Blended travel — the travel style that combines business and leisure trips, also called “bleisure” — is rapidly growing into a $594.5 billion market, according to Future Market Insights.
The growth of remote work, emphasis on work/life balance, rise of digital nomads and increasing popularity among younger generations are further driving blended travel’s expansion, according to a press release from luxury marketing organization The Affluent Traveler Collection (ATC), which sites statistics from Statista, Upwork and The American Hotel & Lodging Association, among others.
New emerging trends include “hush trips”— where remote workers travel personally while working secretly — and “laptop luggers,” who choose to work during vacations. The market is expected to increase by 19.5% annually, until reaching $3.53 trillion in 2033.
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As a result of this boom in interest, ATC recently accepted 25 new villa and residence properties into its portfolio to meet demand.
“As summer travel season begins, corporate travelers are looking to add leisure nights onto their work itineraries more frequently,” said Ed Donaldson, vice president of sales for ATC. “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.”
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.
Some new additions to ATC’s portfolio of properties, best-suited for blended travelers, include The Athenaeum Hotel & Residences in London, The Sunset Marquis Hotel & Villas in West Hollywood, California, and Andaz Mexico City Condesa in Mexico City.
According to the Global Business Travel Association, 60% of business travelers have taken a blended trip in the last year. Combining work and leisure is even more prevalent among affluent travelers, who are twice as likely as average to add a vacation element, according to YouGov. (The Millennial generation is a driving force; 77% of the generation says they extend their business trips for leisure travel, according to MODIV Mindset).
Blended travelers (82%) also prefer to stay at the same property for both portions of the trip, making accommodations with business and leisure amenities highly desirable. In-room workspace, fast WiFi connections, fitness centers, spas and local experiences are in high demand.
Editor’s note: This article was generated by AI, based on a press release distributed by The Affluent Traveler Hotel Collection. It was reviewed by a TravelAge West editor.