Finding your home on the road

Ask any regular business traveller about their preferred accommodation and the majority will tell you they want the option to do things their own way. The days of being restricted to over air-conditioned rooms, with a token work desk and set breakfast hours are long gone. Today the chances are that your accommodation has an in-room coffee machine, a dedicated workspace complete with super fast Wi-Fi and an UberEATS menu in the drawer.

With technology delivering more choices than ever before in every aspect of our lives, travellers are also embracing the freedom and flexibility of a range of accommodation and dining options. A new emphasis on corporate wellbeing is driving travellers to seek out apartment-like accommodation for longer-term stays, so they can maintain a more ‘home like’ routine to help reduce the toll regular business travel can have on their lifestyle.

At the same time the distinction between hotel, hotel apartment and serviced apartments is becoming more blurred as providers adapt to the changing mindset and demographics of today’s business travellers. A survey by UK company, Homelike, reported that ‘millennials are most invested in creating a “home away from home” when travelling - 29% want to be located near a green space, 23% want to be able to host their family and partner and one in five (21%) also want to take their pets with them.’

It’s clear that both hotel suites and serviced executive apartments have their place, while many traditional hotels are adjusting their offering to provide self-contained apartment hotels that offer the flexibility to self-cater if guests wish to. The option to cook a few meals or order food delivery, is a popular option with business travellers keen to help ease the health burden of eating out all of the time. Travellers also reported enjoying the privacy of an apartment and the ability to even host a spontaneous business meeting, without having to book a meeting room.

This mindset is reflected in a study commissioned by Quest Apartment Hotels which found that ‘business travellers regard short trips between one and four nights as a fling from responsibility, while trips up to 21 nights are characterised by added stress in order to keep their work and home life ticking along.’

The good news is that today’s business travellers are the winners when it comes to the accommodation sector offering guests more options and styles than ever before. From self-catering apartments, to hotel studio suites, fresh new hotel dining and service options, in-house baristas and even co-working style spaces.

For more information about your organisation’s business travel accommodation options talk to your Corporate Traveller travel manager.