Secrets to Perfect Business Travel

A business travel survey has revealed a magic formula for the perfect business trip: a direct flight, flat bed, in-flight Blackberry, a friendly face at the airport, language lessons, online booking, e-tickets, flying alone, an iPod, high-speed Internet access, a power shower, a spa, crisp and clean cotton sheets, good hotel food and a concierge with contacts at all the best places. These are the principal ingredients for happy business travel.

Women business travelers also asked the industry to rethink their policies regarding female customers, suggesting that hoteliers provide women-only floors and restaurants, secure and direct lifts from the car park, more discretion at check-in when announcing hotel room numbers, and that airlines seat single women travelers together and provide a secure onward trip from the airport for business and first class travelers. Over 1,000 UK business travelers were surveyed for the Business Travel Show by Centaur Exhibitions to find out the essential mix for creating the perfect business trip in 2005.

Some 62 per cent of respondents said a direct flight would make their journey more enjoyable. Around 48 per cent craved to see a chauffeur hold up a card with their name on at their destination airport. About 46 per cent said they wouldn’t be parted from their Blackberry for the world. And 43 per cent longed for the undeniable luxury of a flat bed on their long-haul flights.

Many travelers also believe that the perfect business trip starts well before they even step on the plane with 15 per cent saying that language lessons would seriously improve their traveling experience.