What is the return on investment for business travel?

There are many reasons that managers might need to arrange for employees to travel for work: meeting clients, attending conferences, running a booth at a trade show, working on an on-site project, or doing some fun team-building activities at a company retreat. 

And lots of these involve overseas travel, such as to the US, the UK or Europe. 

For many companies, work travel is not just a “nice to have” but an essential business activity. So it’s no surprise that the vast majority of work travel decision-makers say an increase in travel budgets leads to increased company revenue (64%) and profitability (59%), according to Perk’s Value of Business Travel report.

In this article, we have looked into the return on investment (ROI) of business travel, and all the ways travel can increase revenue both directly and indirectly, from boosting employee engagement to acquiring new clients.

What benefits does work travel bring to a business?

Face-to-face meetings

In-person meetings are crucial for landing new clients and maintaining current ones. Our Value of Business Travel report shows that 91% of work travel decision-makers claim they’d lose existing customers without them, directly impacting the return on travel investment.

Face-to-face meetings offer a personal touch that can’t be replicated online. They allow your sales staff to have an in-depth conversation with prospective clients, truly understand their needs, and demonstrate your product in a hands-on way. Sales staff can also maintain strong relationships with current clients and offer upsells where appropriate, so clients can get the most from your product or service. It's far easier to build trust and negotiate terms when we can read each other's body language and other non-verbal cues.

Employees who travel for sales activities said that 30% of the sales revenue they drive would be lost without in-person meetings with clients and prospects.

Encourage employee retention

To remain competitive, companies are always thinking of how to attract new employees, and then once you’ve found the right employees for your company, it’s also important to retain them. Replacing just one employee can cost businesses in Canada $30,674 on average.

Our travel data show that work travel can serve as an incentive for current and future employees, especially since work trips sometimes allow for “bleisure” travel, and may involve attending a retreat or other fun event. 75% of HR decision-makers said advertising travel for work opportunities in job descriptions makes the role more attractive.

Traveling for work can also help reduce turnover. Our data shows that companies that increased their travel budget had an employee turnover of just 8.6%, which is 3.5% lower than those that reduced their investment in connecting employees. This is also well below the 11.9% average turnover rate in Canada, as found in a report from iMercer. 

C-suite leaders agree with the importance of work travel for reducing turnover. 62% think an increase in travel budgets would help with employee retention, while 94% observe a boost in employee engagement following their team’s travel to a company social event. 

Provide opportunities for professional development

Conferences are more popular than ever, with dozens of options to possibly attend in 2025 and 2026, from tech conferences to travel events and finance summits. Conferences offer numerous opportunities for professional development and forming partnerships, such as seminars, workshops, and networking events, and our surveys revealed that 45% of companies are increasing their travel budgets so team members can attend more of these. 

Improving collaboration for distributed teams

Another incentive for work travel is to improve collaboration for teams that are dotted across Canada, or further afield. Recently, there has been a steep rise in companies organising events that encourage cross-team collaboration, like off-sites, retreats, and team-building activities.  

In-person meetings continue to be crucial for learning, professional development, and incentives. In fact, company get-togethers are especially popular among remote teams that don’t get much facetime regularly. Our data show that 85% of fully-remote employees have participated in company get-togethers of one night or more within the past year. 

Meeting up with colleagues to socialise and team-build increases employee engagement and wellness, and 94% of C-suite leaders have noticed higher engagement levels after employees participate in company social events.

Bringing together geographically distributed teams in an inspiring destination fulfils a range of business needs. Mixing key updates and in-person brainstorming sessions with a few fun team-building activities in new surroundings can reinvigorate teams and bring innovative ideas to the fore. 

How do you calculate business travel costs?

The costs of travel for work can vary widely depending on each travel destination and the duration of the stay, but there are certain factors travel managers can consider to help give an idea of average travel expenses.

Business travel expenses to consider

1. Accommodation

Will travelers be staying in high-end, mid-range, or budget hotels? What kind of hotel prices do you expect? Would you also consider alternative accommodation options such as Airbnb?

When booking accommodation, you’ll need to consider:

• Price point

• Proximity to destination

• Amenities (such as internet, printing, 24-hour reception)

• Comfort of travelers

• Privacy (will individuals have to share hotel rooms or other spaces?)

• Safety

2. Transportation

How will travelers reach their destination city (plane, car, train, bus?) How much should you budget for airfare, etc.? Once they’ve arrived, will they need ground transportation such as rental cars, taxis, or public transit?

When deciding which types of transportation to use, consider:

• Price point

• Time spent in transit

• Commitment to sustainability goals

• Comfort and safety of travelers

3. Food:

• How many meals will travelers need?

• How expensive is food in the destination city?

• Will travelers have additional food and beverage expenses (for example, business dinners with clients?)

4. Insurance and Safety:

• Do all travelers have health insurance, or will they need temporary travel insurance?

• Does the destination carry an elevated health or safety risk that might incur additional healthcare expenses (e.g. private security, pre-trip vaccines, or medications)?

• What is your employee travel policy on travel mishaps and emergencies (such as missing a flight and having to book another one last minute?)

5. Visas

Do any travelers need a visa or travel permit? What are the costs of getting these?

6. Additional Expenses:

• Conference and other event fees

• Paid internet (e.g. on trains or in hotels)

• Roaming charges from mobile providers (if using a company phone)

If employees will be travelling internationally, don’t forget to factor in the foreign exchange rate when calculating total costs.

Cost calculation examples

Scenario:

• Three employees are traveling from Toronto Pearson to Europe to pitch a new client on an economy airline.

• They are staying in a mid-range hotel (four stars minimum) for three nights in Amsterdam, with breakfast included. 

• The hotel is walkable to the offices of the client.

• All three colleagues will have a food budget for a small lunch and an evening meal. There is also a budget to take the potential client out for drinks.

• The business will pay for or reimburse any necessary visas and roaming charges. 

Approximate costs:

Disclaimer - All information and pricing are correct as of the date of update (September 2025) and are subject to change.

Sources:

• Flights

• Hotel

• eSim

5 ways to maximise ROI from your corporate travel spending

Corporate travel offers many benefits, but most companies have a limited budget to spend on it. So how can companies get the best ROI from their work travel spending?

1. Streamline the travel booking process

By using the right work travel industry technology, travel managers can simplify the entire work travel process, reducing travel costs and saving time. 

The easiest way for businesses to make their travel programmes more efficient is to speed up the booking process for cost savings. Rather than scrolling through several websites trying to find the lowest price, work travelers can use a travel management company or tool to gather every element of their itinerary into one easy-to-use dashboard.

With a travel industry-leading inventory, Perk negotiates highly competitive rates, including options with low-cost carriers, to lower the cost of travel. As Perk users assess their options, they can choose confidently, knowing they’re getting a good deal.

2. Stay on top of travel spend with a clear travel policy

To save money and get the best ROI from work travel, you’ll need to make sure travelers can make informed decisions about what to book and how much they’re allowed to spend. The best way of doing this is by creating a corporate travel policy. Travel policies reduce confusion and offer travelers some autonomy, while also offering companies control over travel spending and full visibility over budgets. They may also establish rules for sustainability, travel safety, and other priorities. 

Once you’ve created your travel policy, it’s important to clearly communicate what it is and how it works. If employees can’t find your policy, don’t understand it, or aren’t allowed to offer feedback, they’re less likely to follow the policy.

The best way to make sure employees follow your travel policy is to integrate it into your travel management software tool. This way, the approval process is automated, and employees can easily book policy-compliant options. This will not only help you save budget, it’s also proven to improve employee satisfaction.

By inputting parameters from your corporate travel policy, a travel management solution can instantly approve itineraries that fall within company budgets, while flagging those that require extra attention. This approach allows work travelers to select options that fit their individual needs, whether it's a hotel with onsite gym facilities or a flight in time to pick the kids up from school. 

3. Increase visibility around expenses

Without an efficient system for expense management, generating expense reports can drain travel managers' time and resources. By using a work travel management solution, you can analyse budget metrics by destination, department, and even individual employees. In seconds, you can glean real-time insights and ascertain the ROI of business travel by comparing travel spend with revenue generated. 

Travel management systems collate travel expenses from all providers into a single invoice, and also offer VAT reclaim services. These allow your company to save up to an additional 25% on your annual travel budget by supplying VAT-ready receipts and VAT calculations so you never leave money on the table.

4. Take fewer, longer trips and reduce the need for repeat visits

Our data show that work travelers want to extend their work trips for both personal and professional reasons. 44%say they’ve extended work trips when their company policy allows them to do so. In addition, 41% of Gen Z employees say they’d like their company to allow them to extend trip time.

Reasons for extending trips include “bleisure” or blended travel, but also staying longer to combine more meetings into a single trip. Around one third (34%) of work travelers say their company encourages them to book as many meetings as possible to avoid making multiple trips. Another option is incorporating multiple trip types into one, such as making a visit to a local office for an internal meeting after a company offsite. 

At Perk, we’ve seen a decline in same-day return trips taken by plane. In 2019, 19% of short-haul flights (under two hours) booked on the Perk platform were day-return trips. In 2023, this number halved to just 9%. Instead, there's a growing trend toward two-to-four-day journeys: 43% of all short-haul flight trips in 2019 were two to four days in duration, and this number has now risen to 58%.

This “slow travel” approach has quite a few benefits. It increases efficiency in the long term rather than the short term, making sure maximum value is derived from each trip. It increases traveler wellbeing and improves the travel experience by allowing more time for rest, which can improve productivity. It’s also more environmentally-friendly and reduces carbon emissions, leaving time for train travel and eco-friendly travel options to meet your sustainability goals.

5. Choose flexible booking policies

Unexpected circumstances sometimes come up when travelling.  Luckily, you can protect yourself against contingencies by opting for flexible booking policies. Perk offers an efficient way to do this with FlexiTravel. Customers using FlexiTravel enjoy a 40% average savings over traditional flexible fares. The way it works is that you pay a 10% fee on every trip you take. You can then book flights, hotels, car rentals, or transportation at any rate, and cancel at any time for 80% of your money back, with just one click.

Our data shows that 79% of people travelling for work were affected by travel disruptions, with 40% experiencing significant delays of more than one hour. An additional 24% had reservations cancelled, according to Perk’s global travel disruption data. But with FlexiTravel, you’re covered for any eventuality.

Get ready to see that ROI

By following the five steps above, travel managers can effectively increase return on investment. 

This includes increasing visibility amongst travelers of the expenses of their trip, choosing flexible booking policies and staying on top of spend with a clear corporate travel policy.

And opting for a travel management platform like Perk helps to bring everything into one place. Get access to the best inventory, stay in control of your budget, and give your team the freedom to cancel or change plans with FlexiTravel.

To learn more about how Perk can help with work travel planning, book a demo to see the platform in action.