As an HR professional, you might sometimes feel overwhelmed while manage corporate travel. Isn’t it right?
It’s not just about booking trips, but ensuring they’re smooth, cost-effective, policy-compliant, and comfortable for your team. And you’re at the heart of it all.
This guide will help simplify corporate travel management. First, you’ll understand why employees travel, then explore what’s fueling business travel growth in India, and finally, learn how to manage it effectively with the right policies, tools, and strategies.
Employee Travels: Why? Where? When? How?
And why it matters to you as HR.
Managing employee travel can be tricky, right? As an HR professional, you’re handling much more than just booking tickets.
Here’s what usually comes your way:
- Last-minute travel requests make planning tough.
- Staying within budget is hard when prices keep changing.
- It’s not easy to follow policies with different employee needs.
- Approval delays slow down the process.
- Balancing comfort and cost is always tricky.
It’s a lot to manage in corporate travel, but don’t worry — with the right tools and approach, you can handle it all more smoothly.
Let’s break it down for you.
5 Reasons Why Your Employees Travel
Business travel today isn’t just about flying to other cities. It includes many work-related movements like:
- Client meetings – Travelling for consultations, presentations, or negotiations
- Market research – Visiting different cities to understand trends and customer behaviour
- Conferences and events – Attending industry exhibitions, seminars, or trainings
- Internal meetings – Moving between branches or offices for team collaborations
- Daily commutes – Using company-provided cabs from home to office and back
Understanding these reasons helps you plan better and create smarter travel policies.
Travel Challenges You Must Know About: Flights and Cabs
Today’s travel landscape is changing fast — not just flights but even local cab travel is facing new challenges.
Here’s what you should be aware of to manage employee movement better:
1. How Are Corporate Flights and Cabs Booked Today?
Flights
According to Financial Express:
- 25% of companies book flights directly with airlines using corporate contracts.
- 75% use travel agents or online travel portals (OTAs).
Cabs
According to Mathrubhumi:
- Around 72% of corporate employees request taxi services for their travel needs.
- Most bookings are done through apps or trusted travel partners.
What this means for you:
Choose what works best — direct airline deals or travel partners for flights and cabs. Having reliable options saves you time and avoids stress.
2. Cancellations and Delays Are Common
Flights
According to Fortune India:
- 61% of Indian air travelers experienced flight cancellations in the last 12 months.
- 1 in 3 domestic flights were delayed from Jan–Nov 2024.
Cabs
According to LocalCircles survey:
- 84% of users faced cancellations by cab drivers.
- Most cancellations happened because drivers didn’t want to go to certain destinations or preferred cash payments.
Why it matters:
Flight and cab delays can ruin meeting schedules and trip plans. Always have a backup plan to avoid last-minute problems.
3. Top Reasons for Cancellations
Flights (According to DGCA, Jan 2025 Report):
- Miscellaneous issues – 7.4%
- Weather – 75.5%
- Technical faults – 10.3%
- Operational reasons – 7.0%
- Commercial reasons – 0.2%
Cabs (LocalCircles & News18 reports):
- Destination issues – 79%
- Cash payment preference – 47%
- Traffic or peak-hour rush causing drivers to cancel
What this tells you:
Many cancellations are out of your control. Plan flexible schedules and keep extra travel time in mind for both flights and cabs.
4. Which Airlines Cancel the Most Flights?
(According to DGCA, Jan 2025 Report):
| Airline | Cancellation Rate |
| Fly Big | 17.74% |
| Fly91 | 5.09% |
| Alliance Air | 4.35% |
| SpiceJet | 2.85% |
| IndiGo | 1.89% |
| Akasa Air | 0.84% |
| Air India Group | 0.45% |
Cabs
According to The Hindu:
- Bengaluru saw a drop from 1 lakh active cabs to about 30,000 by late 2024.
- Fewer cabs means longer wait times and more frequent cancellations.
What this means:
Choosing airlines and cab vendors with fewer cancellations helps ensure smoother, more reliable travel for your employees.
5. Why Should HR Care?
- You’re not just booking tickets or cabs — you’re ensuring smooth travel that supports business goals.
- Knowing industry data helps you pick better airlines and cab vendors.
- It reduces last-minute issues and improves employee satisfaction.
Why it matters:
Better travel planning = fewer disruptions + happier employees + stronger business results.
So, when you book that flight or arrange that cab, you’re not just arranging transport—you’re supporting business momentum and helping employees do their best work, wherever they are.
How Are Companies Managing Travel?
Every organization handles manage corporate travel differently.
Here are the common approaches:
- Reimbursements – Employees pay out of pocket and claim expenses later. It’s simple but can cause stress and delays.
- Online Booking Platforms – Convenient for employees, but often not aligned with travel policies.
- Vendor Management – Working with multiple providers for flights, hotels, and transport. Effective but time-consuming.
- Travel Management Companies (TMCs) – Offer an end-to-end solution, including bookings, policy enforcement, and reporting.
In this case, choosing the right method depends on your company size, travel frequency, and internal resources.
Therefore, for growing organizations, a TMC often provides the right balance of control, flexibility, and cost efficiency.
Creating a Strong Travel Policy
Your travel policy is your rulebook — and the clearer it is, the smoother things go.
While putting this guide together, we looked at how 10 companies — a mix of Indian and international ones — structure their travel policies.
And what we found was surprisingly consistent. In fact, no matter the size or industry, the best policies are simple, clear, and practical.
Here’s what they include:
- Scope – What counts as official business travel?
- Budgets – What’s the travel allowance based on grade, location, or purpose?
- Approval Flow – Who approves what, and how fast should it move?
- Preferred Vendors – Which airlines, hotels, or cabs should employees book with?
- Reimbursement Rules – What documents are needed, what’s reimbursable, and how long does it take?
- Safety Guidelines – What support is available during emergencies or delays?
- Bleisure Travel – Can employees extend their trip for personal time — and what’s the process?
A good travel policy doesn’t just control costs — it builds confidence. When your team knows the rules, they can plan better, book faster, and travel stress-free.
Enhancing Business Travel: How to Make Every Trip Smoother
When employees travel, their experience matters — not just to them, but to the company’s outcomes. A stressed traveler is unlikely to be a productive one.
Here are some ways to improve the travel experience:
- Use one platform for all bookings — avoid scattered apps or emails.
- Delay in approvals can mean higher prices or missed opportunities.
- Clear travel policy because confusion leads to mistakes.
- Whether it’s a delayed flight or a hotel issue, support should be just a call or click away.
Good travel experiences lead to better performance on the road. It’s that simple.
Need a Smarter, Stronger Travel Partner? Here’s How CoTrav Helps
CoTrav makes corporate travel simple and stress-free by handling all your bookings — flights, hotels, and cabs — through one platform. Our team manages everything for you, so you don’t have to chase approvals or juggle between apps. Moreover, with faster workflows and clear travel policies, travel stays smooth and compliant.
If there’s ever a delay or issue, our real-time support is just a call or click away. Additionally, you get access to better deals, corporate rates, and detailed reports to manage costs smartly. Best of all, as a result, your employees enjoy a hassle-free travel experience, helping them stay happy, focused, and productive.
With CoTrav, you’re not just managing corporate travel; rather, you’re building a smarter, smoother way to move your business forward.
Conclusion
Manage corporate travel in today’s business world is about more than logistics. It’s about creating a system that works — for the company, the employees, and you.
By understanding the why behind travel, then choosing the right approach, building a clear policy, focusing on employee experience, and using the right tools — you can ultimately take control of corporate travel with confidence.
This isn’t just about getting from Point A to Point B; instead, it’s about building a smarter, smoother, and more strategic way of working.
Ready to simplify your travel process? Explore CoTrav — and make every business trip a smooth one.
