The field of business is constantly changing. Company directors strive to scale their enterprises, expand their geography and constantly improve the knowledge level of their employees. In this regard, business trips, in order to negotiate or improve skills, are practiced more often. That is why a new trend has emerged that young and creative leaders began to apply – “bleisure”, which combines working trips and tourist vacations. Let’s talk about this know-how and how this trend affects work and leisure.
Bleisure travel: a symbiosis of business and leisure
“Bleisure” is a mixture of the words “business” and “leisure”, meaning, respectively, “business” and “leisure”. The term “bleisure trip” describes a working trip with subsequent days of rest at the point of stay.
Imagine for a moment that you are flying to Paris for a business meeting. The departure from the plane at Charles de Gaulle airport marks the beginning of the working day. You arrive at the hotel room, prepare a presentation, participate in a workshop and speak to an audience. After these events, you sign a contract and return to your hotel, on the way, buying a ticket for the next flight of the plane, which will return you to your hometown.
A Bleisure trip differs from a regular business trip in that after reaching your business goal, you extend the time you spend in the French capital no longer as a business person, but as an ordinary traveler.
The new trend is gaining momentum
For the first time, the direction of bleisure travel appeared in the United States, about 10 years ago. Since then, interest in him began to grow and went beyond North America. Currently, bleisure travel is becoming increasingly popular among the leaders of many enterprises.
According to a recent survey by the education and research department of the Global Business Travel Association (GBAT), 67% of North American businessmen find it important to add a few days off to their employees’ business trips. 37% have already made this innovation in the business trips of their subordinates.
American experts from Expedia Media Solutions and Luth Research concluded that even the longest business trip with an extension of 2-3 days for a tourist trip is perceived by a person as a vacation. After returning from such bleisure trips, the employee’s efficiency increases, as after a vacation, and a pleasant impression of the trip remains.
Popular countries for Bleisure
In fairness, it is worth noting that according to the same source, for the past 2 years, Russia has been in the top 10 countries that ordinary tourists and bleisure travelers seek. In particular, this applies to businessmen from the USA, China and European countries.
Bleisure travel is only gaining momentum among various entrepreneurs. Most of the companies that allow their employees to combine a business trip with leisure, meet their colleagues and provide the right to choose whether to stay for extra time or not. According to statistics, about 90% of employees prefer to take this opportunity.
The most popular destinations for bleisure travel are the countries of Europe, Asia and North America. But, given that this type of business travel for is not definitely a new trend, almost all business travelers are ready to stay in the host country for tourist holidays, especially if it is being visited for the first time.
How to Go About BLeisuring?
It all depends on your geographical presence. Depending on where the company is located, sending its employee on a business trip to another region of the country, the essence of the extra rest may be different. For example, if your company is located in a remote area and an employee is sent to one of the cities of Federal significance, then, of course, an excursion program on them will be a good addition to a business trip. And, on the contrary, an employee of a company located in a metropolis will be glad to retire for a few days in a quiet comfortable place, on the banks of some river.
Bleisure trips can be an additional source of income for your business. Your employee, extending a business trip and while on vacation, attends local cultural events, attractions and restaurants. At the same time, he communicates with people, gives his assessment, possibly advises. All this creates additional traffic for your company and contributes to brand recognition.
If you are the head of the enterprise and support bleisure travel, then when you are sent on a business trip and book tickets, you can offer the type of vacation you yourself find useful. For example, if you are involved in food production, then it will be pleasant and useful for your colleague to visit enterprises that supply components for your products. It can be a farm or a trout farm. Currently, agricultural tourism is becoming increasingly popular, and most travel companies continue to develop this segment of travel.
Conclusion
Bleisure travel is a modern, fast-growing trend for business travel, which positively affects the employee who is sent on a business trip and the company’s management. The combination of work and rest can be a stimulating and encouraging “lever” of team management. Arriving from such a business trip, an employee of the organization feels rested, which positively affects his performance in future work.
