New research from Pleo shows rising popularity of blended trips

In July, Censuswide, commissioned by spending management platform Pleo, carried out research canvassing the opinions of over 1,000 UK employees. The study found that more than a third of UK workers (34%) have embarked on a trip combining both business and leisure in the past year. This figure is up 17% on the previous year, as the trend continues to gather pace.

Its research showed that almost two-thirds of workers (62%) value the option to combine a work trip with leisure while almost half (48%) now rely on combining their trips to save money. Moreover 40% enjoy exploring a new place and 35% highlight the advantage of using less annual leave for combined trips.

Almost a quarter of those surveyed (23%) believe they have saved at least £1,000 by extending their business trip to include leisure.

Benjamin Swails, General Manager of UK and Northern Europe at Pleo, observed: “Workers are enjoying the perks of blended travel this summer, but businesses can enhance this experience by offering leisure extensions and providing company cards for work trips.”

This not only benefits employees but also helps businesses better control spending and ensures no one is left out of pocket.”

Censuswide’s findings demonstrate an increase in employees embarking on business trips for leisure purposes, arguably fuelled by both monetary and experiential benefits of blending work with play.

Suzanne Sangiovese, Director of Travel and Technology at Riskline, recently discussed how AI and travel risk intelligence are shaping the future of business travel.