As the world opens up and the economic recovery picks up speed, corporate travel is expected to gain momentum soon. It is predicted that the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) is the most significant business travel, meetings, and meeting trade organization based in Washington DC– in its annual outlook stated that despite setbacks in the recovery for 2024, a rise of 38% could be anticipated in 2024 when the recovery continues. Demand is rising, bringing the total business travel expenditure of global businesses back to more than $1 trillion. The rally will continue through 2024, with spending increasing by 23% over the past year as more group and international travel come back. By 2024, global business travel is expected to recover fully, with the year ending with $1.48 trillion, more than the annual pre-pandemic spending, which was $1.4 trillion.
According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Indian carriers have increased their flights weekly by 10.1 percent to 25,309 this summer, compared to 22,980 last year. IndiGo has expanded its domestic services 10.4 percent to 11,130 weekly services in summer 2024 compared to 10,084 weekly services during the previous year’s comparable period. The Tata Group’s AirAsia India will operate 1,601 domestic weekly services, which is an increase of 16%in the summer of 2024.
A significant increase in corporate travel has increased by a third month-on-month from January 2024. “A increase in positive corporate confidence should see us end March at around 80 percent of our 2019 levels. Our most important corporate sectors include IT, consultancy/advisory businesses, banking and finance, global accounts, and SMEs are driving demand for domestic and international travel. Some destinations with strong demand include Canada, the US, Canada, and the UK, and Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Kolkata from a domestic point of view. Mumbai is witnessing the most rapid growth in business travel across major cities,” said Indiver Rastogi, president and group head of global business travel for Thomas Cook (India) & SOTC.
Corporates are eager to use funds; they’ve got a thriving selection of groups that range between 50 and 600, with budgets that go up to above four lakh rupees per person for elite groups, which shows that there is a desire to spend. “Sporting activities are of great significance and have been driving travel plans. We have a solid demand pipeline regarding the FIFA World Cup in Qatar and the T20 World Cup in Australia,” added Meera Charnalia — senior vice president and director of MICE, Thomas Cook India.
SOTC Travel has received confirmations for several corporate groups traveling from April to May for domestic and international short and long-distance destinations. “Multiple groups of a range of sizes are lined up from sectors such as pharma, insurance, cement, textile, FMCG, paint, automobile, banking, finance, agriculture for short-haul destinations like Dubai and Abu Dhabi and Australia and Europe in the long haul,” said SD Nandakumar, president & country manager, B2B and foreign exchange at SOTC Travel.
The hospitality industry is experiencing changes. Puneet Chhatwal, CEO and Director of Indian Hotels Company, India’s largest hotel brand, which operates the Taj Hotels chain, informed FE through an interview that government delegations accompanied by heads of state have been leading the way in business travel.
Adds Puneet Dhawan, senior VP of operations -for India as well as South Asia — for Accor India, “Corporate travel demand has seen a massive increase over the past 45 days, and we’re witnessing an increase in the number of international visitors from MNCs returning to India to attend events and meetings. In general, MICE (meetings and incentives conferences and exhibitions) leaders are experiencing an increase in numbers of organizations organizing events that had been put off over the last two years.”
Special events for destinations will gain traction due to the increase in the in-person conference this year. India ranks among the top five primary sources of goals, such as Ras Al Khaimah. It is one of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates. “With the new normal between hybrid and in-person events, we have launched offers for groups and associations and strategic partnerships with events management agencies and wedding planners,” Iyad R. Rasbey, the executive director of destination tourism development and MICE, Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority.
Safety and flexibility will remain the top priorities. Private jets are secure for fewer touches, airplane seating, and customized services. Industrialists’ preference for private jets over the last few months has grown. “Companies who were unable to travel due to the lockdown are now using private aircrafts. We’ve received requests for charters from corporate houses in India; however they aren’t planning to make reservations for longer than a week because of uncertainties,” says Santosh Sharma, co-founder and CEO of Foresee Aviation, a professional private helicopter and jet aggregator which has received more than 18-20 charter inquiries every day over the last two months, out of which 50% are for business flights.
