Tuesday 26 July 2016

Aribnb - for Business Travel


Sitting in the back seat of my car, today was a usual morning on my way to work. And, like usual I pulled out my favourite newspapers. Lo and behold! The front page of two of the newspapers had this striking full page ad. A close up of a man jumping into a pool with the kind of glee and excitement of a child. It said Airbnb!

 (picture courtesy Airbnb.com)
 It took only seconds for me to get transported to my last travel. Much as I wanted to recall, I just could not think of any one time when I probably experienced the happiness that the man in the ad seemed to be having. Had I been working so hard? Been so busy? The one thing that seemed so striking to me did not resonate with me at all. My job profile was about traveling. In fact, because I love travel, I took up this job. Yet traveling on work was not the same. Leave alone vacation, vacation was more about the kids and less about me.
 (picture courtesy - businesstravelnow.com)

In the dawn of the moment, I realized how much I was missing the true sense of “travel”. I rummaged through the ad to figure what it was about and I was in for a surprise. The ad spoke of having a time like this on business travel! Curiosity got the better of me and a few search clicks and articles down, I was both amazed and happy to know that airbnb was not just about homestays for vacationing travelers but about homestays for business travelers in a big way.
I thus, wanted to share what I learnt about Airbnb’s latest initiative:
  1. Feel at home, even while traveling for work
Work can get the better of you and the only thing that helps you take the stress out of work is getting back home. Airbnb's homestays offer just that. A place of work by day and a home by evening. It is almost like working from home.

(picture courtesy - nyt.com)


  1. Convenient Locations
The homestays are located at convenient locations in most of the cities. The listings for business travelers are more in the city than the suburbs thereby making it highly convenient to commute to client locations or to meetings in the office.

  1. Living with the locals
Business travel also means some “off” time at the end of the day. Living with the locals helps in connecting with local food, culture and places to visit - all served by an enthusiastic local host and his / her family.

  1. Business amenities

 (picture courtesy- Cinnamon Stays)

All homestays have amenities required for business - wifi, printer, white board and some even have meeting areas earmarked for discussions. Not to forget, a well stocked kitchen with a coffee maker.

  1. Affordable
The company spends a lot of money in booking comfortable hotels and it has a limited budget to work around. Booking a homestay is not just affordable but also helps the company to get a good deal in their budget. Especially true for smaller companies and startups.

  1. Extended stays
 (picture courtesy - travelweekly.co.uk)

Homestays are the perfect place to extend business travel and convert them to vacation. There is no hurry of checking out on the day promised. Homestays are generally flexible in extending stays either for work or to combine vacations. They are great options for long stays when one is on a project work in a different city for a month or more

  1. Offsites
A homestay becomes an ideal place for team offsites and other training programs. The team tends to come closer in an informal setting and can prove to be a great bonding exercise since everyone shares the same roof.

These are probably some of the reasons that I could think of. I am pretty sure when I experience business travel with Airbnb, there will be more to add. Airbnb is currently offering great discounts and travel credits to companies that are booking their business travel stays. At prices that they are quoting with the warmth of a homestay and a feeling of being informal at work, must say this is one great strategy that Airbnb has come out with. 

Below are some pictures of Gurgaon Airbnb listing - Cinnamon Stays - one of the best homestays for the business traveler.



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