THE WORLD OF CORPORATE SPORTS TRAVEL CAN BE COMPLEX…

Getting athletes to an international tournament or a board member to a sports conference at the opposite end of the country involves an almost dizzying array of moving parts.

With so much logistical information to process, it is easy to overlook one of the most important parts of any successful sports travel programme – the part where you save money. But cutting costs isn’t as straightforward as trawling the web for last-minute flight deals. As a travel management company with years of specialist sports travel expertise, our consultants at Gray Dawes Sports are well-versed in the tips and tricks needed to secure the savings that will make a real difference to your budget.

In this article, we look deeper at 4 of the best tactics for cutting sports travel costs. You might be surprised at some of the ways you can save money.

#1 – BOOK AS A TEAM

It might sound simple, but booking your travel as a group can save you some serious money. Some airlines allow a travel booker to pool the luggage allowance across a team

This is particularly useful when considering how much equipment sports teams usually travel with – extra kit, physio beds, medical devices, and more. In short, by consolidating the extra kilograms of baggage into one group travel booking, individual travellers don’t have to pay extra to bring more bags.

These savings aren’t trivial either as costs associated with excess baggage can be incredibly high. One of our clients had built an itinerary that required so much excess baggage that it cost in the region of £20,000. Your TMC should help you work out excess baggage over individual allowances, whether it can be consolidated into a group booking, and then clear it all at the same time as booking seats.

#3 – SUBMIT YOUR CALENDAR OF EVENTS TO YOUR TMC

Your sporting calendar is usually very predictable. Tournaments are scheduled and venues are booked years in advance, alongside all manner of sporting conferences, events, and meets that fill the seasons of sport.

A good TMC with expertise in sports travel will ask you to send a copy of your sporting calendar so that they can assess your year(s) ahead and plan accordingly. This information is invaluable. It not only helps consultants to secure fares early (and more cheaply), it allows them to thoroughly analyse the location, lock down any on-the-ground logistics, and book accommodation long before it sells out.

For British Swimming, one of our clients, coordinating calendars with our team of travel experts is one of the first things they do before the start of every season. This calendar allows us to see exactly where the swimmers need to be throughout the year, gives us the chance to understand their training and tournament schedule, and leaves us with time to ensure staff and athletes arrive at their destinations in good time and in the best possible shape.