BUSINESS travellers are on the move again – but spending less than ever as cost cutting continues to be top of the agenda. The number of business flights booked in the first quarter of 2004 rose by eight per cent, according to the Guild of Business Travel Agents. Rail travel grew by an even larger proportion, 11 per cent, said the Guild, which represents 35 of Britain’s biggest business travel organisations.
The figures translate into 1.35m airline bookings and 500,000 rail journeys. But while business travellers are taking more trips, they are spending less, said Graham Flack, managing director of Portman Travel. “We saw 20 per cent more transactions in the quarter – but the average price travellers paid was down by 13 per cent,” he said.
Low-cost flights and hotels dumping unsold rooms on the internet continue to bring down prices, while demand for rail travel continues to grow, said Richard Lovell, vice-president for Carlson Wagonlit Travel in Europe.