The ultimate way to boost your next business trip: “bleisure”

It makes perfect sense: take something you have to do, and make it work with something you want to do. Take your next business trip and combine it with leisure. This is “bleisure travel”, the best of both worlds, and it’s taking off. 

Every business trip should be like this, when you think about it: a mix of responsibility and enjoyment, the chance to take advantage of the amazing place in which you find yourself.

That’s the idea behind “bleisure”, a hybrid that is becoming increasingly popular for the modern businessperson. You’re travelling anyway, so why not enjoy your destination, particularly in this post-pandemic world where the need to capitalise on every opportunity for enjoyment has become so apparent? 

Take some extra time before or after your business commitments. Bring along family or friends to enjoy the experience. 

This has been a growing trend within the business travel community for some time now; in fact, since the term “bleisure” was coined back in 2009. Back then, it was business travellers taking some time for a holiday as well.

Now, however, the concept has morphed and expanded, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic, taking in not just traditional business people but digital nomads as well, those who may not be travelling for business per se but who can take their business with them when they travel.

Time for work, time for play.

Traditional business travellers have long been keen on this. According to a survey by the Global Business Traveler Association (GBTA) in the US, 37 per cent of North American-based business travellers extended a work trip for leisure in 2017. Similarly, 36 per cent of Australian business travellers extended a trip in 2019, according to the Goldman Group .

These are travellers who often bring family – 44 per cent, according to the GBTA survey – to enjoy the “leisure” portion of their trip. And there’s no reason to believe that that trend won’t continue post-pandemic, with families likely to want to stay together as members move around the world, and business travellers keen to make the most of any opportunities to travel after such a long absence.

Digital nomads, too, are ideally poised to embrace bleisure travel, and in this post-pandemic world, in which so many businesspeople have realised the possibility of working remotely, there are likely to be more of these workers than ever before. A 2021 survey by American Express Travel found that 54 per cent of respondents thought being a digital nomad was more appealing now than prior to COVID-19. 

Digital nomads have traditionally been young people – their average age, according to a survey by online freelancing tool And Co , is 32 – though they represent a range of age groups and come from all over the world. The traits that link them are the high priority placed on flexibility and freedom and the desire to explore the world while working their day-to-day.

" That might mean logging a few hours on the laptop before exploring the street food scene in Kuala Lumpur; it could be checking emails while riding the U-Bahn to the next attraction in Berlin; it could mean knuckling down for a week in a room in Hanoi before taking off to explore northern Vietnam. "

Accommodation for the new age

The good news for those interested in bleisure travel is that the accommodation sector has morphed to meet this new demand. Travellers who are chasing work-life integration may want to explore interesting neighbourhoods and stay somewhere with co-working spaces and leisure facilities.

In the hunt for the ideal mix, travellers will be looking towards the world’s top business hubs for inspiration and different types of integrated accommodation to suit their needs.

Capri by Fraser’s focus on collaborative spaces and social living offers connected, contemporary properties that are custom-designed to meet the lifestyle needs of the digital generation.

These apartment hotels are sophisticated, modern spaces, with extensive facilities and customisable services. They utilise the latest technology, while also fuelling guests’ creativity by featuring local artists and providing living spaces with all the comforts of home.

At each Capri property you’ll find Spin and Play rooms, where you can play a few games on the latest gaming consoles while doing laundry at the same time. Free Wi-Fi everywhere you go ensures you’re able to work and play your own way, and most Capri properties come with state of the art 24/7 fitness facilities.

There’s also the Capri Fixer, the person in charge of making sure your stay at these apartment hotels is as productive and enjoyable as possible. This is someone who can help guests achieve that blend of business and leisure, be it assisting to get a home office set up on-site, or finding a place to unwind with a few local recommendations.

The Fixer at a Capri property can book restaurants, sort out transfers, ensure late check-outs, and provide insight into the city around you. They’re the friend you wished you had in every city.

Not coincidentally, Capri exists in some of the world’s greatest destinations for bleisure travel, including the likes of Barcelona, Berlin, and Singapore, some of the world’s top financial and cultural centres.

Soon, guests will be able to experience the brand new Capri by Fraser Bukit Bintang in Kuala Lumpur, with its mixture of nightlife, business centres and cultural attractions. 

 These cities personify the idea of bleisure travel: places to do business, but places to enjoy as well. Cities that offer onward travel opportunities to some of the most popular tourism destinations in the world. Cities that are attractions in their own right.  

If you happen to be doing business there, why wouldn’t you want to enjoy them at the same time? It makes perfect sense.