Business Travel Facts & Statistics To Be Aware Of

Business travel facts & statistics might sound like some fun trivia, but they could actually change how you handle your business trips! Here’s some facts you should be aware of:

Working Away In The UK Facts

• The UK airport with the best customer score is Liverpool John Lennon. The worst was Manchester, T1 & T3. (Which.co.uk)
• Blackpool has the most B&Bs in the UK, with 862. (Direct Line For Business, 2017)
• Bradford is the cheapest place to stay. (The Independent, 2015)
• Belfast is the most expensive major UK city to stay, based on the cheapest price possible of a standard hotel room. Price Comparison: What is the cheapest hotel room found in each UK city?
• Scotland has the shortest commercial flight, between Westray & Papa Westray. (Business Insider)
• Only 6% of UK residents surveyed (4,028 respondents) had been on more than 10 business trips in 2023. (Statista)

The Company

• 60% of corporate travellers say they don’t understand the need for a company travel policy. (TravelPerk, 2019)
• 52% of employees say that their company’s travel policy only moderately aligns with their company culture. (Medium, 2017)
• 79% of Business Travel Managers say that partnering with a travel management company leads to higher savings. (Study by Egencia)

International Business Travel Facts

• When it comes to business travel, businesses spend more on meals than flights or accommodation. (Certify)
• 54% of business travellers want real-time notifications. (International Air Transport Association, 2019)
• The most expensive business travel location in Asia is Hong Kong, with an average cost of $515 per day. (ECA International, 2019)
• The average business travel budget consists of money for lodging (34%), airfare (27%), meals (20%), and car rentals (19%). (Travel Pulse, 2020)
• Zurich, Switzerland is the most expensive major city in the world (of those included in the study) to take a taxi. (Deutsche Bank Research)
• India has the cheapest taxis out of major worldwide cities, as Bangalore, Mumbai, and New Delhi top the list for cheapest. (Deutsche Bank Research)
• The ideal booking window is 21 to 121 days in advance of your flight. The fares are statistically the lowest during this time. (CheapAir, 2018)
• The most costly airports based on lunch, taxi, executive lounge, and parking expenses are London Stansted (£608.29), Amsterdam (£567.35), and London Gatwick (£520.53). (FairFX Blog, 2018)
• The airports that give business travellers the most value for their money based on lunch, taxi, executive lounge, and parking expenses are Barcelona (£236.36), Belfast International (£228.28), and Beijing (£170.03). (FairFX Blog, 2018)
• The most common issues that business travellers face are flight delays (65.7%), flight cancellations (31.9%), and paying for travel expenses with a personal credit card (30.5%). These were followed by their company’s preferred booking platform not having the best booking rates (29.3%) and lack of support in resolving issues while travelling (23%). (Skift + TripActions Business Travel Survey, 2020)

What Can I Do With This Info?

The first thing to do is determine what is relevant to your business. For example, if you regularly fly out of Manchester, maybe consider flying from Liverpool instead. If your team is ignoring your travel policy, how can you make it easier to follow? It’s also worth educating them on why it’s important. If this suggests that you put in your booking request for flights too late to get the best price, then make a point of requesting all flights at least 21 days in advance. If you’re planning a trip to Zurich, it might be best to consider other forms of getting around the city with the taxis being so expensive.

If you’ve never booked through Rapid Travel Group before, we’ll help you create a detailed travel policy when you book a virtual appointment with us. When you make a booking request, we can often advise on the specific circumstances.