The wellbeing of travellers is the second most important priority for buyers but not all organisations are providing this kind of support, according to a new survey from BCD Travel.
The TMC’s survey of 118 travel buyers around the world found that 92 per cent considered the wellbeing of their travellers to be extremely or very important, and it ranked just behind duty-of-care as the top overall priority.
Despite this focus, only 62 per cent of buyers said their organisations currently provided wellbeing support for travellers and only 14 per cent said their companies planned to increase their budget for traveller wellbeing in 2022.
There was also lower awareness of wellbeing measures being available among travellers themselves, with only 51 per cent saying that their company offered this kind of support.
The study found that the best ways to improve wellbeing for travellers were convenient hotel location, direct flights and being able to fly business class on long-haul journeys.
Buyers said the best policy options to increase wellbeing were freedom to decide whether to travel or not, as well as offering a simple trip approval process. Although travellers said they most wanted the ability to choose their aircraft seat and access to fast-track security programmes.
Only 20 per cent of travellers said that being offered sustainable travel options contributed to their wellbeing. This compares with 43 per cent of buyers who now offer more sustainable travel choices through their programmes.
In terms of wellbeing support, buyers said mental health measures were most important. But travellers were more concerned about their physical wellbeing and wanted advice on nutrition, sleep and recovery, as well as gym membership while on the road.
Both buyers and travellers valued the ability to work from home before and after a trip, and travellers were also more interested in being given extra time off to compensate for out-of-hours working while on a business trip.
Mike Janssen, global chief operating officer and chief commercial officer for BCD Travel, said: “This survey reveals a significant gap between wellbeing supply and demand, as well as differing views on which measures most support traveller wellbeing.
“Travel buyers should align their policies to what their travellers value and need. At the same time, they may also need to put more time and effort in to clearly communicating the benefits of mental support, which is currently valued less than physical support.”