Bleisure travel: What it is, benefits and more
Quick insights
- “Bleisure” travel, which blends business and leisure travel, is when employees add additional personal vacation days before, during or after a work trip.
- Implementing clear policies and guidelines around bleisure travel may help organizations manage risks, track expenses and support employee work-life balance.
- Companies that formalize bleisure options could see benefits such as improved retention, increased engagement and more rewarding business travel experiences.
Bleisure travel—where work and leisure converge within a single trip—has become more commonplace for today’s business travelers. Here’s a closer look at what’s behind the bleisure trend, its benefits and ways to make it work—whether you run a company or travel for work.
What is bleisure travel?
Bleisure travel lets employees add personal time onto a work trip—before, after or between business commitments. Unlike traditional business travel, bleisure travel views trips through a “whole person” lens. It acknowledges that employees are more than just their job roles, and travel can reflect that.
Bleisure travel also allows employees to use a company trip as a way to recharge and connect outside of work. For example, a manager might expense a plane ticket to attend a conference in San Francisco, then stay through the weekend to enjoy the city on at their own expense. Others might bring a partner or their kids, extending a regular business trip into genuine quality time. It can provide some flexibility and the ability to blend their work with their personal ambitions.
Why bleisure travel matters
Bleisure travel isn’t just a fringe perk. It can be a strategy for reclaiming work-life balance and making business travel more rewarding.
The growing popularity of bleisure travel may be driven by tangible benefits for both employees and employers, which can include:
- Attracting and retaining top talent: Supporting bleisure travel may make employers more appealing to employees who value work-life balance.
- Boosting productivity and engagement: Travelers trusted to integrate downtime may return to the office more motivated and creative.
- Encouraging business travel: Employees may be more willing to travel if they can add personal benefits, enhancing the value of trips.
- Forming partnerships: Some companies secure discounted hotel or airline rates or create programs to incentivize responsible bleisure practices.
Implementing defined travel policies can help address related issues, like ensuring company resources are only used for business purposes. Many organizations find the potential upsides outweigh the risks with proactive planning and clear expense tracking.
Types of bleisure travel
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to bleisure travel. It can look different depending on the employer or employee. Bleisure can include:
- Pre- or post-business extensions: Arriving early or staying late for a work trip allows employees to explore their destination.
- Long weekend stays: Mixing workdays on-site with a few personal days can maximize value and ease travel fatigue.
- Bringing companions: Some trips allow family members as long as the employee covers personal costs.
- Remote work and bleisure (“workations”): Combining remote work with travel enables employees to blend business and personal travel even further.
Strategies for supporting bleisure travel at your company
Companies and employees may be looking for more flexible, adaptive bleisure travel models. To maximize the benefits—and minimize confusion or risk—companies may want to formalize their approach to bleisure travel.
That could include:
- Updating travel and expense policies: Define which costs the company covers (like airfare to/from the business event) and which are personal (like hotel for extra days or family expenses).
- Clarifying approval workflows: Outline how employees can request bleisure time, what needs manager signoff and any required documentation.
- Planning for emergencies: Provide advice on who is responsible for travel or health-related emergencies. You may want to consult with human resources and legal professionals to establish guidelines and company policy.
- Setting clear expense rules: Provide expense guidelines so there is a clear separation between personal and business expenses.
Tips for planning successful bleisure travel
Both companies and travelers can benefit from having established bleisure travel policies. Employees considering bleisure travel may want to:
- Check the rules: Reviewing company policy may be helpful in planning what you can and cannot do on a bleisure trip.
- Keep expenses separate: Using different payment methods for business and personal expenses can help streamline the process of submitting expenses after your trip.
- Communicate: Keeping managers and colleagues informed about your schedule—especially when extending trips or bringing companions—may help you better manage bleisure travel and create boundaries around your time.
- Respect boundaries: Defining time for work and time for relaxation can help you make the most of your working and non-working hours.
In summary
Bleisure travel can offer benefits for both individuals and organizations. By formalizing policies and creating clear expectations, companies can help make business travel less stressful, more rewarding and a driver of culture and engagement.
Bleisure travel can include adding personal days before or after a business trip, traveling with companions or extending a work trip into a long weekend away. Encouraging responsible bleisure typically includes having a company culture that empowers employees to use their travel time effectively and responsibly by mixing in personal time with a business trip.
