Canadian Travel Executives Address Business Travel Trends for 2008

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A panel discussion involving top names in travel, hospitality and finance occurred in Toronto last week, concentrating on business travel trends and solutions in 2008. Findings from the discussion tied closely to results of a survey of North American corporate travel managers conducted by Best Western International (BWI) and the National Business Travel Association (NBTA).

“During this time of economic re-valuation, companies are eager to become more informed about how they spend corporate dollars on travel”

Tanya Racz, president of NBTA Canada, who moderated the event, said the top three factors corporate travel managers consider when booking travel included safety and security, price and convenience. According to the BWI/NBTA survey, nearly two thirds (63 percent) of travel managers rated convenience and proximity to meeting locations as the most influential factor they consider when making hotel decisions. The Hotel Association of Canada’s (HAC) 2007 Travel Survey supported this, with 70 percent of respondents saying they would pay $20 more per night and 50 percent saying they would pay $40 more per night to be within five minutes of their meeting location.

Panel participants highlighted the all-inclusive pricing model spearheaded by Best Western and other mid-market hotel chains as attractive to both travel managers and individual business travelers. Value-added amenities such as breakfast and complimentary high-speed Internet access were viewed as directly responsible for an increase in the number of mid-market chains on preferred vendor lists. In fact, more than half of survey respondents (52 percent) confirmed that complimentary high-speed Internet access was the most important amenity when selecting a hotel.

“The last 18 months have shown that the mid-market is a particularly strong place to be,” said Dorothy Dowling, senior vice president of Best Western International. “Companies that used to buy in the upscale or luxury category are now more conscious of managing travel expenses. Mid-market hotels are being asked to participate in new corporate programs for the first time because that $100 to $120 room rate is where many travel managers want to be.”

Tony Pollard, president of the Hotel Association of Canada, said that while the industry could expect continued growth throughout Canada, hotels would need to improve amenity and service offerings to maintain a competitive edge, particularly with the United States market. “The days are long gone when you go to a hotel and expect to pay for Internet access,” said Pollard. “Just as coffee makers are expected in any hotel room, high-speed Internet access needs to be complimentary.”

The Tourism Industry Association of Canada’s (TIAC) vice president of public affairs, Chris Jones, who focused on the industry’s inbound travel from the U.S., said that while leisure travel to Canada shows little sign of rebounding in the short-term from its recent downward trend, business travel is likely to remain healthy going forward. He cautioned that increased expectations would need to be met. “The business traveler is discerning and wants everything gratis,” said Jones. “We are seeing an increasingly sophisticated, Web-savvy traveler who knows what they want. Given the current rates for the industry as a whole, we need to be offering more amenities and services to meet their needs.”

New trends among corporate travel managers included cutting costs, tighter travel planning and renewing compliance standards to manage travel more efficiently. Mark Kozicki, vice president of commercial products for MasterCard said that companies are increasingly aware of their travel budgets and the need to monitor their travel spends. “During this time of economic re-valuation, companies are eager to become more informed about how they spend corporate dollars on travel,” Kozicki said. “They are asking for more information and detail, where that spending is being done, and how it can be done more efficiently.”

Kozicki also explored issues of safety and security involving card misuse, explaining how recent card policies are coupled with card management systems that monitor transactions more closely. The panel discussed how companies are looking to control both cost and safety. “An increasing number of business travelers are women,” said Dowling. “Especially following 9-11, companies need to know that employees are secure. Best Western provides thorough guidelines to its members, and because each hotel is individually owned and operated, our properties must abide local law regarding lighting, parking, and other safety and security issues.”

ABOUT BEST WESTERN INTERNATIONAL

Best Western International is THE WORLD'S LARGEST HOTEL CHAIN®, providing marketing, reservations and operational support to over 4,000* independently owned and operated member hotels in 80* countries and territories worldwide. An industry pioneer since 1946, Best Western has grown into an iconic brand that hosts 400,000* worldwide guests each night. Best Western's diverse property portfolio, its greatest strength, stems from a business model designed to give owners maximum flexibility to address market-specific needs. Equally committed to the business and leisure traveller, Best Western recently embarked on a five-year mission to lead the hotel industry in customer care. Since 2004, Best Western has served as the Official Hotel of NASCAR®. For more information or to make a reservation, please visit www.bestwestern.com.

*Numbers are approximate and can fluctuate.

ABOUT NBTA CANADA

NBTA Canada, the leading organization for corporate travel professionals in Canada, is part of the National Business Travel Association (NBTA), the world’s premier business travel organization. U.S.-based NBTA and its regional subsidiaries – NBTA Asia Pacific, NBTA Canada and NBTA Mexico – serve more than 3,000 members in 30 nations around the globe. NBTA has 42 U.S. Chapters with more than 5,000 members. NBTA members are corporate and government travel and meetings managers, as well as travel service providers, who collectively manage and direct more than US$170 billion of global business travel expenditures annually. The global association provides industry-leading networking, education & professional development, research, news & information, and advocacy. For more information, visit www.nbtacanada.org.

ABOUT HAC

The Hotel Association of Canada supports, protects and promotes its members so they can excel in today's challenging business world. For over 95 years, it has helped them to compete by building and maintaining a high profile with governments, developing innovative services including the highly successful Green Key Rating Program, hosting events to celebrate excellence, and providing current industry information and resources. All activities share a singular goal: to help members be more competitive, successful and profitable. For more information, visit: http://www.hotelassociation.ca/.

ABOUT MASTERCARD

Internationally, MasterCard is a partner to 25,000 of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving consumers in 210 countries and territories. As a payments leader, MasterCard Canada strives to develop strategic marketing programs to build greater awareness for our brand and in turn increase business for the financial institutions that issue MasterCard cards. We maintain standards and procedures for the acceptance and settlement of member transactions on a global basis; provide a global communications network for the electronic transfer of information and funds among our issuing financial institutions, and enhance and support marketing activities and operational functions of our member financial institutions in connection with MasterCard Canada’s programs and services. For more information, visit www.mastercard.com.

ABOUT TIAC

The Tourism Industry Association of Canada is the national private-sector advocate for Canada's $66.9 billion tourism industry. It helps ensure the Canadian business and policy environment works for tourism, by communicating its importance to Canadians, advocating positive measures, and lobbying government for action. For more information, visit: www.tiac.travel.