Eurostar sees faster than expected business travel rebound

Business travellers are once again letting the train take the strain, with Eurostar reporting numbers heading back to pre-pandemic highs.

The St. Pancras operator’s newest data suggests business travel has returned to 70 per cent of 2019 levels, with 80 per cent of business passengers expecting to travel more or the same than in 2019, despite the trend towards flexible working.

Eurostar’s chief commercial officer, Francois Le Doze, said yesterday business travel has “returned faster than we expected”.

“We are confident that this trend will continue after the summer period, with September traditionally marking a busy month for corporate travel,” he continued.

Eurostar’s survey suggested business leaders continue to value face-to-face interaction with clients.

Eurostar will add a fourth daily service from London to Amsterdam as it pushes timetables back up to where they were before lockdowns.

The operator also said it had seen the rise of ‘bleisure,’ in which travelers blend both business and leisure breaks.