There is an old business adage that when economic clouds gather, travel budgets are usually the first casualty.
The finance department sharpens its pencils, expense approvals suddenly require the blessing of three managers and a small committee, and before long, someone confidently announces that “we can do it all on Teams”.
Yet Australian SMEs appear not to have received the memo.
Despite a year of rising costs, global uncertainty, and enough geopolitical drama to keep airline operations teams permanently caffeinated, small and medium-sized enterprises continued to travel throughout FY26. They simply became smarter, more selective and considerably more intentional about where, when and why they travelled.
Fresh data from Corporate Traveller, Flight Centre Travel Group’s specialist SME division, paints a fascinating picture of a sector that refused to stay home.
For many business owners, the value of sitting across the table from a customer, supplier or colleague still outweighs the cost of an airfare.
After all, nobody has ever built a lasting business relationship by mastering the mute button on a video call.
Tom Walley, Global Managing Director of Corporate Traveller, said the company’s FY26 results revealed that face-to-face interaction remains central to how Australian businesses operate.
“People want to meet in person. The value of sitting across the table from a client, or getting a whole team in the same room, still outweighs the cost and the effort to get there,” Walley said.
Most seasoned business travellers would nod knowingly.
Technology has transformed business, but some things remain stubbornly old-fashioned. Trust, relationships and the quiet conversations that happen before or after a meeting still matter. Sometimes, the real business is done not in the boardroom but over dinner, in an airport lounge or while sharing a taxi to the hotel.
Complexity Has Arrived, And It Isn’t Leaving
If there was one dominant theme throughout FY26, it was complexity.
The days when SME travel involved a straightforward return flight and a hotel booking are rapidly disappearing. Multi-stop itineraries, international routes and intricate travel arrangements, once largely confined to multinational corporations, have become standard operating procedure for many smaller businesses.
The challenge, however, is that while travel programs have become more sophisticated, staffing levels have not.
Corporate Traveller found that travel and expense management became a top priority for 76 per cent of SME customers during FY26.
That statistic tells its own story.
In many SMEs, the person arranging travel also handles payroll, accounts, office administration, and occasionally acts as an unofficial therapist when flights are cancelled and tempers fray.
“The complexity of travel has well and truly caught up with SMEs,” Walley said. “But the headcount to manage it hasn’t.”
Anyone who has recently attempted to navigate changing visa requirements, weather disruptions or a last-minute airline cancellation will understand the point immediately.
The modern SME traveller often resembles a circus performer juggling flights, border requirements, accommodation, expense claims and, somewhere in the middle of it all, an actual business meeting.
Little wonder businesses are increasingly seeking expert support, smarter technology and stronger travel policies.
Bleisure Is No Longer A Dirty Word
Another notable trend throughout FY26 was the continued rise of “bleisure” travel, the blending of business and leisure.
Once viewed with suspicion by finance teams, the concept has become increasingly mainstream.
Corporate Traveller reports that three-quarters of SMEs had employees combine business and leisure travel at some point during the year.
Frankly, many travellers would argue it is about time.
Anyone who has endured a gruelling schedule involving airports, presentations, client dinners and jet lag knows that adding a couple of extra days to decompress can make all the difference.
“It’s one thing to fly in, do your meetings, and fly straight back out,” Walley said.
“It’s another to give yourself a couple of extra days to unwind, explore a new city, and come home feeling like the trip was worth it for you, not just the business. We’re seeing more companies formalise that, and it’s good for everyone.”
Many employers are recognising that staff wellbeing and productivity go hand in hand.
Allowing employees to spend a weekend exploring Singapore, wandering through London’s museums, or simply recovering beside a hotel pool may not only improve morale but also retention.
And in today’s fiercely competitive labour market, that matters.
FY27: Smarter Spending Will Separate The Leaders
Looking ahead, FY27 is shaping up as the year of accountability.
Businesses will increasingly demand greater visibility over travel spending, stronger policy compliance and clearer evidence that every dollar invested in travel delivers measurable value.
Those organisations with robust travel policies, integrated technology and comprehensive reporting systems are expected to enjoy a significant advantage.
Disruption, meanwhile, has become a permanent feature of the travel landscape.
Geopolitical tensions, severe weather events, airline operational challenges and evolving visa regulations are no longer occasional inconveniences. They are part of doing business.
“We’ve always known this, but it keeps proving itself,” Walley said. “You can’t predict disruptions, but you absolutely can prepare for them.
“That means a rock-solid travel policy, 24/7 emergency support, and someone in your corner who can rebook a flight at midnight, navigate a visa crisis, or find you an alternative route home when the world is upside down.”
Anyone who has spent a night stranded in an unfamiliar airport watching departure boards repeatedly flash the dreaded word “Delayed” will appreciate the value of professional support.
Perhaps one of the more interesting developments for FY27 is the growing willingness of businesses to invest in premium travel experiences.
Corporate Traveller has reported steady growth in premium cabin bookings as organisations increasingly recognise a simple truth: exhausted employees rarely perform at their best.
“The same productivity thinking that’s driving businesses to invest in AI and better systems also applies to their people,” Walley said. “And when your traveller lands ready to go rather than running on empty, that matters.”
The shift is less about champagne and fully flat beds and more about productivity.
After all, there is little commercial advantage in flying an executive halfway around the world if they arrive looking as though they have just survived a particularly challenging reality television program.
Expense management is also under increasing scrutiny.
Old-fashioned reconciliation processes continue to consume valuable financial resources, while manual errors and out-of-policy spending quietly drain budgets.
Corporate Traveller estimates these outdated processes consume around 30 per cent of finance teams’ time, while spending leakage can reach between eight and 12 per cent.
It was precisely this challenge that prompted Corporate Traveller to introduce CT Pay into the Australian and New Zealand markets.
“The last thing a weary traveller wants to do after a long trip is hunt down receipts and lodge expense claims,” Walley said. “Getting that friction out of the process is just as important as getting the booking right in the first place.”
For Australian SMEs, the message from FY26 is refreshingly uncomplicated.
Travel is not disappearing.
It is evolving.
The spreadsheets still matter, finance departments would insist they always have, but relationships remain the true currency of business.
And despite years of predictions that technology would replace corporate travel altogether, the humble face-to-face meeting endures.
Some traditions, thankfully, refuse to board their final flight.
For more information, visit Corporate Traveller at https://www.corporatetraveller.com.au.
By: Jason Smith – © 2026.
Read Time: 5 minutes.
Author Bio:
Jason Smith didn’t learn travel from textbooks. He learned it in airports, taxis and hotel lobbies, watching the business unfold long before he played his own part. Half American, half Asian, he grew up around the quiet workings of tourism, where people come and go, and stories rarely stand still.
Bangkok came first, then formal study, then a career that carried him through Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam. Each place left something behind. In the end, Thailand felt like home, and I took on a senior role in hotel sales.
Then everything stopped. Borders shut, planes grounded, and Jason found himself back in America with time to reflect.
Now at Global Travel Media, he writes travel as it really is, not polished, not perfect, but human, and all the better for it.
