How to plan an extended business trip

As businesses begin to open up and client meetings are back on the table, you may find you have some business trips planned. If you’ve been out of practise, you might overlook some important things that can help make your trip a bit less stressful – and a bit more comfortable.

We know that planning any sort of trip can be stressful, so we share with you our top tips for planning a successful extended business trip.

Create an itinerary

Creating an itinerary is the most important thing to ensure your business trip goes without a hitch. Work out who you’re meeting, where and what time, and then factor in travel times.  If you have a number of meetings try and schedule them together. This is particularly important if you’re staying in a big and busy city.

Think about your transportation

If you’re business trip is in a city like London, then having access to a chauffeur or a pre-paid rail card will be much less stressful than trying to navigate potentially busy and unknown streets. Equally, if your trip is to somewhere remote or far away, perhaps look into catching a train or plane and then hiring a car once you’re there.

Plan when you’ll travel

Depending on where you’re taking your trip it might be easier – and cheaper to travel the day before. If possible see if you can avoid travelling on a Friday afternoon, Mondays, and of course Saturdays.

Check if your business meetings coincide with a bank holiday weekend and perhaps see if you can move it to avoid the additional traffic, as well as more expensive accommodation rates.

Look at accommodation types

Business trips don’t have to mean hotel rooms and buffet style breakfasts. You can find serviced apartments in London as well as other major cities throughout the UK. Providing the perfect base for your work trip they offer all the home comforts and are often situated in the most convenient locations.

Think about where you’ll work

If you have a bit of time between meetings where you need to catch-up on work, consider your options when it comes to finding somewhere comfortable and quiet. Whist you might be able to work in a busy café, it might be nicer to book a desk in an open office. Or alternatively, there are now some hotels that can be booked as a ‘home office’.