SYDNEY/CHICAGO, Nov 7 (Reuters) – Airlines around the world are disrupting schedules and bringing in new flights to cope with a COVID-induced trend in corporate travel for executives like Jerome Harris – ditching business day trips in favor of longer stays.
For Sydney-based Harris, grueling day trips to Melbourne or Brisbane – meaning four taxi rides, two flights, extended waits and the risk of delays – are no longer a pandemic-induced reassessment of his travel habits. travel.
Industry data shows business travelers are taking longer trips than before COVID-19, leaving airlines to adjust flight plans. Environmental concerns, rising ticket prices, increased flight cancellations amid staff shortages and a boom in online video conferencing are all undermining the day-trip option as an industry standard.
“I’m happier to save effort and carbon and do a few days in one place and have time to meet a lot of people and visit a lot of projects,” said Harris, who works for an infrastructure company.
Corporate travel agency CWT said in global terms, the proportion of domestic day trips has fallen by more than 25% compared to 2019 levels, as online dating grows in popularity.
In markets from Australia to the United States, airlines must adapt to maximize revenue. US carriers, for example, are adding more midweek flights as travelers take more business-to-leisure trips, with many taking advantage of greater flexibility to work remotely.
“Tuesdays and Wednesdays are not as difficult as they used to be in a traditional week,” according to United Airlines ( UAL.O ) Chief Commercial Officer Andrew Nocella, speaking on an earnings call last month.
For corporate travel agency CWT’s head of sales, Akshay Kapoor, the change is long-term for both airlines and hotels.
“I think the trend away from day trips in favor of longer stays is here to stay as travelers become more environmentally and fiscally conscious,” Kapoor said. “This could translate into higher revenue per available room for hotels in the long run.”
PAY MORE, STAY LONGER
At a time when airfares have skyrocketed, the average length of a domestic business trip to Australia rose to almost four days in the third quarter of this year, from three in 2019, according to Flight Center Travel Group Ltd (FLT.AX) .
“I think maybe because people are paying more, they’re taking advantage of the longer layover,” Flight Center Corporate head of Australia and New Zealand Melissa Elf said.
Qantas Airways Ltd ( QAN.AX ) and Virgin Australia say higher airfares have so far offset any revenue impact from fewer business trips. But changing travel patterns are becoming apparent in airline schedules, where flights on popular business routes have fallen, reflecting a drop in same-day demand in proportion to those preferred by leisure travelers.
Sydney-Melbourne is the fifth busiest domestic route in the world currently, according to travel data firm OAG, up from second in 2019.
In North America, business-heavy Los Angeles-San Francisco, the busiest domestic route in 2019 according to OAG, drops to eighth place. It has been replaced at the top by the leisure-dominated Las Vegas-Los Angeles and Honolulu-Maui.
Ajit Chouhan, a Texas-based human resources executive, used to take day trips to San Francisco at least once a month before the pandemic. But now he uses Zoom or Microsoft Teams for shorter meetings, describing the online options as “convenient and more productive.”
To be sure, day travel isn’t dead, especially when companies are eager to sign up new customers face-to-face, said American Express Global Business Travel Chief Operating Officer Drew Crawley.
“If I’m on a business trip, do I want to stay an extra day if my partner is home?” he said.
But the proportion varies by industry and is declining. Day trips accounted for about 4% of domestic business travel globally in 2019, according to CWT data, up from 3% now.
For Sydney-based Harris, avoiding same-day trips has also helped him avoid some of the frustrations of travel chaos as airlines increase capacity while understaffing.
“Losing a few hours on a three-day trip is not the end of the world, but being interrupted on a one-day (trip) is very stressful,” he said.
Reporting by Jamie Freed and Rajesh Kumar Singh; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell
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