Pets become the new plus-ones on business trips

A recent survey shows that pet companionship now extends beyond vacations, with pets increasingly joining their owners on business trips as the new plus-ones.

Data from TravelPerk, a Spain-based travel management company, shows that 1 in 10 employees have already traveled with their pets for work.

This trend is especially common among younger workers, with 21% of employees aged 25 and under reporting they have brought pets along on business trips. Among frequent travelers, the share is even higher, with 22% of those who travel weekly saying their pets accompany them.

Executives are also embracing the trend, with 16% of C-suite leaders reporting they have traveled with pets. Among non-executive travelers, the share is slightly lower at 11%, though still notable given that fewer in this group provide companions overall.

Regionally, US employees are most likely to travel with pets for work (15%), followed by Germany (10%), the UK (8%) and Spain (7%).

In addition, airlines are embracing this trend, with major flag carriers such as Emirates, Qatar Airways, Lufthansa, Air France and Delta Air Lines now offering pet-friendly business-class flights.

According to TravelPerk, the survey was conducted by OnePoll between 12 and 19 March 2025 and included 4,000 adults from the UK, US, Germany and Spain who travel for business.