Summary: Business travel spending will reach $1.71 trillion in 2026, but rising prices account for most of the growth as trip volume grows just 1.3%. Hickory’s booking data shows companies continue to invest in key high-cost markets like New York and London, while rapidly rising regional rates—such as in Latin America—can strain budgets. High-performing travel programs will budget by city, focus negotiated rates on top-volume destinations, and align approval processes directly with trip purpose.
Business travel spending will set a record this year. The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) forecasts global business travel spending of $1.71 trillion in 2026, up 7.2% from the previous year. Trips are expected to grow just 1.3%, to about 1.84 billion.
While organizations unsurprisingly find value in business travel, much of the industry growth in 2026 has been because of higher prices.
For anyone building a business travel budget for 2027, that means even the smallest details will matter more than ever.
Global business travel spending grew 8.4% in 2025 to $1.59 trillion, beating GBTA's own forecast of 6.6%.
Sentiment has also recovered from a rough spring. Optimism among travel professionals climbed to 63% in GBTA's September poll, up from 41% in April. More than half of corporate travel buyers (56%) now expect to spend more on travel this year, and 45% expect their organization to take more trips. That’s obviously good news.
Managed travel is holding its ground, too. Of the 4,700 business travelers GBTA surveyed, 65% say their company requires or encourages booking through a travel management company (TMC) or corporate booking tool.
Hickory's own booking data points in the same direction. On Hickory's platform in 2025, New York and London were the two most expensive cities for business travel. They were also the most booked in their categories: domestic and international. It’s encouraging to know that high prices didn't keep companies away from the places where the business is happening.
"Building relationships in person is still a major priority for most corporations," Chris Dane, president and managing partner of Hickory Global Partners, said when the top cities report was released.
And it’s still true as we approach 2027.
This optimism notwithstanding, firms are seeing pressure as it relates to corporate travels. The 2027 Global Business Travel Forecast from GBTA and ALTOUR, names energy prices and labor costs as the two biggest forces behind business travel pricing. Energy-market disruption earlier this year (a result of geopolitical tensions) drove up jet fuel and airline operating costs worldwide.
Fuel has since come off its peak (hitting $4.56 per gallon on May 21), although it hovered near this high, once again, in September. It’s important to remember that labor costs keep climbing through multi-year agreements, wage inflation, and workforce shortages.
Here's how the forecast breaks down by category:
While air is the most volatile line in the budget, hotel rates are rising more slowly, partly because a record global hotel construction pipeline is adding rooms.
Labor is the detail that matters most for 2027, though. Fuel prices can fall in a quarter, and wage agreements don't unwind that quickly. That's why the forecast tells travel managers to plan for "relief, not a reset": price growth is expected to slow next year, but prices are unlikely to return to 2025 levels.
Sources: GBTA 2026 Business Travel Index; GBTA/ALTOUR Global Business Travel Forecast
When spending grows 7.2% and trips increase only 1.3%, the average trip is going to cost more), which, of course, means your travel budget will buy you fewer trips (with a flat budget).
Rising travel costs now top the list of what shapes buyers' travel planning, named by 69% of buyers in GBTA's September poll and 72% in North America. Internal approvals and trip justification come in at 29% globally and 34% in North America.
When approvals tighten, the trips that get cut aren't always the ones with the lowest value, but those that are hardest to justify. As budgets tighten, organizations are simply becoming more intentional, stricter about where their people travel, and why.
On the agency side, the same pressure shows up as fee conversations. Customer pressure to reduce pricing, fees, or costs ranked third among challenges for suppliers and TMCs (42%), behind geopolitical uncertainty (60%) and rising operating costs (44%).
Rio de Janeiro makes the case. In Hickory's 2025 booking data, Rio had an average daily rate of $71 and was the second most popular international city by volume. It also sits in the region where GBTA and ALTOUR forecast the steepest hotel rate growth this year: 9.5% across Latin America, against 3.2% in North America. A low rate today doesn't mean a low rate next year, and in a high-volume market, small increases add up quickly.
Closer to home, Hickory's data showed rising average daily rates in Dallas and San Diego as their pull as "second cities" grows. Relying on a national average conceals these distinct regional trends. The GBTA/ALTOUR forecast makes the same recommendation: evaluate costs by region, market, and category. Don’t apply global assumptions or averages to local markets.
Which hotel markets deserve the most negotiating attention? That’s usually the ones where you're paying the most and booking the most frequently. In Hickory's data, New York and London topped both lists. Those cities also sell out during big conventions, so peak-period availability matters as much as the rate.
Then check the follow-through: in your top five cities, how many bookings land on contracted properties?
Tie cabin eligibility to flight length and to what the traveler has to do on arrival. A blanket downgrade is certainly tempting, especially with premium fares forecast to rise 9.5% this year and 42% of flyers in GBTA's traveler survey saying they typically fly premium. But a long-haul flight that lands someone in front of a client the next morning isn't a short domestic hop, and your corporate travel policy shouldn't treat it as one. A traveler who lands exhausted isn't at their best in meetings with clients.
If justification is slowing good trips down, change what your form asks for. North American buyers who are expecting more travel cite customer, client, and partner meetings (58%) and internal collaboration (57%) as top drivers, slightly ahead of business growth (53%). A purpose field and an expected outcome give approvers what they need to know, and over a year they can build a record of what travel actually produced, what worked and what didn’t.
The forecast gives you a baseline: airfare growth slowing to 1.5% overall in 2027 (1.1% economy, 2.2% premium) and global hotel rates rising 1.8%. You should build your budget from 2026 actuals, not what happened in 2025, because, unfortunately, prices aren't going back to those prices.
Then leave room for surprises. This year showed how fast conditions can turn; industry optimism fell from 59% in January to 41% in April before recovering. A contingency line set in January gives you room to absorb a shock without having to freeze travel in June.
Hickory Global Partners handles the part of the budget that's hardest to control on its own: supplier rates.
Hickory's hotel program gives members access to more than 50,000 hotels in more than 8,057 cities across 184 countries, with negotiated rates for amenities, room availability during peak periods, full loyalty benefits, and booking through all major global distribution systems (GDS), the systems agents book through. Global Stays, Hickory's accommodation joint venture with The Advantage Travel Partnership, extends that to 60,000+ hotels and 1 million serviced apartments across 158 countries.
For TMCs, Hickory Solutions365, our 24/7/365 travel fulfillment center, keeps travelers supported after hours without adding headcount. Member agencies that meet the program's criteria can also earn additional revenue from hotel room night production through Hickory's Revenue Share Program.
If you're building your 2027 budget now, start with your 10 busiest hotel markets. Send them to us, and we'll show you what Hickory's program covers in each city.
Become a Hickory member or contact us today.