Bleisure Travelers Are Hungry for Sunshine, Sightseeing and Cuisine

New insights released today by Expedia Group Media Solutions reveal that domestic and international bleisure travel is booming, and business travelers are invested in making the most of their time away from home.

The findings, from a multi-national study commissioned by Expedia Group Media Solutions and conducted by Luth Research, spotlight the behaviors, influences, resources, and preferences of American, British, Chinese, German, and Indian bleisure travelers - or business travelers who extend their trip for leisure.

Unveiled today at Phocuswright Europe, Unpacking Bleisure Traveler Trends shows that on average, across the five countries, bleisure travelers take more than six business trips per year, and more than 60 percent of business trips during the last year were extended for leisure purposes. In the U.S., bleisure travel conversion is consistent with the multi-national average of 60 percent, revealing a nearly 40 percent increase in American bleisure travel since 20161.

On average, 72 percent of bleisure travelers said there are destinations they have visited or will visit in the future for business that they would like to extend for bleisure, but what makes a destination appealing for bleisure travel?

Fifty-six percent said they are more likely to consider a bleisure trip in a destination with great food and restaurants, closely followed by approximately 50 percent influenced by beaches, weather, nature, historical monuments or sightseeing. This further validates the importance of experiences and activities for all travelers, and illustrates an opportunity for marketers to attract bleisure travelers from around the world.

"The study provides a deeper look at the influences and motivations of the growing and valuable bleisure audience, and the actionable insights will empower marketers to strategically target and convert these travelers within the condensed research and booking window," said Andrew van der Feltz, Senior Director, EMEA & APAC for Expedia Group Media Solutions. "By showcasing unique experiences and activities, which are influential factors during the decision-making process, every destination, hotel, restaurant, attraction, airline, and more, can entice business travelers to extend their trip for leisure."

Leading factors that influence bleisure travel decisions include traveling to a destination with great entertainment (48 percent) and visiting an iconic or bucket list destination (43 percent); easy-to-navigate destinations, proximity to the weekend and additional personal costs required to extend the trip for leisure are also influential factors.

Bleisure Research & Booking Resources
Approximately 80 percent of bleisure travelers spend 1-5 hours on research during both the inspiration and planning phases, which is more condensed than more traditional leisure booking windows.

Before deciding to bleisure, 68 percent of travelers conduct research using a search engine, 47 percent use travel-related websites - including OTAs, airline and hotel sites, and review sites - and 44 percent use destination websites.

Most bleisure travelers personally research and book accommodations (61 percent), airfare (42 percent) and dining (38 percent) for the leisure portion of their trip.

Willingness to Travel for Bleisure
Two-thirds of past bleisure trips were in the same city as the business trip, but more than 80 percent of bleisure travelers are willing to travel from the business destination for leisure.

On domestic and international trips, more than 50 percent of bleisure travelers are willing to travel 1-2 hours via car from the business destination for the leisure portion of their trip, and more than 28 percent would travel 1-2 hours via plane.

When traveling domestically between the business and leisure destinations, 38 percent of bleisure travelers are unwilling to travel via bus and 25 percent are unwilling to travel via plane.

Bleisure Budgets & Payment Preferences
Compared to a typical vacation, 57 percent of bleisure travelers spend the same amount of money or more on a bleisure trip, and more than 75 percent save money specifically for bleisure travel.

When on a bleisure trip, credit cards are the leading preferred payment method (69 percent), followed by cash (47 percent) and debit or ATM cards (44 percent).

More than two-thirds of bleisure spend is allocated to hotel, airfare and dining for the leisure portion of the trip.