BLEISURE BECKONS

A portmanteau of business and leisure, rapid growth of bleisure in the last two years reflects the evolution of travel and brings hope to the hospitality and tourism industry

- Shreya Cheema

I am going to Costa Rica in two weeks," announced a friend who worked as a data analyst at a Big Four consulting firm. His excitement suggested that he might be headed on a vacation. But as he disclosed more details, my misunderstanding faded. He was going for a work trip-or at least that is how he put it. Of course, given that it was his first-ever international trip, and Costa Rica is at the top of any keen traveller's wish list, it could not be just that. When he returned, his watch covered a tattoo on his wrist, and his memory was fresh with tales from the central American country.

Business trips have evolved. Travelling for work once meant that sightseeing was limited to the journey from the airport to the hotel and vice versa. Now, it offers an opportunity to explore. A portmanteau of business and leisure, bleisure involves fusing a work trip with activities that are usually reserved for a vacation. While this trend may have grabbed the industry’s attention now, it has been in the making for a few years.

Bleisure So Far

The Traveller Value Index 2023 report by online travel company Expedia notes that 76% of participants wish to extend their work trip for leisure purposes, and 28% plan to opt for a flexication. But Indian travellers have always been keen to take advantage of the places their work takes them. The same report, published in 2018, notes popular preference for blended travel, stating that 60% of the participants indicated extending their work trips for leisure.

While bleisure may not be new, its popularity is. Over the last two years, the bleisure travel market size has grown considerably and is poised to expand in the next decade.