Let’s Talk About “Bleisure Travel” and How Travel Agents Can Win Big in Business

This horrid mashup of ‘business and leisure’ travel is just a way to slap a new name on an old practice. But it still begs the question, what do modern business travelers need from travel agents?

A live look at the modern business vacationer.

World’s worst portmantaeu aside, “bleisure” is the basic concept of packing in a few days of vacation (or leisure) time into a solo or group business trip. It’s a great way to cross off a few items from your client’s adventure or vacation bucket list, and most importantly — a great way to introduce your clients to professional and networking culture in other parts of the world.

Travel and tourism website, Hospitality.net reports that, “43 percent of all business trips turn into leisure and business trips,” and “that 66 percent of bleisure travelers spend more money on leisure activities because of the money they saved on travel.”

Think about it, if you’re already traveling on the company dime — flights are handled, lodging secured; wouldn’t you take advantage by spending a few extra days site-seeing and relaxing before returning to your daily routine (and commute)? For example, take a look at some of the top US destinations for “Bleisure (ugh) Travel” in 2018.

Expensive coastal cities aside, many affordable destinations crack the top 10 best places for your clients to enjoy themselves if called there for business.

According to Hospitality.net, the top five hotspots where Millennial professionals like to work and play hard are:

• NYC
• Seattle
• Los Angeles
• San Francisco
• Chicago

Nothing to surprising here as these destinations are known for being hip Millennial preferred vacation spots and for their booming business and tourism sectors. The only difference between the Millennial bleisure traveler and the old-school days of business and leisure travel are the opportunities for travel agents to win big.

For example, instead of helping your clients plan a traditional convention or conference visit full of meetings, cocktail gatherings and networking dinners, why not merge both work and play by pitching team building business adventures to corporate travel managers and executives? Other ways for agents to give Millennials the time of their life on their next business trip:

Many cities like Seattle, San Francisco, and Los Angeles offer free or inexpensive outdoor yoga and wellness group activities that showcase their city’s breathtaking views.

Help young professional clients who often travel to the same destinations over and over establish a network and friend base in town. Try suggestions to help them get to know their second work home by highlighting urban hot spots, major local events, or even community clubs and activities, like free outdoor yoga or pick-up kickball tournaments.

Pro-tip, look for off the beaten path experiences, like NYC’s “Bagel Crawl”; a walking tour and tasting through the city’s most popular bagel spots, frequently known as the “Bagel Belt.”

If you know your clients have unique interests or hobbies, like being comic book fan, or architecture and history buff, agents can put their own creative spin on sight-seeing by giving hobby-enthusiasts clients unique, tailored scavenger hunts or custom adventure packages to explore during their next business trip. It’s a great way to show your clients that you not only pay attention to these more sentimental details, but that you’re also willing to make each and every vacation booked with you a dream experience.

You can also help frequently traveling parents put together strategic bleisure vacations for the whole family by researching and suggesting kid-friendly destination activities and options for onsite child-care.

Try to find stress-free but fun activities that busy parents can clear an entire day off their business itinerary for, like canoeing or visiting a nature park away from the local city center.

Since they are far more likely to spend more money on leisure activities to do during their trip if travel brands can find ways to pack the fun into their itinerary, the key is to securing bleisure bookings in 2018 is knowing the most exciting events and happenings in these cities throughout the year.

If you’re agent or consultant who wants to expand your travel brand into creating work and leisure vacation packages modern business travelers, follow the willu blog for alerts on more of our industry related posts, or follow us on Twitter and mention @teamwillu with your thoughts on this latest trend in Millennial travel.