What Is Bleisure? Why African Organisations Should Embrace Business Travel and Team Retreats

Not long before bleisure became the corporate buzzword it is today, I was already trying to master the art of it.

Whenever work took me somewhere new, my first thought wasn’t just about meetings and conference rooms. It was, Can I stay one more night? Maybe two?

I’d mentally rehearse the conversation with HR before I’d even booked my return flight. Sometimes I’d take annual leave just to make it happen. Other times, I’d accept defeat and head home, already planning to come back on my own.

Back then, extending a work trip felt like asking for a favour.

Today, it has a name.

Bleisure, blending business and leisure travel, has become one of the fastest-growing shifts in corporate travel. The rise of hybrid work, employee wellbeing initiatives and changing expectations around work-life integration have transformed what was once seen as a guilty pleasure into a legitimate workplace conversation.

According to the latest forecasts from the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), global business travel spending is expected to reach US$1.57 trillion in 2025, while employers are increasingly developing formal policies around blended travel. In a recent GBTA survey, 71% of travel buyers said bleisure improves employee satisfaction and wellbeing, while 68% cited better work-life balance as a key benefit.

The conversation is no longer about whether employees should mix work with leisure. It’s about whether organisations can afford not to.

To understand what this means from a people and culture perspective, I spoke with Happy Malinzi, founder of HRM365, a Tanzania-based People and Culture consultancy helping organisations rethink modern HR. Having spent more than a decade leading people operations across NGOs, healthcare, education and international organisations, she believes bleisure isn’t about giving employees an extra holiday.

It’s about building better workplaces.

“African organisations need to reframe bleisure as part of a broader employee wellbeing and retention strategy rather than a luxury benefit.”

Too often, employee wellbeing is reduced to an annual wellness week, branded T-shirts or motivational speakers. Yet the biggest contributors to burnout are often far less glamorous: relentless workloads, constant travel and little opportunity to recover.

Happy believes giving employees the flexibility to extend business trips is one practical way organisations can tackle burnout.

“Today’s workforce increasingly values flexibility, autonomy and opportunities to recharge. When employees are allowed to extend business travel for personal rest or exploration, they often return more energised, creative and engaged.”

For organisations competing for skilled talent, particularly young professionals, she sees bleisure as another way to strengthen the employee experience. For destinations, it presents an opportunity too. Hotels, lodges and tour operators can create experiences that encourage business travellers to stay a little longer rather than simply checking in and out.

Perhaps the bigger question is whether everyone is ready.

Across much of Africa, the work culture is still evolving. Traditional management styles often reward visibility over outcomes, and many employers remain cautious about flexible working arrangements.

Happy believes those cultural barriers, rather than employee demand, are the biggest challenge.

“The foundation for bleisure is trust. Organisations must move from measuring time spent to measuring outcomes delivered.”

She is equally realistic about the barriers: travel security, insurance, budget constraints and inconsistent travel policies.

Rather than treating bleisure as an informal arrangement negotiated between an employee and a sympathetic manager, she recommends clear organisational policies that distinguish business travel from personal travel.

“Organisations should have simple, structured and transparent policies. The organisation covers approved business expenses, employees cover their personal costs, insurance responsibilities are clearly communicated, and HR maintains visibility through itineraries and emergency contacts.”

“This model allows organisations to offer flexibility while maintaining appropriate governance and duty of care. It is a practical balance between employee autonomy and organisational responsibility.”

The conversation becomes even more interesting when it shifts from individuals to entire teams.

In recent years, retreats have become almost fashionable. Every other LinkedIn post seems to feature matching T-shirts, bonfires and team photos with captions about “alignment”.

But are retreats actually worth the investment?

Happy thinks they are, provided organisations stop treating them like company holidays.

“A successful retreat should be intentional, structured and linked to business and cultural outcomes.”

She believes every retreat should begin with a simple question.

“What is the goal? Is it about strengthening trust? Aligning strategies? Solving a business challenge? Celebrating achievements? Without that clarity, the retreat risks becoming little more than a change of scenery.”

Equally important is creating psychological safety.

Employees need space to speak honestly without worrying about judgment or hierarchy. Combined with strategic planning sessions, wellness activities, informal conversations and leadership participation, those moments often create stronger workplace relationships than months spent sharing the same office.

But the real test comes afterwards.

“Without visible follow-up, the retreat becomes a short-term morale boost. Sustained engagement comes from acting on what was discussed.”

It’s a reminder that culture isn’t built over two days at a lodge. It’s built on what happens when everyone returns to work on a Monday.

So, if organisations had to choose between funding employee bleisure or investing in company retreats, which delivers the better return?

“Group retreats generally deliver a higher organisational ROI,” Happy says without hesitation.

She further explains, “Retreats influence teams and bleisure influences individuals.”

One strengthens collaboration, communication and organisational culture. The other supports personal wellbeing, flexibility and retention.

Neither replaces the other.

Together, they create workplaces where people feel trusted, connected and valued.

For years, organisations asked employees to leave their personal lives at home and bring only their professional selves to work.

Today’s best employers understand that those two lives have never really been separate.

Sometimes it’s an extra weekend after a conference. Sometimes it’s two days away with colleagues. And sometimes it’s simply recognising that rested people tend to do better work.

As someone who spent years trying to convince HR to let me stay one extra night, I can’t help but smile at how far the conversation has come.

Maybe I was just a few years ahead of the policy.