5 companies providing great travel consulting services

Planning domestic or international travel for employees can be a time-consuming and costly activity. There’s a lot to organize, from researching a destination that meets your business needs to searching for suitable flights, car rentals, and hotels. 

Plus, as we all know, even the best-laid plans can change. Who do business travelers contact if their flight to an important conference or overseas office is canceled? What if you need to make last-minute alterations to a booking in a different time zone?

With so many variables, organizations often wonder if there is a more optimal way to save time, remain within budget, and meet their corporate travelers’ criteria. 

Thankfully, help is on hand! Travel consulting firms offer services to take care of your travel plans, from booking to safety updates, allowing employees to focus on more important tasks.

Travel companies can build an itinerary suited to your needs and offer expert advice like restaurant recommendations to impress at that important business lunch. They often have exclusive rates on transport and accommodation through relationships with service providers and can handle supplier negotiations and work around any supply chain issues.

Industry specialists also have up-to-date knowledge of security concerns or travel restrictions. Having a travel agent on hand is particularly helpful since the pandemic, as travel restrictions can change quickly.

Whether it’s a team-building retreat in New York or a business trip to Europe, travel consultants can streamline every aspect of the travel process, help you access exclusive deals and take the stress out of security on the road.

So what should you look for when selecting travel consulting services?

How to choose the best travel consulting company

There are multiple factors to consider when deciding which travel agency to go with. When evaluating which travel specialists are reputable, it’s useful to research customer reviews and overall online presence. 

Have they won any awards? Has their service been recognized as exceptional within the industry? Another consideration is the expertise they bring to the table. Different agencies may focus on certain areas, such as business travel for particular sectors. Meanwhile, others may have a wider breadth of service.

Which travel company to choose will depend on your budget, what your priorities are, and which services or features are most relevant to you. 

The 5 top consulting firms for travel

1. TravelPerk

TravelPerk is a top-rated corporate travel management consulting company and intuitive platform offering an all-in-one solution for businesses. Users can select their arrangements from an easy-to-use interface or speak with travel experts to organize team events around their business needs, size, and budget.

Accessible round-the-clock customer support is available from TravelPerk’s in-house team via phone, email, or in-app chat. Other flexible features include FlexiPerk, where travelers can take advantage of the most generous cancellation policies on the market. Corporate travelers can cancel trips up to 2 hours before departure and receive a 80 % refund just by clicking a button. 

A truly comprehensive travel service, TravelPerk users can also access detailed reports with live updates. Useful for both traveler safety, finance teams can also access the most up-to-date expense metrics for optimizing spending in real-time.

TravelPerk’s main offerings include:

• An industry-leading end-to-end travel inventory.
• Access to corporate prices and partnerships for worldwide accommodation, airfare, rail, and car hire. 
• User-friendly online platform and app to book, manage and generate travel reports all in one integrated system.
• Up-to-date travel alerts and safety information to put travelers at ease.
• 24/7 business travel assistance with a target 15-second response time.
• VAT recovery solution to save even more on your corporate travel programs. 
• GreenPerk technology helps business travelers choose more eco-friendly options and reduce the carbon footprint of their trip. 

2. FCM Travel

FCM Travel focuses on supporting employees with travel management software offering local experience and multinational support across 95 countries. 

Experts help users plan their business travel itinerary, and customer support is available 24/7 from their team. FCM Travel also offers features to help minimize risk and prioritize traveler safety. The latest travel alerts are sent via the FCM app, SMS, and email to keep users informed.

Live reports also give users access to spending on the go allowing financial teams to manage budgets and airline contract targets.

FCM Travel’s main offerings include:

• Visa, passport, and immigration support.
• Concierge service.
• Cost-benefit analysis and recommendations.
• Quarterly trend report for corporate travel management.
• Carbon offsetting program and Flight Carbon Footprint Calculator.
• Specialist knowledge of marine, offshore, mining, and resources travel.

3. Boston Consulting Group (BCG)

Founded in 1963, Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is a consulting firm with ample experience. They have offices in over 100 cities in more than 50 countries worldwide.

BCG customize their work to their client’s needs. Their travel and tourism consulting teams cover a wide range of areas, from strategy and travel operations to revenue management and social impact.

They co-founded Journera, an industry-wide platform that provides companies with real-time data exchange to help them plan smoother journeys. Services covered include transport, accommodation, TMC, as well as dining and entertainment to enhance customer experience.

BCG also aims to reach net-zero climate impact by 2030 and work on improving sustainability with its clients.

BCG’s main offerings include:

• They work with 7 of the 10 most popular passenger airlines and 6 of the top 20 budget carriers.
• Access to half of the top 10 hotel groups and 3 of the top 5 cruise companies worldwide.
• Partnered with KLM to provide AI-based tools that help improve airline operations management, including passenger operations and network optimization.
• BCG’s Travel Recovery Insights Portal provides information to assist in making decisions that support shareholders, clients, and air travel employees.

4. Deloitte

Key player Deloitte is another well-established company to look to for worldwide travel consulting services. Experienced in air and ground transport, hotels and resorts, restaurants, and food services, their Transportation, Hospitality, and Services team comprises approximately 1,400 professionals.

Backed by years of expertise Deloitte offer financial management, operational strategies, and tech solutions to help their clients take their business to the next level. 

Deloitte’s main offerings include:

• Insider knowledge of changing travel trends, mitigating risks, and new technologies.
• Detailed insights on guest experiences and operations in the hospitality industry.
• Their consulting professionals provide a wealth of advice to companies on optimizing and future-proofing their products. 

5. McKinsey & Company

With almost 100 years of experience, McKinsey & Company is an industry leader in travel consulting. They have over 90 clients in over 35 countries and have worked on 400+ travel and tourism consulting projects in the last 5 years. They serve the aviation, hospitality, and passenger rail industries, as well as investors, governments, and tech films.

McKinsey & Company works with travel leaders worldwide to help them optimize their performance, revenue, and offerings. They offer a wide variety of services to clients, such as using advanced analytics to help identify how to drive sales and increase customer satisfaction.

McKinsey & Company focuses on inclusive growth and long-term sustainability by analyzing best practices, including assessing options in airplane fuel.

McKinsey & Company’s main offerings include:

• Goal to develop sustainable global business models.
• They work with the biggest travel operators and hotel chains in the USA, China, and Europe.
• Provide support to over half of the world’s top 25 airlines.
• Improve the travel experience for passengers through methods such as optimizing routes and timetables for rail companies. 
• Offer advice, including tourism policies and portfolio optimization, to other companies in the hospitality & travel industry.