2012
Egencia Asia Pacific Business Traveller Report
Middle Seat or Mini-Bar? What Asia Pacific Business Travellers
Are Saying About Their Travel Today
Corporate travel continues to experience moderate growth going into 2012. That’s fine
with corporations. But how do today’s typical business travellers think? What tactics do
they employ for their time on the road? And how do they cope sacrificing their personal
time for their company’s bottom line? What is a typical business traveller anyway?
Egencia’s Business Traveller Survey asked Asia Pacific corporate travellers (both
Egencia clients and non-clients) about their preferences and experiences from their time
on the road. Respondents comprised a mix of frequent travellers, regular travellers and
occasional travellers, between the ages of 21 to 60+.
Their answers might surprise you.
Fast Fact
The average Asia Pacific business traveller:
• Is male
•Aged between 31-50
•Travels once or twice a month
•Travels domestically, and more often than not stays overnight
• When travelling internationally, flies Economy class
• Mainly works in Senior Management, Finance or Sales
- Egencia 2012 Business Traveller Report
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Egencia Asia Pacific Business Traveller Report
http://www.egencia.com.au/ | May 2012
©2012 Egencia, LLC. All rights reserved. Expedia, Egencia, and the Egencia logo and Get Ahead are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in Australia or other countries. Other
logos or product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners.
Key Findings
•Condensed Travel: 45% of
•Friendliest Airports:
respondents condense their
Respondents identified Sydney
travel time into a single day to
Kingsford Smith airport asthat’s
avoid hotel charges.
the most friendliest to corporate
travellers, followed by Hong
•Desired Standard Amenities:
Kong International Airport and
When travellers were asked
London Heathrow Airport.
what they wished hotels
would provide as a standard
•Most Important Air Travel
amenity for corporate travellers,
Extras: To improve their air
they identified mobile/MP3/
travel experience, corporate
computer chargers as the
travellers cited avoiding the
number one item followed
middle seat, access to an
by voltage converters and
airport lounge and extra leg
toothpaste.
rooms as the most desirable
extras.
•Mixing Business With Leisure: 67% of business travellers
•In-Flight Conversations: The
take time to mix business with
most common tactic used
leisure by taking the time to
to avoid unwanted in-flight
sightsee
or bringing along a
conversations is to put on
partner when they travel.
headphones.
•Little Luxuries: Over 50% of
respondents identified using
a fresh towel every day as
the one little luxury they take
advantage of during their
hotel stay, as well reading free
newspapers and not making
the bed..
•Travel Pet Peeves:
Respondents identified time
away from home and family
as the number one pet peeve,
followed by airport security
restrictions and carrying/
packing business equipment
(laptop, chargers, folders, etc.).
Before you Go
64% of respondents check the weather forecast before
they leave on a trip, whilst 59% research how to get to or
from the airport to the office or hotel, 49% read reviews on
the hotel prior to travel.
68% of respondents conduct research by search engines,
with 40% going directly to the hotel website and 35%
using a travel management company.
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Egencia Asia Pacific Business Traveller Report
http://www.egencia.com.au/ | May 2012
©2012 Egencia, LLC. All rights reserved. Expedia, Egencia, and the Egencia logo and Get Ahead are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in Australia or other countries. Other
logos or product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners.
In the Air
Friendliest Airports
Worst Airports
Travellers identified the following as the
top 5 friendliest airports for corporate
travellers:
Travellers identified the following as the
top 5 airports corporate travellers would
rather avoid:
1.Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport
1. Los Angeles International Airport
2.Hong Kong International Airport
2. London Heathrow
3.London Heathrow
3. Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport
4.Dubai International
4. Mumbai International Airport
5.Suvarnabhumi (Bangkok) Airport
5. Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport
Top 5 Wants For Flight
Comfort and Convenience
Top 5 things business travellers want to
improve their flight:
1. Avoiding the middle seat (78%)
2.Access to the airport lounge (73%
3. Extra leg room (58%)
4. Food/drinks service on all flights (57%)
5. Personal entertainment (TV/Movies/
Music) (48%)
4
Egencia Asia Pacific Business Traveller Report
http://www.egencia.com.au/ | May 2012
©2012 Egencia, LLC. All rights reserved. Expedia, Egencia, and the Egencia logo and Get Ahead are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in Australia or other countries. Other
logos or product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners.
On the Ground
Condensed Travel: Hotel Charge
Avoidance
45% of respondents said that when
possible they condense their travel into a
single day to avoid hotel stays/charges.
You Still Take It With You
Respondents were asked “as mobile
phones and devices improve in
sophistication and connectivity, do you
take your laptop on business trips?”:
• More frequently 4%
• Less frequently 21%
• About the same65%
On-Time Wakeup
67% of travellers use their mobile device
to ensure they wake-up on time while on
the road.
5
Desired Standard Amenities
When asked what they wished hotels
would provide as a standard amenity
that they wouldn’t need to pack,
travellers identified the following as the
most important:
1.Mobile/MP3/computer chargers
(61%)
2.Voltage converters (50%)
3.Toothpaste (39%)
4.Slippers (27%)
Other most notable responses include
free wifi
Little Luxuries
Travellers identified the following as the
little luxuries they most frequently take
advantage of during their hotel stay:
1.Use a fresh towel every day (51%)
2.Read the free newspaper (45%)
3.Don’t make the bed (39%)
4.Use the fitness centre (31%)
5.Use the swimming pool (26%)
Egencia Asia Pacific Business Traveller Report
http://www.egencia.com.au/ | May 2012
©2012 Egencia, LLC. All rights reserved. Expedia, Egencia, and the Egencia logo and Get Ahead are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in Australia or other countries. Other
logos or product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners.
Travel Pet Peeves and Perks
Travel Pet Peeves
Respondents identified time away from
their home and family (50%), as the
number one pet peeve when traveling
for business airport security restrictions
(49%), followed by carrying/packing
business equipment (laptop, chargers,
folders, etc, 42%), and change of routine
(sleep, meals etc, 40%.)
In-Flight Conversations
Top 5 tactics used to avoid unwanted inflight conversations:
1. Put on headphones (73%)
2.Read a book or magazine (45%)
3.Tell them directly that “I don’t want to
talk” (17%)
4.Pretend to sleep (16%)
5.Ignore them (12%)
While travellers are willing to use a
number of tactics to get out of unwanted
in-flight conversations, they will typically
not resort to being purposefully rude
(1%) or pretending that they are sick
(2%).
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Travel Perks: Mixing Business with
Leisure
67% of business travellers take
advantage of combining business with
leisure. Of those respondents most take
the time to visit friends (29%), sightsee
(27%) or bring their partner (26%)
29% visits friends
27% sightsee
26% bring their
partner
Egencia Asia Pacific Business Traveller Report
http://www.egencia.com.au/ | May 2012
©2012 Egencia, LLC. All rights reserved. Expedia, Egencia, and the Egencia logo and Get Ahead are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in Australia or other countries. Other
logos or product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners.
Tell us How You Really Feel…
What are some of your biggest pet peeves around travelling on business ?
“Conditions of taxis, the drivers and their driving skills”
When you are seated next to someone who wants to talk on an airplane when you want to be left
alone, what tactics do you use to let them know you don’t want to talk ?
“Tell them how much I enjoy the flight just to clear my mind and prioritise my thoughts
without distractions, then smile and look away”
How do you mix business with leisure ?
“All of the above, (bring you partner, sightsee, visit friends, stay longer) depending on
what I can get away with.”
About Egencia, an Expedia, Inc. Company
Egencia is the fifth largest travel management company in the world. As part of
Expedia, Inc., (NASDAQ: EXPE), the world’s largest travel marketplace, Egencia helps
businesses get ahead by offering the only truly integrated corporate travel service.
Egencia’s industry expertise helps drive results that matter, delivering meaningful
advancements that have a real impact. By combining a powerful offline and online
service, Egencia delivers a complete corporate travel offering supported by global
market expertise and a best-in-class technology platform.
For more information, go to www.egencia.com.au
For more information,
press only:
Sian Summers.
sisummers@egencia.com
1300 36 36 96
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Egencia Asia Pacific Business Traveller Report
http://www.egencia.com.au/ | May 2012
©2012 Egencia, LLC. All rights reserved. Expedia, Egencia, and the Egencia logo and Get Ahead are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in Australia or other countries. Other
logos or product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners.