Business travel has been one of the industries hit hardest as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic—and it’s possible it has changed permanently as a result of it, according to research conducted by Censuswide in partnership with PromoLeaf.

A new survey by APCO Insight affirms that Americans working from home are eager to return to in-person meetings and conventions. The survey found that even after adapting to the new digital workplace, 81 percent of professionals who attended in-person meetings and conventions before the pandemic miss doing so and would be just as likely—if not more likely—to attend in-person conferences, conventions, trade shows and other business events in the future. 

The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) has released the results from its 15^th coronavirus-related poll, the first in 2021, to measure the affect on business travel following the onset of the pandemic last year. The latest survey finds that more than half of respondents expect most of their employees will return to the office by Q3, in line with a return to non-essential business travel and a growth in traveler confidence. 

The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) on Thursday released its “State of the Hotel Industry 2021” report, outlining the forecasted state of the hotel industry in 2021 and into the immediate future. The report examines the high-level economics of the hotel industry’s recovery, the specific impact on and eventual return of business travel, and consumer travel sentiments. 

Following a year of uncertainty, the "2021 Global Meetings and Events Forecast" from American Express Meetings & Events, a division of American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), found that businesses have quickly adapted meetings and events programs to keep customers, prospects and employees engaged.

Global DMC Partners (GDP) has shared the results of it

American Express Global Business Travel (GBT) has announced the addition of a new green hotel badge to its proprietary travel and expense software, Neo. The new display is the latest in a series of developments to support GBT’s commitment to helping companies attain their carbon ambitions by enabling travelers to choose sustainable transport and hotel options.

The majority of Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) companies expect their employees to return to in-person events in 2021. Almost half (45 percent) expect attendance to resume in the first half of the year, according to the latest poll conducted between September 15-19, 2020, by GBTA, with an additional 25 percent expecting a return to in-person events in the second half of 2021.

MMGY Global is developing a series of market research studies to be informed by diverse travel advocacy organizations to better identify the needs, behaviors and sentiment of underrepresented travel communities—for both leisure and business travel. The first installment of these studies, powered by MMGY Travel Intelligence, is titled “The Black Traveler: Insights, Opportunities & Priorities” and focuses on Black leisure travelers and meetings professionals. The Black Traveler study is set to be published in late October. 

To showcase the innovative measures being taken to support the safe return of in-person meetings and events, the Meetings Mean Business Coalition (MMBC) is enlisting corporate executives, policymakers and meetings industry leadership to engage in critical conversations in a virtual discussion series.  The conversations—which premiered in July and will continue through the fall—thus far highlighted five key considerations, predictions and actions underway. They are: