‘Bleisure’ travel sees spike in popularity

The results of the survey, which polled 640 guests at the Serviced Apartments Summit earlier this year, showed an overwhelmingly positive attitude to 'bleisure' trips - which blend business and leisure travel.

The majority of those surveyed (60 per cent) had taken bleisure trips in the past. Many added a couple of holiday days on top of work trips, and more than half of bleisure travellers took their family members or significant other along with them on trips.

The survey also revealed that 78 per cent of respondents believed adding leisure days to business trips was beneficial to their work assignments.

The majority (83 per cent) of respondents said they used free time while on business trips to explore the city they were visiting. The most popular bleisure activities were sightseeing, dining, and visiting sites of arts and culture.

The survey also showed that younger travellers were more likely to indulge in a bleisure trip. 94 per cent of those under 35 believed they were likely to take a bleisure trip in the next five years.

Emerging trends​

The results highlight the rise in the number of bleisure travellers, something that serviced apartments have started to take note of.

Vice president of marketing at BridgeStreet Global Hospitality Kelly Murphy said: “Employees feel bleisure opportunities benefit them and add value to work assignments, contributing to higher job satisfaction and loyalty.

“The majority of our guests surveyed have taken bleisure trips before, also noting they are equally or more likely to blend business and leisure travel in the future compared to five years ago.

“Emerging trends are important for the serviced apartment industry to not only be aware of, but to leverage, as our products benefit the needs of both the business and leisure guest.”