Quick Takeaways:

  • Recent geopolitical tensions, including conflicts in Iran and the Middle East, are putting pressure on global business travel—a new report from the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) found that 76% of buyers of airfare, hotels, and other business travel-related products and services say their meeting and travel decisions are moderately or significantly impacted.
  • According to a GBTA survey of 500 corporate travel managers, travel suppliers, and intermediaries conducted in April, a total of 83% of travel suppliers said their clients were substantially affected by the conflicts, with half of those companies having adjusted routes and itineraries and suspended all travel to conflict-affected areas.
  • "What we are seeing is not a wholesale contraction of business travel, but a more cautious, finely managed approach," said Suzanne Neufang, CEO of GBTA, in a statement. "Companies are still traveling, meeting, and innovating—but they are doing so while adapting to rising costs, operational friction, and escalating geopolitical tensions."

Deep Dive:

After collapsing during the COVID-19 pandemic, corporate travel saw a strong recovery—Navan's Q4 2025 Business Travel Index found that business travel activity grew by 54% between early 2023 and 2025. Many younger Gen Z and millennial employees view such business trips as a personal perk, using them to stay in higher-end hotels, enjoy luxury dining, and flaunt their itineraries on social media.

But since the United States and Israel launched military actions against Iran, and Israel targeted Hezbollah forces in Lebanon, corporate organizations have been forced to reassess their travel plans.

Geopolitical instability and conflict were listed as the top travel-related risk by 79% of corporate travel managers, suppliers, and intermediaries—making it the foremost concern for the global business travel industry. The report noted that among European respondents, 92% listed geopolitics as a major risk; among North American respondents, that figure was 72%.

In this challenging environment, companies are weighing the business need for travel against their obligation to ensure employees stay safe and travel securely (i.e., "duty of care"). More than a third of respondents (36%) said they are reassessing their duty of care policies.

Optimism about the business travel industry also saw a sharp decline—from 59% in January to 41% in the April survey. Industry pessimism nearly tripled, rising from 9% in January to 24% in April. The report said this reflects "higher exposure to geopolitical instability, travel affordability pressures, and overall disruption."

Although many business travelers are still expected to travel this year, the proportion of organizations expecting year-over-year increases in travel volume declined slightly—from 35% in January to 30%, the report added.

This anxiety may also lead to fewer business meetings and events, with 38% of buyers saying they are less likely to hold cross-border meetings in the United States compared to six months ago.

Overall, 56% of respondents said their organizations had changed their meeting or event strategies in the past three months—with 26% converting some meetings to virtual formats, 24% canceling meetings or events or reducing employee attendance, and 22% moving meetings to different markets.

"These pressures are reshaping how, where, and why companies travel now," Neufang said. "This makes experienced business travel professionals more critical than ever—they keep travelers safe, navigate risks and disruptions, and manage budgets so that organizations and people can continue to build connections and do business."