OYSTER BAY, NY – As blended travel grows exponentially, The Affluent Traveler Hotel Collection has recently accepted 25 properties offering villas and residences into its portfolio to stay ahead of demand for lodging that balances professional and personal needs.
Blended travel, mixing business and leisure, is the next evolution of bleisure, which has been increasing over the past 15 years. Today blended travel is a $594.5 billion market, according to Future Market Insights. It’s expected to grow by 19.5 percent annually until 2033, when it reaches $3.53 trillion.
The Global Business Travel Association says 60 percent of business travelers have taken a blended trip in the past year. Combining personal and professional travel is even more common among the affluent. According to YouGov, the well-off are twice as likely to add a leisure element to a business trip than the average person.
“As summer travel season begins, corporate travelers are looking to add leisure nights onto their work itineraries more frequently,” said Ed Donaldson, Vice President, Sales at The Affluent Traveler Hotel Collection. “Because group blended travel is also growing quickly, our advisors are asking for upscale properties that can toggle between work and leisure needs and accommodate family and friends.”
New Additions Fulfill Blended Traveler Needs
These newcomers to the ATC program provide spacious accommodations perfect for blended travelers, with all the comforts of home and more:
The Athenaeum Hotel & Residences in London offers serviced 550-square-foot Victorian red-brick townhomes with their own front doors
The Sunset Marquis Hotel & Villas in West Hollywood features newly redone villas, some with gourmet kitchens, grand pianos, private balconies and pool tables
Andaz Mexico City Condesa presents 20 suites with separate living and sleeping areas, in the heart of a sophisticated, artistic neighborhood
What Blended Travelers Want
A large majority of business travelers – 82 percent – stay at the same place for both the work and personal portions of their trip, according to the GBTA. As a result, accommodations that offer business and leisure amenities enjoy an advantage.
Fast, free, secure Wi-Fi throughout the property is a must for blended travelers, so they can take a video call from the room, send an email from the restaurant or read a report poolside. Travelers want plenty of outlets and charging ports in convenient locations in their rooms and common areas.
Blended travelers crave a quiet, spacious room that adapts from productivity to play. In-room fitness equipment such as a yoga mat helps blended travelers unwind at the end of the workday.
“Hotels that offer recreation options are most appealing to blended travelers,” said Donaldson. “A fitness center, spa and pool are now even more desirable than a business center. Blended travelers are also looking for personalized experiences to sample local culture, and some are willing to spend more on dining, entertainment and tours because their company funded their flights.”
Why Blended Travel Is Rising
Several factors are contributing to the tremendous upswing in blended travel. The growth in remote work has fostered a new acceptance of working from anywhere. Statista reports that the number of full-time remote workers grew from 17 percent pre-pandemic to 44 percent after. By next year, Upwork predicts they will number 32.6 million US employees.
Combining work and play also ties into an increasing emphasis on work/life balance and wellbeing. The American Hotel & Lodging Association says 89 percent of business travelers want to add vacation time onto their next corporate trip.
Younger generations are more inclined to combine work and play during trips. Seventy-seven percent of Millennials extend their business trips for leisure purposes, according to MODIV Mindset.
As digital nomads become more common due to the expansion of the freelance economy, living and working from varied locations is more widespread. This has given rise to the “workation,” where a personal journey is the motivator for the blended trip instead of business.
Emerging Blended Travel Trends
Hush trips are the most recent evolution of blended travel. More remote employees are traveling for personal reasons while continuing to work, but not informing their company of their whereabouts.
Another variation on workations is laptop luggers, travelers that work during leisure trips instead of fully disconnecting. Deloitte reports that the number of people who intend to work during their longest leisure trip surged from 19 percent in 2022 to 34 percent in 2023.
The ATC Portfolio
The Affluent Traveler Collection Hotel Program includes 1,100 of the globe’s finest luxury properties. ATC is growing its roster of properties strategically by prioritizing unique, authentic boutique properties in demand by upscale travelers. Those hotels and resorts provide client amenities with an expected value of $1,000 per stay on average. For a family of four enjoying a two-bedroom residence during a weeklong blended stay, the figure rises to at least $1,600.
The article Affluent Traveler Hotel Collection enhances appeal to fast-growing blended travel segment with portfolio additions first appeared in TravelDailyNews International.