Today’s post about bleisure travel is sponsored by Webjet.com.au Australia and New Zealand’s leading online travel agency for cheap travel insurance and comparing travel insurance.
Bleisure travel is the activity of combining business travel with leisure time. According to research reported by Australian travel industry magazine Traveltalk earlier this year, 68% of business travellers around the globe take at least one bleisure trip per year. The demand for bleisure travel is clearly rising rapidly. Have you ever wanted to embark on bleisure travel? Here are the top tips on how you can travel for bleisure.
Ask your manager if you can book your bleisure travel
If you need to travel for business, ask your boss if you can add a couple of days to either side of your itinerary. Bleisure travel is becoming an ever-increasing acceptable request to approve. Managers are realising that bleisure travel is a way for employees to take a break, whether they’re team members, senior executives or high-level management. Team members alone are 59% more likely to add extra days to their business trip; just over half! This seems to suggest that stress is on the rise among employees and break time is needed. Bleisure travel is one way to help de-stress and relax.
Just like the saying goes: if you don’t ask, you don’t get. Increase your chances by mapping out your own bleisure travel itinerary with trip notes then pitch it to your manager. Don’t forget to include both the business and leisure elements, as well as the benefits to your manager’s business. How can your manager say no to your request?
Keep in mind that where you travel for bleisure can be a risk to your company
Travelling to some parts of the world can be a risk to your company. Make sure your business will allow you to travel to where you want to go. Your company’s risk management procedures and policies can guide you on this, so research where you can and can’t go. If needed, have this conversation with your manager.
Your manager says yes to your bleisure travel plans. Now what?
More often than not, the leisure part of bleisure travel is the responsibility of the employee. This makes sense. Would you ask your manager to pay for your holiday? Definitely not. Be sure you have funds set aside in a travel bank account to pay for the leisure expenses in your bleisure travel. Keep within your budget, and don’t go overboard.
Take out affordable accommodation
The type of bleisure travel will reflect where you stay. City escapes amount to 38% of the type of leisure trip people choose. So, a cheap hotel deal or a short-stay at an Airbnb are two options for cheap accommodation. Ask your corporate travel agent if they have cheaper accommodation options so you can pitch in to the leisure part of the cost.
But what about travel insurance?
Surprisingly, 40% of insurance policies in businesses cover leisure travel. Also, bleisure travel policies are on the rise in businesses. Does your company have a bleisure travel policy? If so, check to see if your company’s insurance policy will cover your private travel insurance. Keep in mind that 31% of insurance policies in businesses don’t cover leisure travel and 36% of businesses require staff members to take out their own private insurance if their employees add leisure to their business travel. This is easy to do. Have a look at Webjet.com.au for cheap travel insurance.
Take the time to explore. Be adventurous!
Bleisure travel hands you the opportunity to explore a new destination. Being stuck indoors in back-to-back meetings or hosting working lunches means you’ll need some exploration time afterwards. During your bleisure trip, can you host a working lunch at a restaurant you’re keen to try? Can you head out after working hours to explore a night market or go on a city walking tour? Make a wishlist of places and things to do before you leave home so you’re prepared for those moments. These small actions, as well as those during your leisure days, will replenish you for your return to the office. Sure, bleisure travel is not the same as a fully-fledged holiday. But you can always get a taste of a destination during bleisure travel so you can return in the future. Bleisure travel is also a way for you not to simply be a fly in/fly out employee. Bleisure travel means you can contribute to the local economy.
So, have you embarked on bleisure travel? Was it hard or easy to do? If you haven’t been on a bleisure trip, are you ready to book one now? Where are you going? Where would you like to go? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.
