Business Travel Costs on the Rise

Reflecting robust demand in business travel, airfares, hotel rooms and rental cars all cost more in the second quarter of this year, compared with the second quarter of 2005, according to the American Express Business Travel Monitor, in a report released yesterday. The report found that the average paid one-way coach fare jumped 13 percent, to $247, for 329 domestic city pairs tracked by American Express. On 160 international routes tracked, the average one-way coach fare increased 9 percent, to $1,150; one-way business-class fares were up 6 percent, to $4,088; and first-class fares were up 4 percent, to $6,000. Average paid domestic hotel rates, including all categories of hotels from budget to deluxe, rose 3 percent, to $139. Internationally, average hotel rates rose 11 percent, to $237. The average daily cost to rent a car domestically rose 4 percent, to $67.26.