Business travellers from the UK are opting to travel with more than one type of device to keep them connected with their work environment.
A recent survey of UK business travellers by Four Points by Sheraton hotel brand, revealed an increased use of tablet devices such as iPads on business trips, instead of laptops.
The hotel brand surveyed 1,000 business travellers in six markets, the UK, Germany, US, China, India and Brazil, and has reported that 67 percent of UK travellers prefer to carry tablets rather than laptops when taking a business trip.
The research also suggested that around 73 percent of British travellers believe that technology definitely makes their travelling on business much simpler and more convenient, as was the case with 60 percent of business travellers surveyed worldwide.
British travellers also use their devices more for web browsing and social networking than those in other countries. 89 percent of UK respondents said this was their primary use of mobile technology, compared to an overall average of 75 percent.
Almost 67 percent of business travellers use video chat or conferencing to converse with family and friends, while around 47 percent of the respondents only use a telephone to make a call, and 37 percent use text messaging.
Brian McGuinness, the senior vice president of Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, the parent company of Four Points by Sheraton, said, ‘The Four Points study contains compelling results, including evidence that trends such as staying in touch with family via video chat – preferred even over email, text and phone – are accelerating.
While hotel business centres remain important, the study affirms that the Four Points brand is meeting a continued need by offering complimentary Wi-Fi or in-room internet access, and by continuing to expand bandwidth throughout the portfolio.’
