The top three US cities for business travelers in 2024 were Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth and Chicago, according to BCD Travel’s Cities & Trends U.S., which ranks the top cities, states, routes and booking habits of the year from BCD clients’ US business travelers. Rounding out the Top 10 were New York, Denver, Washington DC, Seattle-Tacoma, Charlotte and Los Angeles.
The findings are based on BCD flight and car rental data from 2024 that show business hot spots and reveal growing markets and traveler behavior insights.
Seven out of the top 10 business countries were European. They were in order: UK, Germany, Netherlands, France, Japan, Ireland, Switzerland, Spain, Brazil and United Arab Emirates. The top intercontinental cities for business travel were London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Paris, Munich, Tokyo, Dublin, Zurich, Seoul and São Paulo.
New York was the most popular departure and arrival city for domestic flights, with the top two routes being Chicago to New York and vice versa. Other frequent New York routes included travel to and from Los Angeles, Boston and Dallas-Fort Worth.
New York also remained the top departure city for intercontinental routes, followed by Chicago and Los Angeles. Most business travelers flew into London or Frankfurt, followed by Paris or Amsterdam. These cities are home to the busiest international airports in Europe based on seat volume.
Jorge Cruz, executive vice president of global sales and marketing, said business travel not only serves as an indicator of economic health but also reflects a region’s growth and stability. He said, “The growth in business travel exceeded expectations in 2024, setting the stage for more momentum in 2025.”
According to BCD’s 2024 travel policy survey, most travel policies consider flight duration when defining rules around booking business class. On average, business class is allowed on flights over seven hours long. This is evident in the booking data from US business travelers flying internationally, with most booking business class (48%) and economy class (39%). Premium economy (12%) and first class (less than 1%) were booked the least. This shows a slight decrease in business class compared with the previous year’s 53% and a slight increase from economy’s 36%.
It’s a very different story for domestic flights. Almost all business travelers flew economy (95%) with only 4% flying business class. Less than 1% of bookings were first and premium economy class. This data followed a very similar trend from the previous year, with less than 1% variance.
The majority of domestic flights were direct (81%), while slightly less than half (47%) were direct for intercontinental flights.
“We’re seeing small changes in cabin class compared to data from 2023, but the number of travelers booking direct flights has remained very similar,” said Cruz. Flying direct is often a better choice for traveler satisfaction, he said, since it removes the challenges and risks that come along with connecting flights. Flying direct, said Cruz, also produces less carbon emissions, making it a win-win for travelers and their company’s carbon footprint.
Car rental bookings followed 43% of all air bookings made by US business travelers, marking a 1% decrease from the previous year, according to the report. The top cities for car rentals mirror the top cities for business travel: Dallas-Fort Worth, Chicago and Atlanta. While there was a slight decline in car bookings in conjunction with a flight, major business hubs continue to drive the demand for car rentals.
