From earning rewards to racking up likes, new Hotels.com research reveals younger business travellers are pros at getting more out of every work trip

Hotels.com research reveals that for younger professionals, business travel is far more than a job requirement — it’s a chance to elevate their everyday experiences. According to a new Hotels.com Business Trip Report released today, 86%¹ of Gen Z and 72% of Millennials say work trips are a chance to upgrade their lifestyles. The chance to stay in a nicer hotel, score a coveted restaurant reservation or earn rewards, makes travelling for business a pleasure — especially when they can share it all on their social feeds.

The survey polled 2,000 British adults who travel for work and found that younger road warriors are pros at making their work trips work harder. Key findings from the research include:

• More likely to pay for an upgrade: 71% of Gen Z and 67% of Millennial business travellers have paid out of pocket to upgrade to a nicer hotel, compared to just 27% of older colleagues.
• #WorkTrip Content Creators: Younger generations are keen to document their work journeys on social media, with more than a third (36%) saying they post more than normal compared to 5% of their boomer counterparts. 72% say they’ll even self-fund high-end dinners and entertainment to get better content for their feeds.
• The opportunists: Gen Z are the most likely to arrive early and stay late — 32% have taken an overnight flight to gain more personal time in the destination, and 38% say they’d like to extend a work trip to explore solo.
• Going the distance: New York tops the list of dream business trip destinations for Gen Zers and Millennials. Gen Z professionals like to go the distance, being almost four times more likely to want to go to Seoul than their Baby Boomer counterparts.
• Loyalty perks: 45% of Gen Z business travellers say they make work travel choices based on maximising rewards. 42% of Millennials have used those rewards for leisure travel.

“Our research found that the number one reason Gen Z professionals like work trips is that it benefits their careers, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t enjoy them, too,” said Melanie Fish, spokesperson for Hotels.com. “While this new research shows big differences in what workers of different ages want, Hotels.com is enabling every generation’s priorities by offering flexibility in how they use their member discounts. The new Save Your Way feature lets all travellers choose to save instantly at checkout or bank their discounts as rewards to use on a future trip.”  

Membership at Hotels.com is free and comes with discounts and rewards. With Save Your Way™, a new feature launching today, members can choose whether to save up front with their member discount, or bank it as rewards for future trips. Only on Hotels.com, it’s ideal for a frequent traveller who wants to choose how and when to use their rewards. Either way, members earn rewards on every stay.

The Upgraded Life

When traveling for work, Gen Zers won’t hesitate to spend their own money to elevate the experience. Compared to their older colleagues, they’re more than three times as likely to pay to upgrade their flights (58% vs. 18%) or splurge on high-end dining or entertainment during a work trip (72% vs. 34%).

When company policy allows, the upgrades don’t stop there: 28% of Gen Z would expense a spa treatment, and 1 in 5 would put work out classes on the company card. Millennials and Gen Z are more likely to expense flight or room upgrades and entertainment, while older generations expense taxis and private cars to avoid public transport.  

Well Connected

Gen Zers are all about the buddy system as the most likely generation to want to bring a plus-one along on their work trips (29%), and 26% would love to extend a trip to hang longer with coworkers.

Younger professionals also invite friends and family to follow along via social media, with 40% posting 3-5 times per day while away on business. Most Boomers (56%), on the other hand, post less than once a day — and 29% say they never share on social media during work trips. Among younger travellers, Millennials are the most share-happy: 38% say they wouldn’t travel for work if they couldn’t document it, compared to 12% of Boomers.

Bleisure Bliss

It’s not all work and no play — travellers are using their business trips to live out their “bleisure” dreams. For 55% of business travellers, the chance to visit a destination they wouldn’t otherwise see is one of the biggest perks. On average, travellers want to spend 3-4 extra days in the destination after work is done.

Whether it’s for work or play, learn more about Save Your Way and how to get rewarded for every trip with Hotels.com.