Employees are the backbone of any organization and supporting your employees’ needs is an excellent way to support your business. Business travel presents employees with a range of challenges including logistical difficulties in completing work tasks, unexpected travel delays, and added stress when juggling responsibilities while navigating unfamiliar locations. That’s why investing in the health and wellness needs of workers who travel frequently for business has never been more important for HR managers. Sanctifly is here to help corporations take care of your employees with new wellness options to change the landscape of corporate travel for employees.
Booking Direct Flights Whenever Possible Reduces Hassle for Traveling Employees Finding a direct flight for employees traveling for work is a great way to decrease travel hassle. Direct flights are often more cost-effective and can reduce the time travelers spend waiting around on extended layovers. Choosing the most efficient flight gets workers to their destinations more quickly with less risk of lost luggage. According to recommendations from SmarterTravel, a direct flight serves as one of the best ways to avoid connection issues during travel. Travelers can also avoid delays due to missed connecting flights.
Aim for “Goldilocks Layovers” for Flyers If layovers are unavoidable, finding a layover that’s not too short, but not too long either can reduce stress and time in transit. Although comfort level varies for each traveler (and also by airport, size, and time of day), a good general rule is 1 hour minimum for transfers, and no more than 3 hours total in the airport. For tickets booked with a single airline, the airline sets minimum transfer times for each hub they serve, and they’ll book passengers only on connections that meet those minimums. However, if you’re booking each leg of the journey yourself, it’s important to ensure travelers have enough time to change flights comfortably without added stress, but if that requires a much longer layover, be sure you provide wellness recommendations and access at the layover airport. Remember that changes between domestic and international flights almost always involve a terminal change, and that will take longer than changing flights within the same terminal.
Look out for open bid actions on Business and First-Class Tickets Register for auctions for seat upgrades. Sometimes there can be great deals to be found which fit in to your travel bduget. Additionally, these upgraded seating opportunities deliver access to perks such as increased in-flight food options as well as more space and time to comfortably get work done during travel time. Economy seats often don’t come with any included meals except on longer journeys, and travelers have to remember to request or pre-pay for meals that accommodate any dietary restrictions or preferences they may have. While business and first class tickets have the obvious perk of being more comfortable, the upgraded meals, quieter cabin, and better service can go a long way to helping your travelers feel cared for and relaxed when they land at work or home.
Upgraded Accommodations Can Make Being Away from Home More Comfortable As employees prepare to tackle important assignments on a corporate trip, being well-rested is vital. While being away from familiar comforts is unavoidable, obtaining upgraded accommodations for workers can help provide a restful environment to support them in taking on business assignments with energy.
Having Prepared Food and Meal Delivery Options for Travel Days Alleviates One More Concern for Travelers During business trips, the ability for employees to prepare their own meals can be limited. Since not all accommodations provide access to kitchens or kitchenettes for guests, having a plan for acquiring prepared food or taking advantage of meal delivery options is a great way to alleviate workers’ concerns about locating convenient meals during travel. While the easiest way is to provide food during long meetings and conference days, it’s also important to remember that people often have to make sacrifices and compromises when it comes to their dietary preferences during long travel days. It’s difficult to provide food options on travel days, but travelers who are members of the Sanctifly app are able to view healthy food options and airport maps for hundreds of major airports around the world, allowing them to see what’s available at their terminal, and even access exclusive options in lounges and hotel gyms and restaurants that would otherwise only be available to lounge members and hotel guests.
Provide Meditation and Mindfulness Resources to Help Employees Maintain a Problem-Solving Mindset While Traveling Remaining work-focused while on a business trip can prove difficult. Between the unfamiliar work environment and grappling with the loss of everyday routines, workers may struggle with decision fatigue and distraction. Providing meditation and mindfulness resources offer employees an opportunity to reset and access their problem-solving skills to better accomplish tasks. With a Sanctifly membership, your travel team has access to a wide range of tools designed to support a mindset of mindfulness during business trips. Travelers can access our library of mini workout and stretch routines that can be completed in a hotel room or even while waiting for their flight to help get re-centered in the midst of a hectic schedule.
Establish Backup Options in the Event of Delays and Cancellations to Reduce the Stress of an Unexpected Situation Flight cancellations and travel delays are among the most stressful challenges corporate travelers encounter during trips. According to Reuters, during the Memorial Day 2022 holiday weekend, more than 2,500 flights were canceled by United States airlines and this trend is expected to continue as the year progresses. As summer ramps up in 2022, staffing and pilot shortages are predicted to cause high rates of flight cancellations and delays. Having established backup plans in place to contend with these issues takes some of the anxiety out of dealing with these challenges. Make Sanctifly a proactive part of your organization’s travel planning. We work with our hotel partners to provide day rooms, access to hotel amenities, and other convenience features that make a delayed or canceled flight less stressful.
Access to Airport Maps & Healthy Food Options Helps Employees Quickly & Easily Navigate an Unfamiliar Airport When arriving at an unfamiliar airport, being able to efficiently navigate to areas such as car rental and return hubs helps to streamline the arrival and departure processes. Additionally, the ability to easily locate healthy food options while traveling can be a challenge. Travelers being able to identify a great spot for a meal can help cut down on aimless wandering around the terminal, resulting in less anxiety about finding food in time to be able to enjoy it before boarding their next flight. Additionally, being able to quickly and easily identify healthy meal options can help travel employees avoid the pitfall of choosing the first food option available, which may not offer the most nutritious dining experience. The Sanctifly app has healthy food options and airport maps for hundreds of major airports, allowing members to use a single app to get access to everything they need for healthy, stress-free airport downtime.
De-Stress the Travel Process with Perks like Massages, Saunas, & Spa Access Being away from familiar surroundings and routines can be stressful. Based on a study conducted for World Bank Group, approximately 75% of staff disclosed feeling high or very high stress related to business travel. Whether employees are looking for a way to get into a positive mindset at the beginning of a business trip or decompress as they journey home, travelers with a Sanctifly membership can enjoy access to saunas, a massage, or take advantage of spa services at participating partners. After working in a new setting, navigating an unfamiliar city, and contending with other travel-related challenges, employees can de-stress as they wait for a flight. Sanctifly offers access to 140 airport spa locations with a membership plan.
Provide Travelers with a Sanctifly Membership to Pass the Airport Downtime With a Sanctifly membership, travelers for your business can pass their downtime at the airport in comfort. Did you know that we partner with over 250 executive airport lounges that your employees can access using their membership? Whether business travelers are looking for a comfortable place to pass the time until their next flight or a place to quickly freshen up before or after a flight, we have our members covered. Are you ready to create a new mindset for your employees around business travel? Sanctifly is here for you. Join the world’s largest Travel Wellness club and provide worldwide travel wellness benefits for your entire team—for less than $1 per employee. Sanctifly partners with a wide range of businesses and services specifically designed to deliver a travel experience tailored to employees’ health and wellness needs.