The pandemic reshaped how and where we work, with remote and hybrid setups sometimes reducing the need for traditional business travel—particularly one-night stays. This shift has prompted businesses to reevaluate the value of these trips, weighing costs like hotel stays, transportation and employee productivity against the convenience of virtual meetings.
“By definition, one-day trips have a high unproductive travel time to productive meeting ratio,” said Mike Harris, founder of Cribstone Strategic Macro, a macro-economic and multi-industry research advisory firm. “Companies will likely be much more sensitive to the productivity of travel [going forward]. If you are going to disrupt both your personal life and your work day to travel back and forth, it needs to be obvious that this meeting should be face to face instead of virtual. The cost of travel is less of a concern than the cost of lost employee productivity versus doing meetings online.”
Economic pressures also play a role. STR and Tourism Economics recently downgraded U.S. hotel revenue projections for 2024, citing higher costs and cautious business spending. While group and international travel are rebounding, demand for one-night business trips faces scrutiny, leaving hotels to prove their value to both decision-makers and remote workers.
The good news? It can be done.
Convenience
The easiest way for hotels to capture the overnight business travel is just that: make it easy.
“What matters most to travel managers and business travelers are seamless booking experiences, flexibility, streamlined reporting and cost efficiency,” said Chris Boyle, chief finance, business and strategy officer at Sabre Hospitality Solutions.
Boyle believes hotels should lean heavily on technology to provide the end-to-end convenience business travelers (and bookers) desire.
“Hotels can leverage technology to enhance the guest experience for one-night business travelers by focusing on efficiency, personalization and connectivity – three key priorities for this segment,” he continued. “Business travelers on short stays often have tight schedules, and technology can help minimize friction while maximizing convenience.”
This starts with offering a mobile-friendly reservation process that allows guests to quickly and easily book on the go – a state that commonly defines frequent overnight business travelers. Tech can also streamline arrivals and departures via mobile check-ins, digital key access and express check-out.
“These solutions allow guests to bypass front desk queues, saving valuable time,” Boyle added.
Focusing on the in-room setup can bypass other friction points that may tip the scales for overnight travel. This includes work-friendly spaces with ergonomic furniture, ample power outlets and high-speed Wi-Fi – all of which support productivity. Smart room technology like voice-activated controls or customizable lighting and temperature settings can further enhance the guest experience, allowing them to tailor their environment to their preferences.
“Hotels that offer perks and services that improve the efficiency of business travel will do better than those that simply focus on cost,” Harris said. “The winners will be the ones that bundle productivity-enhancing services with bulk deals for large employers.”
Sustainability
Some are scaling back on overnight business travel as they prioritize carbon footprints and sustainability. However, hotels can recapture this segment by aligning with these values, said JoAnna Abrams, CEO of product intelligence company MindClick.
“The traveler wants to know ‘what are you doing for me and the environment,’ while their organization wants to know how your hotel supports their progress toward net-zero carbon emissions,” she said. “Now more than ever is the time to invest in making the connection between a positive guest experience and the feel-good story of sustainability.”
This is particularly true as compliance with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive begins this year, Abrams noted, which means organizations will be tracking data from their employees on the sustainability profile of their travel spend.
Elevating a property’s sustainability profile doesn’t have to be tedious, she believes. Rather, it’s small changes conveyed to decision-makers.
Instead of referencing energy or waste reduction from a compliance perspective, for example, Abrams suggests communicating how the hotel’s HVAC system ensures high performance regardless of outside temperature. Or how the hotel’s use of renewable energy is reducing carbon emissions.
A study involving a Courtyard by Marriott confirmed the positive impact these initiatives can have on guests. The hotel saw a 150 percent increase in guest satisfaction when guests were informed of the hotel's environmental impact.
“The key is to combine the positive guest experience and the impact,” Abrams said. “To tell the story in a way that focuses first on how it benefits the guests personally, then how it benefits the greater community.”
Bleisure
Combining business with pleasure (leisure) is one of the perks of working from home—and, arguably, of traveling for business if one’s schedule provides some downtime. Global research from Navan reported a 275 percent increase in year-over-year bleisure bookings in 2024, with two-thirds of surveyed travelers noting they plan to combine business and leisure travel in 2025.
“This is especially popular among Millennials, 86 percent of whom indicated their plan for bleisure travel [this year],” Abrams said. “It’s becoming the new norm for Millennials and Gen Z, with the key drivers being cost of travel, convenience and sustainability.”
Some may choose to spend their leisure travel time exploring the city, trying a new restaurant or booking a spa treatment. Boyle believes hotels should be prepared to assist with all of the above.
“Create dynamic packages and personalized add-ons that meet the unique needs of both business and bleisure travelers,” he said, noting that Sabre’s SynXis platform helps hotels deliver these seamless experiences by connecting systems and data to create a unified guest profile. “This allows hoteliers to anticipate needs and offer tailored options, such as pre-selecting rooms with optimized workspaces or recommending local dining options.”
A guest booking one night for a work trip might also be offered an extended-stay package that includes a "work from anywhere" setup with a quiet workspace, as well as curated leisure activities.
Those who can’t stay an extra night can still squeeze in a little leisure time if the hotel grants late check-outs.
“This late check-out should not involve incremental pricing that requires further employer scrutiny or approval,” Harris added.
Whether the one-night business trip will remain on the chopping block or not, Boyle believes management’s approach to tackling drops in demand will ultimately determine a hotel’s success.
“The key to mitigating challenges is adaptability—staying attuned to shifts in travel patterns and being ready to pivot quickly,” he said. “Hotels that invest in technology and partnerships to deliver seamless, tailored experiences will be best positioned to thrive in this evolving landscape.”
This article was originally published in the April edition of Hotel Management magazine. Subscribe here.