“Traveling is like flirting with life. It’s like saying, ‘I would stay and love you, but I have to go; this is my station.”   — Lisa St. Aubin de Teran”

It seems we’re not just flirting with life when we travel. The lure of a certain departure ensures The Philandering Business Globe Trotter is alive and thriving! It’s estimated that 67% of women and 51% of men have engaged in extra marital mischief whilst on a business trip. Interestingly, the same people often consider themselves to be happily married. So, why is corporate travel such a hotbed of hanky-panky?

  1. There’s less chance of being caught whilst we’re away from friends, family and usual places. We convince ourselves of the story that ‘it really won’t hurt, nobody will know’.
  2. Absence might make the heart grow fonder but it also promotes a sense that infidelity doesn’t count.   A chance encounter outside of our usual routine, away from our regular existence, can even feel ‘other worldly’. Some people are even able to separate their lives, compartmentalizing so well they actually delete the reality of their ‘other’ existence.
  3. Travel is often cited as a reason to drink more. Alcohol is a dis-inhibitor.   Mix with boredom, loneliness and stir-well with spare time, for a heady, aphrodisiac cocktail.
  4. Guilt subsides, lust thrives. With each ‘one for the road’ G&T, or shared bottle of vino, our inhibitions lessen.   Flirting becomes fabulous and we feel freed of our usual down-to-earth responsibilities of a family, bills, commitments and other libido-limiting factors.
  5. Soul-less hotels and a lack of familiar human connection heighten our sense of loneliness.   We actively seek out connection, often at any price.
  6. Concierge offers an array of salacious comfort for the lonely traveller. Whether staying in for a massage or jumping into a cab to the local strip club.   At a moments whim, distractions and pleasures are within easy reach. No time for thought or remorse, our naughty side wins! 71% of business travellers are men, and well catered for!
  7. There’s something rebellious and sexy about breaking the rules. Illicit hook ups with a special person can be adventurous and exciting, especially when it’s paid by company expenses. An ongoing romance is reliant on business travel for meet ups, some even consider long haul affairs as a company perk!
  8. There’s a greater likelihood of new connections.   During a trip, we meet new people, after work drinks can flow easily, without a consciously frisky intention. The conversation flows, along with the wine, it’s all too easy to take those few steps from the bar to the bedroom.
  9. Work provides an ideal rapport builder, a natural conversation starter, after all you already have something in common.
  10. Jet lag and screwed body time clocks mean we’re awake through the early hours. We all know what the devil does with idle hands.