Wondering how to make travel arrangements for your boss? You’re in the right place. To book and manage executive trips can be stressful. For your boss, their time away might be jam-packed with meetings, while trying to keep up with colleagues in different time zones, and dealing with jet lag. It can be a serious headache for administrative assistants like yourself trying to coordinate travel while handling a heap of other responsibilities.Thankfully, solutions are available to help simplify executive travel, alleviate the admin, and remove many past pain points. Booking tools can streamline everything: from picking great accommodation and booking flights to automating your travel expenses and reclaiming VAT.Here we’re sharing eight easy steps  for making travel arrangements for executives a breeze.

By following these eight steps, you’ll free up time that you can then focus on the personal touches. Ready to impress your boss and elevate their business trip to the skies and beyond? Here are our top tips for how to make travel arrangements as a secretary. Let’s dive in.

A positive travel experience depends on a few key factors:For each trip, identify the non-negotiable priorities and (for longer trips) one or two personal things that will make the stay more enjoyable for your boss. Remember, everyone is at their best when balanced, fully rested, and able to focus on the job at hand—not worry about their upcoming flight!Feedback is also important: after the trip, try to have a quick conversation with your boss about how the trip went and what you can do differently next time. If you want to formalize this process, you can put together a pulse survey and have it in their inbox upon return. Build upon each experience, its feedback, and continuously improve.

Harnessing first class technology can help businesses streamline the

corporate travel management process

. Rather than scrolling through several websites to find the best prices, office managers can use a travel management tool to find suitable options quickly.

When selecting transportation, keep in mind the details that will make the trip more comfortable for your boss. Do they prefer an aisle or window seat? Do they have airlines or rental car companies where they accrue loyalty points or can get access to lounges?After noting these preferences, by using a travel management tool like TravelPerk, you can book flights, trains, car hire and accommodation your boss will love, in just a few clicks.

When choosing accommodation, consider the amenities your boss might appreciate. Good Wi-Fi is a given, but they might want a decent-sized desk, on-site coworking space, or private meeting rooms. They might want to have gym facilities or 24/7 room service.Another important consideration is the location. Take a look at your boss's schedule and pinpoint an area that makes the most sense for their itinerary.A

travel management tool

should provide a wide range of accommodation options, from well-known chains to boutique options—TravelPerk users will have the best of both worlds.Once you’ve coordinated travel arrangements, vet your choices to double-check if they are suitable for your boss. Use Hotel Wi-Fi Test to make sure connection speeds are up to scratch. It’s also a good idea to scan reviews for elements you know will matter to your boss—the good and the bad!TravelPerk users can benefit from seeing where other colleagues have stayed, making it easier than ever to get the inside scoop from trusted teammates.Finally, when selecting a travel management tool, confirm that the system has an

easy-to-use travel app

so that your boss can access their itinerary and other services on the move.

Making travel arrangements for executives involves expecting the unexpected: like any trip, business travel can spring suprises, whether an unfavourable weather forecast or a last-minute cancellation,but corporate travelers often face additional challenges out of their control that require immediate changes to their schedule.Comprehensive, 24/7 support is a must, particularly for busy executives who don’t have the time to sort out new travel arrangements. At TravelPerk, your boss can reach our team of human customer support agents in a target response time of 15 seconds, 24/7, 365 days a year.

When asking yourself how to make travel arrangements as a secretary, it’s useful to walk through every aspect of your boss’ trip to pick up on the small details that are often overlooked: prepping your executive’s mobile phone is an important one.  Phones can be used for so much more than communication——they're great tools for eliminating the daily hassles of navigating a new area, language, and currency!Recommend a

currency converter app

and a translation app (

Google Translate

still holds the title as best translation app) to help your boss navigate international travel. This should be top of mind when you’re considering how to make international travel arrangements for your boss.  Many of these apps also have offline features, which is a travel essential.With TravelPerk, corporate travelers can book travel arrangements, get updates to their itinerary, access maps offline, andreceive 24/7 support all within themobile app.

Preferences change with time and circumstance. Your exec might prefer proximity to the client or local office for short trips but want to be near walkable restaurants and the city landmarks to enjoy their free time on longer trips. They might even prefer traveling with ground transportation like trains or car rentals over flights.Never assume you'll remember, even with the most diligent and careful planning. Keep a running list on an easy-to-edit file, or use TravelPerk to safeguard this info for every traveler you’re booking for.Here are some important categories to note:With TravelPerk, you can add a special request to each booking that our concierge service will take care of: like a late checkout or extra legroom. Some preferences might hold true for every trip. Others might be more specific.Maintaining this list of priorities and preferences will eliminate repetitive conversations and save everyone time in the long run.

Expense reporting

can feel like a significant time snatcher. Tracking money takes longer than spending it.Help your boss get expense reporting done in a flash bydownloading a receipt-scanning or management app like

Pleo

. It may be worth adding these to your company tech stack too. If your exec handles expense reporting on their own, you can pre-fill some of the trip details so that they can complete the task faster.Nothing beats automation:TravelPerk

integrates with various third-party expense management  apps

, including

Expensify

and

BILL Spend & Expense

(previously Divvy), so that trip costs are stored safely, and travel spend reports are rapid.

With a travel management solution like TravelPerk, the details of each trip can be found in one place (with just one login!). However, for those times when your boss isn’t using a travel management platform, it's important that the information is accessible offline.While screenshots are a quick and easy method of ensuring your boss has access offline, you can go the extra mile to prepare a travel itinerary that includes elements specific to their particular business trip in a way that’s easier on the eye.Here are some top tips for creating a clear itinerary:

The best part of automating and outsourcing aspects your corporate travel management is being able to focus on the extra details your boss will appreciate. This attention to detail will set you apart from other administrators and really impact your boss’ trip.Here are some examples of little extras that you can prepare in advance for your boss:Take a second to figure out the little things that will make a big difference for your exec, and keep a running list for future business trips.

Having a checklist that you can refer to before your trip helps you prepare for both the expected and the unexpected. Anticipating your boss's needs ahead of time will make the journey more successful and save you both time.To get you started, we've recapped the tips above into a handy checklist you can refer to when planning your boss's next trip, and the next, and the next!

There you have it, eight steps to keep in mind when booking travel for executives. These trips don’t need to be stressful, but they do need to be smooth. Make them memorable for all the right reasons and give your boss the experience they deserve.If you’ve now figured out you’ll be more effective with a travel management app underwing, then

book your TravelPerk demo today

, and let’s see where we can take you—or your boss, in this case!