Dive Brief:
- Business travel confidence has surged to its highest level of 2026, with industry buyers and suppliers increasingly optimistic that travel spending, trip volume and revenue will strengthen over the next 12 months, according to a recent poll from the Global Business Travel Association.
- Nearly two-thirds (63%) of business travel professionals say they are optimistic about the industry outlook moving into 2027, up from 41% in April and 59% in January, according to the GBTA poll, which surveyed 604 global corporate travel managers, travel suppliers and intermediaries from Aug. 27 to Sept. 9. Meanwhile, pessimism among respondents fell from 24% in April to 7% this month.
- The latest GBTA poll shows a sharp rebound in sentiment among business travel professionals across almost all regions, with concerns such as rising costs and geopolitical risks “now part of everyday planning for managed travel programs,” GBTA CEO Suzanne Neufang said in a statement. Growing optimism among business travel professionals could have a positive impact on the hospitality industry.
Dive Insight:
The rebound in sentiment among business travel professionals compared to earlier this year “is not simply about more travel, it’s about organizations becoming increasingly deliberate about where and why they travel,” Neufang said, adding that the “combination of confidence, discipline and strategic investment bodes well for the industry’s continued momentum.”
In April, business travel professionals’ leading concern was geopolitical uncertainty and conflict, particularly as tensions rose in Iran and the Middle East, GBTA previously found. However, the sharp drop in confidence reflected in GBTA’s April poll has now “reversed” among buyers and suppliers, and sentiment among both parties has “moved in step,” per GBTA. Optimism rose from 39% in April to 61% now among buyers, and from 42% to 64% among suppliers and travel management companies.
The rebound also extends beyond sentiment and into business expectations for the remainder of the year, per GBTA. Some 45% of respondents now expect the number of business trips taken at their organization in 2026 to increase year over year, up from 30% in April.
Additionally, more than half of buyers (56%) expect their travel spend to increase in 2026, up from 43% in April, per the poll. Increased business travel spending and trip volume this year could bode well for the hotel industry. Both Marriott International and Hilton reported that business travel contributed to their respective RevPAR growth during the second quarter of 2026.
Despite growing optimism, rising travel costs and geopolitical uncertainty remain the top factors influencing buyers, GBTA found.
Meanwhile, geopolitical uncertainty continues to be a top concern for suppliers, as does rising operating costs, customer pressure to reduce pricing, fees or costs; changes in customer demand or travel volume; and technology, distribution or AI challenges, per the poll.
