Bleisure, or the art of combining a business trip with a city trip

Bleisure, or the art of combining a business trip with a city trip

17 April 2025

Once quite distinct, work and leisure are increasingly merging, giving rise to a new way of travelling: bleisure, a contraction of business and leisure. This trend is revolutionising not only travellers' habits, but also hotel recruitment and organisation practices.

Bleisure, a phenomenon set to explode in 2025

And the trend accelerated after COVID: with the development of telecommuting and hybrid working, the boundaries between work and leisure have blurred. According to TravelPerk, 81% of business travellers engage in some form of bleisure. This means that 61% of travellers include leisure activities in their itinerary, while 41% extend their stay to allow themselves some leisure time to complement their business trip. Destinations that combine business and pleasure are all the rage: New York, Lisbon, Barcelona, Paris, Brussels and Berlin top the list, but more and more secondary (and less expensive) cities are also benefiting. Bleisure is not just a buzzword: it is having a real impact on hotel supply.

What bleisure fans are looking for :

• An ultra-reliable Wi-Fi connection (non-negotiable),
• Quiet workspaces, even rooms that can be converted into offices,
• Personalised services (early check-in, late check-out, gym, wellness),
• An inspiring environment for working differently (cosy cafés, rooftops, etc.),
• And above all: local experiences to help you unwind,

In Brussels, for example, the Cardo Hotel is banking on its coworking spaces and rooftop spa to appeal to “bleisure lovers”. In Paris, the Mob Hotel has made a name for itself with its hybrid spaces, which are part hotel, part workplace and part lifestyle.

Why is bleisure also affecting recruitment ?

This evolution is not only impacting the offers and services provided by hôtels, but also the way in which recruitment is carried out in the sector. Recruiters, too, must evolve: they are no longer just selling a job, but a working environment aligned with the new expectations of talents and customers. In a “bleisure-friendly” hotel, people are at the heart of everything.

The most sought-after profiles are no longer just those who master the codes of traditional hospitality. They will be more interested in :

• flexible candidates, able to adapt to a multi-faceted customer base,
• a good knowledge of digital cultures (coworking, nomadism, flex-office, etc.),
• a curiosity about the customer experience in the broadest sense: tourism, lifestyle, local culture.

Bleisure as a lever for employer appeal ?

Offering jobs in hotels adapted to this new lifestyle can appeal to a generation looking for meaning, experience and mobility. The word ‘bleisure’ is now a search criterion on Booking.com and Airbnb for Work. Bleisure is not just a buzzword: it is having a real impact on the hotel offer.