Indholdsfortegnelse for December 2024 / January 2025 i Business Traveller

I’M SORRY, but how is 2024 over already? At this rate, I’ll be retiring in half an hour. I hope it’s been a good year for everyone. It’s certainly been a good year for travel – record-breaking, in fact, with the industry officially beating pre-pandemic levels. According to WTTC, travel was on track to contribute a whopping US$11.1 trillion to the global economy this year (up from the 2019 peak of US$10.3 trillion), while IATA declared the airline industry has fully recovered and surpassed 2019 levels. Exciting new cabins took to the skies – turn to page 75 for our review of the new Emirates Boeing 777 business cabin – and there’s been some major developments in tech: our feature on page 56 looks at how Starlink is set to…

AVIATION First class updates HOTELS Three hot new openings TRAVEL Manchester’s private terminal BUSINESS Neobanks and Budget analysis HOME OF BUSINESS AT ALTITUDE, Davos hosts the influential annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) every January, which assembles global leaders, delegates from major international organisations and the occasional celebrity to discuss everything from geopolitics to artificial intelligence and sustainability (cue headlines reporting the hypocrisy of those jetting in by private planes). The big news in 2025 is WEF’s increase in the admission price for second-tier attendees – ie the entourage of official participants – from CHF100 (£87) to CHF1,000 (£887). But it’s not all work, there’s plenty of winter treats for visitors to enjoy. Hit the ski slopes at Jakobshorn and Parsenn, ring in New Year’s Day with the…

UPDATE The saga of the high-speed rail line bisecting England continues, with spiralling costs and further U-turn decisions. After the bombshell news of the Birmingham to Manchester leg being scrapped in 2023, an ‘HS2 light’ project is now being discussed to add capacity to the north. In October, Transport Secretary Louise Haigh said ministers would be stepping in to manage the budget – which some have warned could rise to £66 billion. (In November, it emerged £100 million has been spent on a “shed” to protect bats on a 1km stretch of track.) The Chancellor meanwhile has confirmed the southern terminus won’t be Old Oak Common, but will move to Euston in central London. A 4.5-mile tunnel will run the last part of the way, at a cost of around…

PAUL SMITH’S TRADEMARK stripes have found a new sustainable home, partnering with Brighton-based design studio gomi, which focuses on circular lifespans and reducing the need for raw materials. Waste plastic from Paul Smith’s supply chain has been transformed into Bluetooth speakers (£330) and power banks (£95). The stripes take on a unique psychedelic, molten-style pattern, thanks to the plastic moulding process. Charge two devices simultaneously with the portable charger, and relax with water-resistant speakers by the pool.…

IN ANGELA MERKEL’S new memoir, co-written with her long-time political advisor Beate Baumann, she looks back on her 31-year political career and personal life. Stories meander through her childhood, youth, studies in the German Democratic Republic, and the fall of the Berlin Wall. Also included are retellings of conversations with some of the world’s most powerful people, discussions of international turning points and an inside look into how global decisions were made.…

NAVIGATING the world of points can be confusing. In the US, credit cards and reward programmes mean people can collect miles much faster than those living in the UK. Here, every point really does count. With BA economy reward flights starting from circa 5,000 points, it can feel like forever before you’ve collected enough – knowing the shortcuts is vital. This month, we’re putting the weekly shop under the spotlight to showcase how you can quickly rack up extra points, without any extra effort. The weekly shop The average couple spends £106.89 on their weekly groceries* at supermarkets. Here’s how you can make that shop work for you. Which frequent flyer programme? For oneworld, British Airways Avios can be collected through Sainsbury’s by connecting your Nectar and Avios accounts. For…

OPINION We all know the knock-on effects of a lengthy flight delay. The missed onward connection, the abandoned business meeting, or simply lost time with the family after an arduous business trip. But what about the effects on passengers’ alcohol consumption and the resulting outbreaks of violence onboard? According to Ryanair CEO, Michael O’Leary, “The biggest problem we have is when you have a day of bad delays. People are waiting around at airports and they keep lorrying alcohol into themselves.” Of course, many of us enjoy a drink or two at airports without incident, but cases of unruly passenger behaviour are on the rise. IATA’s latest analysis reveals there was one incident for every 480 flights in 2023, versus one for every 568 flights in 2022 and one per…

Black spots Even with new tech, the long journey taken by your data can cause dropouts, slow speeds and high latency. Certain countries also ban internet within their airspace or impose restrictions on data handling. International airlines often deactivate the service over India for this reason. Remember too that aircraft usually run just one external internet connection. Your data shares that invisible line with everybody else, creating bottlenecks to slower speeds. Protect your data Using public wifi brings about security concerns. Inflight networks are usually unencrypted, making data easy for others to intercept. Using a VPN can help mitigate these risks by encrypting your traffic between your device and a server on the ground. That’s the case even if the hotspot itself isn’t secured. Frankly, I never connect to inflight…

I THINK THE MOST important thing about the Business Traveller awards is its history. These awards have been going for four decades. Not many publishing companies were doing award events back then. These days, everyone seems to be doing them – people buy a ticket to attend (or to win!), it’s heavily sponsored, and the publishing house makes huge amounts of money from it. That’s not the way we do things. These awards were genuinely started to give our readers the chance to recognise companies who provide a great service. And for us, as the go-between the reader and the airline or hotel, a chance to celebrate the industry’s achievements. That’s why our awards are the way they are – independently verified and by invitation only. We’ve had some amazing…

CHRIS CHAMBERLIN Chris is an editor for Points Hacks in Australia and an award-winning journalist with a penchant for business travel (he’s flown over two million kilometres to almost 50 countries). This issue, he reveals why free inflight wifi for all could soon become the reality. Turn to page 56. DAVID PHELAN David has written about travel and technology for almost three decades, for publications including Time Out, The Independent, Forbes.com and Monocle. He is also an actor, most recently appearing in Accolade at the Theatre Royal Windsor. On page 20, he rounds up global business news. NATHALIE LEES Nathalie is a London-based freelance illustrator, who has been published in The Economist, TIME, Le Monde, Die Zeit and The New York Times. Her work aims to distil complex themes and…

LUFTHANSA HAS launched its long-awaited Allegris first class suites, initially operating on flights to Bengaluru and Mumbai. The carrier had intended to introduce the product alongside its new business, premium economy and economy seating, which launched in May, but delays led to the first Allegris-fitted A350 aircraft entering service without a first class cabin. The first class cabin features just two individual suites and a “globally unique” Suite Plus, with two seats that convert into a double bed, plus features including near-ceiling-high walls and a lockable sliding door. To begin with, the suites are being offered by invitation-only to its “most loyal guests”, with targeted upgrades and then bookings being made available as more aircraft with Allegris First Class enter service. Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines has announced plans for an all-new…

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MICRO-EXPERIENCES: Using data to drive curated and personalised surprise-and-delight moments. EVENT EXPERIENCES: Preferential access, special events and unique perspectives. SERVICE EXPERIENCES: Recognising the individual by name, remembering their interests and preferences – essentially making loyalty truly customer-centric. GAMIFIED EXPERIENCES: Creating high-frequency engagement challenges with immediate earn/ response cycles. DIGITAL EXPERIENCES: Immersive, personalised virtual experiences using advanced VR and AR technology and interfaces. SOCIAL IMOACT EXPERIENCES: Brands should have meaning and impact beyond their core product. Loyalty is a useful place to express this, as more programmes drive engagement with benefits and rewards in the social and sustainability spaces. SOURCES: *Global Markets Insights, Sports Tourism Market Forecast 2024 – 2032; **Custom Market Insights, Global Music Tourism Market 2024–2033 “The new loyalty paradigm of immediacy, utility and relevance means…

UK ECONOMY KEY AMONG the announcements in the UK Budget, published in October, was a rise in the level of National Insurance contributions from employers. This rose from 13.8% to 15%, while the threshold has dropped to apply to earnings above £5,000 a year (previously this was £9,100). At the same time, the national minimum wage was raised from £11.44 to £12.21 an hour. Income tax rates were not increased, but a sting in the tail is that the income thresholds for each tax rate have been frozen, so if your wages go above the old threshold, you’ll be paying a higher rate of tax. However, from 2028, thresholds will rise in line with prices. Travel costs are also affected. Air passenger duty (APD) will increase from 1 April, 2025…

CHINATOWN In 1822, as part of his Raffles Town Plan, British coloniser Stamford Raffles split Singapore into several districts and allocated each to a different ethnicity. A large area to the west of Singapore River was marked for Chinese migrants. Today, Chinatown’s Temple Street is lined with gift shops selling porcelain and jaunty chopstick rests in various designs – from varnished ducks to silvery dragons. Overhead are strings of red lanterns and alluring neon signs that mark restaurants. Parallel running Pagoda Street is a vibrant spot too, with powder-coloured shophouses and, at the far junction, Sri Mariamman Temple. It’s the oldest Hindu temple in Singapore, and a site to see for its gopuram – the entrance tower of a temple, and in this case, an elaborate five-tier pyramid lined with…

Negroni know-how The London outpost of Los Angeles joint LAVO has introduced a negroni trolley to give guests a taste of the action. Located at The BoTree hotel in Marylebone, the Italian restaurant handcrafts the cocktails tableside, combining a Campari core with your choice of base (gin, vodka, bourbon, rum, tequila, whisky and mezcal), essence (Antica Formula, Vermouth Del Professore Rosso, or 1757 Vermouth di Torino GI Rosso) and finally a finish of grapefruit, coffee, chocolate or rhubarb. To top it off, customers will be gifted a Negroni pin to mark the moment. Scream for sundaes Chef Tom Sellers keeps things playful with a pair of Knickerbocker glory trolleys at Dovetale, the restaurant at 1 Hotel Mayfair. Prepare for nostalgia with this 1930s dessert, and spot guests getting giddy with…

THE ZEM WELLNESS CLINIC ALTEA, opening in January in the Spanish city of Alicante, aims to boost wellbeing through its programmes based on high-end medical principles. Its setting is relaxing and luxurious, offering sea views, fruit and vegetables sourced from a local organic farm, an extensive spa, pools and ample surrounding nature. When it comes to treatments, consider the ‘Pro-Ageing’ programme which includes medical tests, consultations, treatments and holistic therapies to “embrace the passage of time”. You can also add on ‘boosts’ – mini treatments targeting a range of health concerns, from sexual wellbeing to sleep and hair loss. The region itself is becoming a destination for hotel healing, with the clinic’s CEO Franck De Weerdt hailing from the renowned SHA Wellness just 25 minutes away.…

DOMESTIC Somerset House at 25, London Somerset House has a jam-packed year of exhibitions and events to mark its 25th anniversary in 2025. Choreographer Wayne McGregor’s exhibition Infinite Bodies explores the relationships between performance and the body, while SOIL: The World at Our Feet (from 23 January) celebrates soil’s role in human civilisation and its potential to heal the planet. SHORT-HAUL Brera Modern, Milan from 8 December 2024 The Brera Modern is finally opening in December, fifty years after plans for the museum were first unveiled. Located down the road from the existing Pinacoteca di Brera, which houses works by the likes of Canova and Caravaggio, the new museum will showcase the gallery’s modern oeuvres. LONG-HAUL Yayoi Kusama, Melbourne 15 December 2024 – 21 April 2025 The National Gallery of Victoria’s…

Q&A Tell us about teamLab. teamLab is an international art collective founded in 2001. It’s made up of specialists with different skillsets, including painters, CG animators, software and hardware engineers, mathematicians and architects. Founder Toshiyuki Inoko’s background is in physics and robotics, while mine is in literature and philosophy. I joined in 2010 and previously worked as editor-inchief for a video game magazine in Stockholm. I don’t have a title as such at teamLab. We’re a collective so we don’t care about titles or independent names – we’re a team! What’s teamLab’s mission? At teamLab, we try to form relationships between humans and the world through artworks. It’s comparable to travel. When people travel, they experience the world. For instance, you might be able to see Mount Fuji in guidebooks,…

CATEGORY BT AWARDS BEST AIRLINE 1. Singapore Airlines 2. Qatar Airways 3. British Airways 4. Emirates 5. Virgin Atlantic BEST SHORT-HAUL CARRIER 1. British Airways 2. Aegean 3. Lufthansa 4. KLM/Turkish Airlines BEST LONG-HAUL AIRLINE 1. Qatar Airways 2. Singapore Airlines 3. Emirates 4. Japan Airlines BEST FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAMME 1. British Airways Executive Club 2. Lufthansa Miles & More 3. Air France/KLM Flying Blue 4. Emirates Skywards BEST FIRST CLASS 1. Singapore Airlines 2. Emirates 3. British Airways 4. Air France BEST BUSINESS CLASS 1. Qatar Airways 2. Singapore Airlines 3. Emirates 4. Cathay Pacific 5. Virgin Atlantic BEST PREMIUM ECONOMY CLASS 1. Virgin Atlantic 2. Emirates 3. British Airways 4. Singapore Airlines BEST ECONOMY CLASS 1. Singapore Airlines 2. Emirates 3. Qatar Airways 4. Virgin Atlantic BEST NORTH AMERICAN AIRLINE 1. Delta Air Lines 2. United Airlines 3. American Airlines 4. JetBlue BEST CABIN STAFF 1. Singapore Airlines 2. Virgin Atlantic 3. Qatar Airways 4. All Nippon Airways BEST AIRLINE ALLIANCE…

CATEGORY BEST LUGGAGE BRAND 1. Rimowa 2. Tumi 3. Samsonite 4. Briggs & Riley BEST CREDIT/PAYMENT CARD FOR TRAVEL 1. BA American Express Premium Plus 2. The Platinum Card by American Express 3. Revolut 4. Halifax Clarity BEST TRAVEL APP 1. Skyscanner 2. British Airways 3. Expedia 4. TripIt BEST RIVER OR SPECIALIST CRUISE LINE 1. Hurtigruten 2. Viking Cruises 3. Emerald Cruises 4. Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours BEST OCEAN CRUISE LINE 1. Cunard 2. Silversea 3. Royal Caribbean International  4. Celebrity Cruises…

LETTERS & FORUM PASSPORT PROBLEMS As a cabin crew member with a major airline flying between Europe and the US, I’ve noticed a lot of travellers have passport issues. Make sure your passport has at least six months validity before booking travel. Don’t count on the gate or ticket agent of the airline to verify it for you. I’ve also found passports in airline and airport bathrooms, while seats onboard are notorious for eating everything from ear buds to passports. A passenger once placed his passport on the seat while putting his bags away during boarding. Needless to say, a slight move and jolt, voilà – your passport is gone. There are pickpockets and thieves about everywhere, even on aeroplanes. On a flight to China, a young woman put her…

The good If you’re happy to skip the turkey sandwiches, travelling on Boxing Day and New Year’s Eve could represent flight savings of 24% and 28%, respectively. Alternatively, flights to Europe are 22% cheaper on 16 December, while 29 December is looking quiet on the domestic flight front. The bad Avoid travel on 20 December and 4 January, as these are predicted to be the busiest travel days, with flights 24% and 30% more expensive than other dates during the period. The unexpected Average flight prices during this year’s holiday period were estimated to be 3% cheaper than last year.…

HOT ON THE HEELS of its 135th anniversary, The Savoy opened a new dining destination at the end of November, complete with dazzling interiors by London-based design studio BradyWilliams. The all-day Gallery takes the space of the former Thames Foyer, set beneath the existing stainedglass cupola ceiling but with new design details including swathes of marble, fluted glass, gold-embossed mirrors, plus leather and patterned upholstery in shades of soft pink, ochre and tan. Menus pay homage to Auguste Escoffier, the head chef at The Savoy when it first opened, and include traditional recipes with a modern twist. Examples include Cornish lobster rolls with Marie Rose, a Savoy-style croque monsieur with truffle, plus the hotel’s famous Arnold Bennett omelette – first created in 1929. For dessert, guests can expect ice cream…

BIOGRAPHY Dillip Rajakarier joined Minor Hotels in 2007 as chief finance and investment officer. At the time, the group had a portfolio of 12 hotels concentrated in Southeast Asia. Since taking the reins as CEO in 2011, he has driven the company’s rapid global expansion, which today includes more than 550 properties in 60 countries. Q&A 'You need a degree to master the points game! We've made it simple. Instead of points, we offer Discovery Dollars. It's very transparent.' Tamsin Cocks chats to the CEO of Minor Hotels about expansion plans, the rise of slow travel, IV drip bars and launching a hotel school Minor Hotels has been busy recently with a flurry of recent openings. Can you tell us about some of the latest developments? In 2024 we opened…

SPECIFIC DETAILS have yet to be confirmed, but it will mean Nectar members will be able to earn points if they link their Marriott Bonvoy account and book at participating properties. Members will also be able to convert points in either direction between their Nectar and Marriott Bonvoy accounts. When Nectar launched a similar partnership with the British Airways Executive Club in 2021, members were able to convert 250 Avios into 400 Nectar points, or vice versa. This benefit has subsequently been eroded, as it now requires 400 Avios to convert into 400 Nectar points, while the conversion in the opposite direction is still 400 Nectar points for 250 Avios. The question is how will Nectar and Marriott Bonvoy position their points conversion benefit? It seems unlikely that the conversion…

2024 BUSINESS TRAVELLER AWARDS EACH YEAR we invite our roving readers to cast their votes in the Business Traveller awards to determine who has delivered the best travel experiences. Counted and verified by an independent research company, the results offer a true reflection of customer opinion, making them an important industry benchmark for almost 40 years (turn to page 82 for highlights over the years!). On 7 November, the results were announced at The Steel Yard in the City of London. More than 200 industry guests attended, enjoying a speech from TV presenter Ben Thompson, delicious mains of coq au vin or squash tarte tatin, a rousing performance from the No Limit Street Band, plus plenty of networking over bubbles. Highlights included Singapore Airlines walking away with five top awards,…

TECH & LIFESTYLE BEAUTY & FASHION FOOD & DRINK HOME COMFORTS…

What's it like? Blending old-world charm with modern design, the property is housed within four historic buildings, with original details preserved throughout. Owned by three-time Olympic gold medallist Samppa Lajunen, it is protected by the Finnish Heritage Agency, Green Key certified and recognised by Sustainable Travel Finland. It is also part of Preferred Hotels & Resorts’ Legend Collection and Historic Hotels Worldwide. At first glance, Hotel Maria is a sophisticated city hotel, but when further explored, a wellness destination unfolds. Located in Kruununhaka, Helsinki’s upmarket residential district, it’s a ten-minute stroll from the city centre, Presidential Palace, Senate Square and must-visit Oodi library. Rooms With 117 rooms, including 38 suites, each unique thanks to original features, it’s worth doing your homework before booking. Some suites offer saunas, steam rooms, terraces…

RESTAURANT Review What's it like? Located in the heart of Mayfair, Kanishka offers a refined and memorable dining experience, with acclaimed chef Atul Kochhar blending Indian culinary traditions with a modern British twist. As you step inside, the restaurant sets a tone of luxury and sophistication, with twinkling mirrored walls and modern portraits. The ambiance is equally inviting and intimate, perfect for both special occasions and relaxed evenings out. Food and drink The experience began with Kanishka’s signature cocktail – the fruity and subtly spiced Tandoori pineapple rum punch -preparing my tastebuds for the seven-course tasting menu. Traditionally you might pair Indian food with a chilled Riesling or fresh Chardonnay, but I was encouraged to try mango wine from the Rhythm Winery in India. I was dubious at first, but…