Booking.com for Business shares tips for those traveling for business during the holiday season
For many people, December is a time to be jolly and wind down from work for a few weeks. But for some professionals, the holiday season might still entail business travel abroad, perhaps to meet clients, partners or suppliers and wrap up a busy year. Research from Booking.com for Business, the global leader in connecting business travelers with the widest choice of incredible places to day, has found that 93% of business travellers generally feel some level of stress when travelling for work internationally[1], with a quarter (25%) feeling stressed constantly or frequently during travel. With the festive season a notoriously hectic and unpredictable time of year to travel, Booking for Business shares some top tips for maximizing your corporate time away and avoid any additional seasonal stresses.
Pack smart… it’s not Santa’s sleigh
Despite work being the main focus of your trip, it’s likely that you’ll want to bring home gifts and souvenirs for family and friends, so remember to allow for a bit of extra space to bring things back - you’ll more than likely be carrying back more than you came with! At the same time though, if you’re travelling to a colder climate, remember to pack more layers to keep warm, especially if you face delays with travel plans. When you pack, roll instead of fold smaller items of clothing and keep them in a vacuum tight bag to give yourself more space in your suitcase and prevent creasing. Wear, instead of pack, a coat or warm jumper to also save room. On your return, fill any dead space with gifts and keep delicate presents tucked in between items of clothing. Always be aware of customs and import regulations and try not to bring back gifts that are already wrapped – security personnel at customs may inspect your baggage.
Brighten up your trip by staying near a Christmas market
Catch the festive feeling and add some extra joy to your business trip by booking your accommodation close to one of the eye-catching Christmas markets that pop up in cities around the world. Montreal, Prague, Copenhagen and Stockholm are all popular business destinations with notable Christmas markets where you can unwind at the end of a busy day, pick up handcrafted gifts, munch on edible treats and treat yourself to a post-work mulled wine. Vienna is also a renowned city for its traditional Christmas markets, so reserve a room at The Levante Parliament hotel, less than two blocks away from the postcard-perfect Rathausplatz Christkindlmarkt, which has 150 seasonal wooden stalls illuminated and set up against the Rathausplatz town hall.
Plan your travel in advance and always have a Plan B
Business travel in the winter months often involves extra preparation and careful planning because you can’t predict the impact of adverse weather. With travel, always have a plan A as well as back-up plan (and mode of transport) to get to your final destination. For instance, New York City in December is notorious for snowy conditions, so you may want to travel out a day earlier than your meeting or stay in accommodation closer to your airport, minimizing road and rail problems. Instead of booking accommodation on Manhattan island, which is likely to be congested during the cold winter weather, stay somewhere like The Waltham in Queens. This guest house is less than a 10-minute taxi ride and 10-minute AirTrain to JFK Airport. Make sure you plan your trip with any potential risks in mind, keep up to date with real-time travel alerts
and always avoid the last flight home, to ensure cancellations don’t ruin your Christmas.
Last-minute present buyer? Stopover on the doorstep
Travelling away from home regularly may mean that leaving your Christmas shopping until the last minute is unavoidable. But instead of waiting until you get home or travelling across the city when the working day is finished to hit the shops and buy gifts for your loved ones, why not stay on the doorstep of the hustle and bustle on the main shopping streets. Luckily, the festive period promises longer opening hours, meaning you can handily nip in to the shops next door after work and benefit from pre-Christmas bargains. If you happen to be in Munich, book an apartment on Maximilianstraße, the retail hub in the city with a plethora of international designer stores and luxury shops set across a kilometre-long promenade. No time to shop on business? No worries, leave enough time to peruse duty free before your flight home.
[1] Research commissioned by Booking.com and independently conducted among 4,555 people who had travelled internationally for business four times or more in the past year. Research conducted between January to February 2016