Bon voyage
1 Mar 10
It’s official – CAs are still travelling for business despite the challenging economy. Robert Outram outlines what’s important to many CA Magazine readers when it comes to living out of a suitcase for the company
by Robert Outram
They may love or hate it, but CA Magazine’s readers are still travelling on business. More than 400 of you responded to our travel survey and the message is that even if budgets have been cut and travel may be, for some, less luxurious, there are still be plenty of CAs in the world’s departure lounges.
On balance, those who responded said they expect to be taking fewer road trips (net -1.3 per cent), more rail trips (net +3.4 per cent) and about the same number of flights this year as they did last year.
The experience of travel appears to be best for rail and worst for road travel (see box, right). And there is no doubt the recession has had its affect on attitudes to travel. No fewer than 45 per cent said their organisation had reduced the use of first class and business class travel, and the same number said travel budgets had been cut.
Low cost or “budget” airlines were increasingly being used by 43 per cent, and the inexorable rise of booking online continues. Only 20 per cent of you go through a travel agent for your business trips, while 43 per cent book online or have a colleague in your department do so and 23 per cent go through a central travel department.
We wondered what the main factors were in determining the amount of business travel readers undertook? Issues such as security did not feature very highly, with 73 per cent of respondents saying this was “not important” in determining how often you travel.
“The state of the economy” was “very important” for 17 per cent and “quite important” for 40 per cent; and interestingly, “better communications technology” was seen as “very important” by 15 per cent and “quite important” by 51 per cent, implying that better videoconferencing and online links can sometimes substitute for the need to travel.
By far the biggest factor was “changes to the nature of my work”, which was seen as “very important” by 42 per cent.
Where you would rather be going, and with whom, was another question. New York City perennially tops the CA Magazine readers’ charts. If fact, it’s also the CA’s number one choice for a glamorous business destination.
In terms of airports, Singapore’s world-renowned Changi airport was far and away the favourite, followed by Amsterdam’s Schiphol, a key European hub and, for some of you, an example of how an airport can be made user friendly.
While London’s Heathrow picked up some negative comment it still makes our top five, especially for those who like a bit of retail therapy.
Our straw poll of favourite airlines suggests that familiarity and regular use mean that we still love British Airways, even if sometimes we love to hate it as well (see box, right). Emirates, Virgin, Singapore Airlines and bmi made up the remainder of the top five.
Finally, we asked you whom you would like to find yourself next to if you were unexpectedly upgraded on a flight. Too many literal-minded folks gave the honest answer that they would really rather have nobody at all sitting next to them (“that’s the whole point of first class” as one reader testily pointed out).
We also had to discount the many people who said they would rather spend the flight next to their spouse/partner. Sweet, but that wasn’t what we were after.
Discounting the above, therefore, CA Magazine can reveal that US President Barack Obama is the fellow passenger more people would like to spend a long flight with. Maybe that’s because of his conversation, or just because you fancy a trip on Air Force One.
George Clooney, Stephen Fry, Tiger Woods (careful, girls!) and, er, Billy Connolly also deserve honourable mentions.
We also liked the logic of the reader who told us “I’d like to sit next to the CEO of the airline I’m travelling with. The flight crew are going to treat you better than you can imagine!”
TRAVELLERS’ TIPS
We asked you what advice you’d like to pass on, and what mistakes you’ve learned from on your journeys
Drink lots of water
Like the Boy Scouts, “Be Prepared”.
Go for quality not quantity
Do not try to do too much on trips. It’s better to make a good impression in two meetings than be asleep in five.
Cigarettes
If travelling in the former Soviet Union, China or similar, carry cigarettes for handing out in an emergency. I don't smoke but buy my duty free allowance for this purpose.
Sleep over
Don’t be frightened to travel the night before and incur the cost of an overnight stay, if you have an important meeting early in the morning.
Beat the hunger
When flying and food and drink is offered, take it – you don’t know when you will next be able to eat or drink.
Avoid checking in luggage
You won't be waiting around in airports on arrival or confined to long queues to check in.