The global pandemic halted travel in its tracks, and in the aftermath, business trips took longer to regain momentum.
‘’When business travel finally bounced back, one-day trips became popular as lingering health concerns made businesses cautious about hosting conferences, networking events, or closing deals in person, with most interactions done remotely through virtual meetings,” says Drury.
“With the challenges of recent years behind us, businesses are now prioritising in-person meetings for connection. While 2024 has seen New Zealand businesses focus on cost control amid economic headwinds, we expect significant momentum in 2025 and 2026, with a shift from one-day to longer, multi-day business trips.”
‘Bleisure’ is when work meets leisure
The rise of ‘bleisure’ travel, where business trips are combined with the opportunity to explore a destination after work, is a key trend for 2025, driving demand for multi-day business travel, says Drury.
“Our reports show that today’s business traveller is more diverse than ever, with Millennials, Gen Z and women in particular prioritising ‘bleisure’ travel whenever the opportunity arises.
“We are seeing around 50% of corporate travellers have updated their policies to include wellbeing measures, with 20% of our customers taking ‘bleisure’ trips.”
It was a trend the firm expects to continue growing as the value of work-life balance and the need to recharge from the stresses of a busy work environment become even more important.
Tracking sustainability for a greener future
New Zealand businesses are increasingly focusing on ways they can positively contribute to a greener future.
“Environmental concerns and the demand for reduced impact are driving many companies to adopt or explore travel policies aimed at lowering their carbon footprint,” says Drury.
In 2019, just 10% of Orbit customers were monitoring travel sustainability. This year, that figure has grown to over 60%, and is expected to climb further.
Sustainability is now a key factor when selecting suppliers, with many organisations prioritising those offering tangible environmental benefits.
‘’Advances in technology are helping too, with tools that enable flight searches by carbon emissions and widgets that show emissions from a company-wide level down to individual travellers.”
Tech-driven travel
The use of AI tech to monitor, measure and communicate will only continue to become more advanced.
“Global challenges this year, from tech outages to civil unrest, have highlighted the importance of knowing where travellers are at all times. In 2024, we recorded over 27 incidents, including the Noumea riots, Israel-Lebanon conflict, and US hurricanes.‘’
Technology played a vital role in Orbit’s duty of care by providing automated alerts and real-time updates.
One traveller received a timely warning about riots near Mumbai’s train station and was able to avoid potential risk earlier this year.
Advances like inflight meal selection, biometric airport processes, and improved Wi-Fi are also transforming the travel experience, offering greater convenience and connectivity, and will continue to advance and innovate in the year ahead.”
Emerging economies as destinations
Globally, the Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa are set to lead MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) growth next year, says Drury.
“Destinations like Dubai, Qatar, Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia have heavily invested in conference facilities, becoming key hubs for Kiwi businesses exploring emerging markets and drawing more business travellers in 2025.”
“Infrastructure, energy security and knowledge-based industries are driving that growth, and we expect travel to India to increase as New Zealand businesses focus on new and existing partners there.‘’
Airlines are also opening new opportunities to do business in new and emerging markets. United Airlines recently added Greenland, Mongolia, and Sicily routes, he says.
Qantas is expanding to Palau, and Fiji Airways has Nadi as a hub with routes to Cairns and Dallas. Air New Zealand remains focused on the Asia-Pacific, with speculation about a return to London.
“These new routes are great news for the year ahead, opening up more places to do business and travel.”
