A large majority (70%) of Gen Z travelers (those aged 18 to 28) said they look forward to traveling for work, according to a survey conducted by Ipsos U.K. for American Express Global Business Travel. However, 52% of that same group said business travel was fairly or very stressful, compared with 38% of Millennials (aged 29 to 44) and 34% of Gen X travelers (aged 45 to 58).

“Gen Z’s ambivalence could reflect their typically less senior roles, lower pay and shorter engagement with their employers,” the report said. “We could expect views to improve over time as they age. But perhaps there is a unique cohort difference; their reticence may need to be managed over time, too.”

The research included responses from 1,000 business travelers from the US and 817 from the UK. Among the other findings:

• Gen Z travelers were more likely to say they experienced disruption during their trips, with 45% citing a moderate to large amount of disruption, compared with 36%of Millennial respondents and 32% of Gen X respondents.
• The younger generation is slightly less positive on the benefits of business travel. While 53% of Gen Z respondents said face-to-face time with colleagues had “no substitute,” that was less than the 59% of Millennials and 63% of Gen Xers who had that opinion.
• The survey showed that most travelers across generations still want to speak with someone who can help in times of disruption, though less so with Gen Z travelers. About two-thirds of Gen Z travelers in the US said they like having live assistance, compared with 74% of U.S. Millennials and 78% of US Gen Xers. In the U.K., 61% of Gen Z respondents, 76% of Millennial respondents and 69% of Gen X respondents said the same.
• In terms of confidence in generative AI in managing business travel, Gen Z was more aligned with Gen X in the survey, while Millennials tended to be more comfortable with the technology. For example, about two-thirds of Millennials said they would be comfortable with AI completing expense reports and booking air travel and lodging. For Gen Z, 53% said they were comfortable with AI completing expense reports and 60% were comfortable with AI booking air travel and hotels. Among Gen X respondents, 57% were comfortable with AI completing expense reports, 61% were comfortable with the technology booking hotels and 55% were comfortable with it booking air travel.
• Millennials, particularly those in the US, also were the most likely to pursue blended travel, according to the survey. A little more than two-thirds (68%) of US Millennial respondents said they had added leisure travel to a planned work trip, compared with 65% of Gen X and 55% of Gen Z respondents. There was less disparity among the generations in the UK, with 61% of Gen Z travelers, 62% of Millennial travelers and 56% of Gen X travelers saying they had added leisure travel to a work trip.

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