Industry Insights
Triniti Fisher
August 14, 2025
Global business travel spend is projected to surpass $1.5 trillion in 2025, officially exceeding pre-pandemic levels for the first time. But the recovery hasn't been a simple return to the old ways — the way companies travel has fundamentally changed, and the data tells an interesting story.
While total spend has recovered, the composition looks different. Trip frequency is still about 15% below 2019 levels, but average trip spend has increased by over 20%. Companies are traveling less frequently but investing more in each trip, reflecting a greater emphasis on trip purpose and ROI.
Asia-Pacific has seen the strongest recovery in 2025, driven by the full reopening of Chinese outbound travel. North America and Europe have stabilized, while emerging markets in Africa and the Middle East are showing the fastest growth rates.
Several factors are pushing up per-trip costs: higher airfares due to capacity constraints, elevated hotel rates in key business markets, increased demand for premium cabin travel, and rising ground transportation costs. Companies that don't actively manage these cost drivers risk budget overruns.
The rebound presents an opportunity to reassess your travel program. Are your policies optimized for the new travel patterns? Are your supplier agreements reflecting current volumes? ITS's data analytics suite helps travel managers benchmark their programs and identify optimization opportunities.
March 12, 2026
How AI is reshaping corporate travel in 2026
May 31, 2024
American Airlines and the Vasu Raja saga... what's next for NDC?
August 2, 2023
When paid seat upgrades are more than just paid seats