Key Business Travel Trends 2023

The number of leisure trips in 2023 is almost close to the pre-COVID-19 levels, but business travel progress is slower: online can replace a face-to-face meeting, not every employee is ready for flights, and team leaders are worried about the safety of their people. However, it doesn’t prevent the stable development of business travel.

The world continues to change rapidly and companies are forced to adapt to new conditions. Here are some key predictions related to business travel in 2023:

• The travel industry will recover 2/3 of 2019 levels by the end of 2023. A full recovery is expected by the end of 2024.
• The cost of services included in the travel budget will increase to 33%.
• US companies expect international travel share to rise from 21% in 2022 to 33% in 2023. 32% of the budget of European organizations will be used for visiting countries within the continent and 28% — outside it. All for the sake of meeting with partners at conferences and building relationships with potential customers.
• Event attendance is set to become an important growth drive. A hybrid or remote work schedule limits face-to-face communication and this can be compensated by in person conferences.
• Suppliers insist on renegotiating previously suspended contracts due to reduced travel volume. This trend is more apparent amongst hotels compared to airlines.

These are just some of the forecasts for 2023 which might change depending on the global economic and political situation. However, general trends are pointing to a continuous evolution of business travel and adaptation to new challenges and opportunities.

Compared to the 2022 research, the non-hotel accommodation travel policy for employees has changed a lot. For example, among US companies:

• Only about 10% of organizations do not reimburse out-of-hotel expenses.
• 45% of companies listed non-hotel accommodation in corporate booking tools, up from 9% last year.
• 57% of organizations have agreements with specific apartment/house rental providers, up from 23% in 2022.

So, the main requests of companies for organizing business trips for 2023 are: simplicity, convenience, transparency and fast reporting. Managers don’t want to waste time on long approvals, employees appreciate fast services and travel managers tend to put less effort into finding more profitable travel options. The trend towards flexibility is everywhere, and this is what Tumodo stands for.

The easier and faster the process of issuing business travel, the sooner business travel activity will return to pre-pandemic levels. Tumodo believes in the rapid growth of the travel industry and provides an easy-to-use service where you can book your trip in just 2 minutes.