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Work travel turning into a family affair

Taking the spouse and kids is becoming the norm on business trips.

On a recent business trip to San Diego, Kurt Barrett took his family to SeaWorld.

Between the banquet dinners and panel discussions on agricultural policy, he also took his 5-month-old daughter swimming for the first time in the hotel pool. Another day, they strolled through the humid botanical gardens in Balboa Park.

"It was like being at home. I got done with work, then enjoyed spending time with my wife and child," said Barrett, a 30-year-old general manager for a rice distributor in Williams, Calif.

"Work is very important, but there has to be a balance," Barrett said.

Traveling for work once meant sacrificing family time at home. But as the American workplace becomes more flexible about letting employees juggle their work duties with family life, people like Barrett are finding it easier to bring their spouse and kids wherever their jobs may take them.

According to the National Business Travel Association, 62 percent of U.S. business travelers said they add a leisure component to at least one business trip per year. Among those travelers, two-thirds say they bring a family member or friend with them.

Pushing the trend is the growing number of single parents, women in executive ranks, two-income families and those simply looking to save a buck by turning company-paid trips into working vacations. People are having kids later in life, too, meaning they're more likely to be comfortable enough in their careers to blend work and family.

That blurring between office and family life represents a sea change from a generation or two ago, when children were told that bothering their parents with a phone call at work could get mom or dad in trouble.

In fact, many business conventions today court attendees by trumpeting babysitting services and family outings. The trend became more pronounced after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, as the industry struggled to recover by offering more incentives to get people on the road again.

Hotels are stepping up family friendly services too, at least in part to cater to the changing convention business - a big moneymaker for the industry.

When the Barretts arrived at the Loews Hotel in San Diego, they found waiting in their suite a crib, a baby swing and a CD full of lullabies for their infant daughter. Those extras were made available through the hotel's partnership with Fisher Price Inc., launched this year.

The hotel, which generates about half its sales through conventions, also contracts with a babysitting agency and serves baby food at its restaurants. At check-in, teens get backpacks filled with a water bottle and brochures.

At Walt Disney Parks and Resorts in Orlando, kids can enjoy a mock banquet with Disney characters while their parents attend the grown-up version in an adjoining hall.

The company, which began dramatically expanding its convention business in the '90s, now has six convention hotels at Disney World. That growth is being fueled by employees who increasingly see business trips as "opportunities to bring the family along," said George Aguel, senior vice president for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.

"Everyone feels time-starved, and we're only continuing to see that growing," Aguel said.

[Last modified April 9, 2007, 22:56:38]