | | For example, several hotels offer free breakfasts, |
| lived depending on the demands of the trip. | | | | while others provide complimentary facilities such as a |
| Business travelers, who have to make frequent trips, | | | | welcoming snack or allowing their guests to make free |
| need special facilities to ease the hassles of traveling. | | | | long distance and local calls. Many hotels also offer |
| Airlines and hotels are increasing the levels of services | | | | free newspapers, tea and coffee. |
| they provide in order to meet the growing demands of | | | | Feeling at Home Far Away from Home: |
| business travelers: | | | | Business travelers are so frequently away from home |
| Usually, business travelers research fares on their own | | | | that they look for services that replicate their home |
| and make their reservations online. According to a | | | | comforts. |
| survey, it was found that only 32 percent of corporate | | | | Although hotels are selected primarily for value and |
| travelers used the services of travel agents for their | | | | location, but business travelers expect home-like |
| reservation needs, while the rest, 68 percent, preferred | | | | comforts like high quality toiletries, comfortable bedding, |
| using the internet or online services to plan at least | | | | choices in beverages, cable TV and films, broadband |
| some part of their business traveling arrangements. | | | | internet access, exercise and convenient check-in/out |
| Business travelers are usually technologically | | | | facilities, and so on. |