Fewer trips, fewer planes: business travellers rethink old habits
Nicola Lomas spent years carefully collecting frequent-flyer points to protect her British Airways “gold” status as she flew dozens of times a year for work. A consultant in the business travel industry, she enjoyed the perks. The queue jumps at check-in, access to lounges and priority boarding for gold members helped soothe the rigours of a hectic schedule. So she was surprised to feel a sense of relief last year when the airline delivered the news all frequent flyers had dreaded. Lomas had been downgraded all the way to “blue”, the bottom tier, losing her benefits after progressively cutting work trips over the past few years. “It is like a break-up in a relationship. I thought, ‘Fine, I don’t need you anymore,’” she says. “But it was a good thing. Because it has made me really think in a fresh way.” Lomas is one of thousands of business people who have changed their travel schedules as habits have been reshaped by the rise in video conferencing during the pandemic, heightened environmental concerns and employers looking to cut costs. Some big European and US companies have cracked down on non-essential trips, while many staff are taking longer trips to minimise repeat visits. “You have to have a real story behind the trip to have it approved now,” one London-based banker says. Another notes that senior staff are travelling nearly as regularly as before the pandemic, but junior staff have had trips curtailed. Business travel is not dead. Global bookings reached 70% of 2019 levels in October 2023, up from 63% in April, according to survey data released by the Global Business Travel Association. Bankers and lawyers are still travelling to close deals. Sales representatives continue to value face-to-face meetings and many sectors, such as oil and gas or mining, cannot operate without shifting huge workforces around the world. But industry executives say the forced break from business trips during Covid-19 restrictions allowed a once formulaic part of the travel industry to adapt and as a result the experience has changed.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2024-02-26/general/fewer-trips-fewer-planes-business-travellers-rethink-old-habits
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/logo.png
Fewer trips, fewer planes: business travellers rethink old habits
Nicola Lomas spent years carefully collecting frequent-flyer points to protect her British Airways “gold” status as she flew dozens of times a year for work. A consultant in the business travel industry, she enjoyed the perks. The queue jumps at check-in, access to lounges and priority boarding for gold members helped soothe the rigours of a hectic schedule. So she was surprised to feel a sense of relief last year when the airline delivered the news all frequent flyers had dreaded. Lomas had been downgraded all the way to “blue”, the bottom tier, losing her benefits after progressively cutting work trips over the past few years. “It is like a break-up in a relationship. I thought, ‘Fine, I don’t need you anymore,’” she says. “But it was a good thing. Because it has made me really think in a fresh way.” Lomas is one of thousands of business people who have changed their travel schedules as habits have been reshaped by the rise in video conferencing during the pandemic, heightened environmental concerns and employers looking to cut costs. Some big European and US companies have cracked down on non-essential trips, while many staff are taking longer trips to minimise repeat visits. “You have to have a real story behind the trip to have it approved now,” one London-based banker says. Another notes that senior staff are travelling nearly as regularly as before the pandemic, but junior staff have had trips curtailed. Business travel is not dead. Global bookings reached 70% of 2019 levels in October 2023, up from 63% in April, according to survey data released by the Global Business Travel Association. Bankers and lawyers are still travelling to close deals. Sales representatives continue to value face-to-face meetings and many sectors, such as oil and gas or mining, cannot operate without shifting huge workforces around the world. But industry executives say the forced break from business trips during Covid-19 restrictions allowed a once formulaic part of the travel industry to adapt and as a result the experience has changed.<br/>
