Travel with work, I think I would normally fall on the side of saying it is over-rated!!! Sadly I don’t travel to “see” with work, but I travel to work (and see the inside of different office meeting rooms!!). But from time to time even that has its perks too! Too often the schedule and the demands of the job mean all you get to see is the taxi, airport lounge, airport, plane, taxi, hotel, client offices, taxi, lounge, airport, plane etc etc… It is very rare that time is built into a key trip for doing anything more than working, as it is a work trip!!
However it does of course have benefits too, so I thought I would look at some of the pro’s and con’s. This list very much assumes that travel isn’t the job, I imagine the pro’s and con’s are entirely different in that case!
Firstly the con’s:
1. It isn’t the same kind of fun that holiday travel is, and in a way the routine of business travel can make travel for pleasure slightly less exciting and sometimes slightly less comfortable if your company pays for you to fly up front (note – see point 3 in pro’s below)! Not getting a chance to see somewhere apart from a client site and your hotel room, although I always pay attention in the taxi! I saw some of the great sites in Rome just doing this!!
Rome through taxi windows!
2. Time zone challenges – I know from being in the states that to completely switch over to their time zone is impossible as things still happen on UK local time that I need to be involved in without any lag! Getting up over there and already having 5 hours worth of UK based emails to deal with is never fun, and also losing contact after lunchtime as the UK goes to bed such that you have to wait until the next day for responses! And that doesn’t even take account of trying to speak to loved ones at home! We found that San Fran was the easiest time zone to manage, and that FaceTime runs on really poor internet better than Skype!
3. Places get associated with work – so much as the area could be a perfect holiday destination, seeing it too often on business trips could strike it off the ‘visit for enjoyment’ list
4. Hassle factor – face to face working with clients and colleagues is important and that is why we travel so much, but think about the extra hours added to your day in transit – it is difficult to work effectively when travelling
5. If you are travelling with other colleagues there is always the worry that the amount of luggage you pack is completely at odds with what someone else might take, and do you take roll-on to save time and avoid using the hold?!
6. Missing out on what is going on at home – be it a wedding or perhaps just evenings at home with your other half.
The Pro’s
1. Visiting places that wouldn’t normally be on the ‘must visit’ holiday destination list. So whilst work might not have taken me to a beautiful location, chances are that I’m there to further my career experiences but also will see some really interesting sites and learn more about a new area!
DC – wouldn’t have picked it for holiday, but now I want to go back and ‘do’ the museums!!
I wrote about what I visited in DC before – here.
2. If you can be flexible at the beginning or end of a visit then perhaps there will be the opportunity to see some of the area that you have visited with work, without having to pay for the travel yourself. Sometimes your other half might be able to meet you at the end of a visit – I flew to Singapore once to meet my husband at the end of one of his trips, and that was a great way of saving us some money and doing the tourist ‘thing’ a place we might otherwise not have chosen
Happy to breakfast and read while my husband worked!
3. Airmiles and tier points – if you are a regular flier then these go some way to softening the time away from home as at least future trips can benefit from this!
4. You are in the hands of your colleagues that are local to where you are visiting and they will undoubtedly want to impress you – be it an epic view from supper, or local knowledge of where to visit in any free time!
Supper at Imago Hassler, Rome
5. I normally use the flights and change in time zone to catch up on all my emails and any admin tasks that I’ve been putting off – after the UK goes to sleep email goes very quiet for me and so using the time wisely means clearing off the to do list!!
6. That said, the highlight for me is normally arriving back in the airport lounge to that first glass of fizz knowing the flight departs in 2 hours and I’ll have a bed and at least 8 hours of blackberry free time! Sadly I never think through the jetlag / hangover piece for long enough…
BA Galleries – guaranteed sanctuary on any trip
I too have to travel sometimes for work and can totally relate to what you’re saying in this post. Great tips as well. Tx for sharing them!
I am very lucky in that when I travel for work it is usually to photograph the destination or at least some lovely hotels, so I still get to see some great places and enjoy them rather than being stuck in an office. One downside though is having to photograph inviting swimming pools, with sweat pouring into my eyes but not being able to jump in to cool off!! Eating alone in a restaurant isn’t always fun either but I’ve found if I take out my note pad, jot a few things down and take a few photos, I get great service, as they think I’m a restaurant critic. Although I’m usually based in the office, I do feel very lucky, when I get the chance to do this sort of work, best job in the world!
I agree if you can arrange a pre or post adventure to your trip, it would be nice to have personal time to really explore and add some discovery outside of the work obligations…love all the little business perks also.
You’re on a slippery slope, Anna… now that you’re a travel blogger, your travels will always be work-related. That said, I can think of worse jobs! 😉
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Haha, someday I might have to break my ‘no social media on holiday’ rule in that case… Not yet!!
Great post. I travel a lot for work also, and I agree with just about everything you wrote here. Except that I don’t have as many cons as you do.
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Hopefully that’s because travel is the job for you!!
Great post. I travel a lot for work also, and I agree with just about everything you wrote here. Except that I don’t have as many cons as you do.
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Hopefully that’s because travel is the job for you!!
I wish I was able to travel more for work. Dinners with clients/coworkers are a great way to get out- Yelp-ing new spots is my favorite!
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I have done so much in the last month though, that it has driven me mad! US twice in a month was only good for my airmiles balance!!
I wish I was able to travel more for work. Dinners with clients/coworkers are a great way to get out- Yelp-ing new spots is my favorite!
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I have done so much in the last month though, that it has driven me mad! US twice in a month was only good for my airmiles balance!!