While business travel was slashed across the board when the global economy was in recession three years ago, incentive travel was hit particularly hard following news reports of companies and government agencies spending lavishly on retreats at fancy resorts.
The public backlash reached a boiling point in October 2008 when executives at insurance giant AIG spent more than $400,000 for a trip to the luxurious St. Regis in Monarch Beach, Calif., a week after the firm received an $85 billion bailout from taxpayers.
The backlash has eased, and industries have started to take the clamps off incentive travel. "If we had to put a score on it, it's probably 85% to 90% back," says David Peckinpaugh, president of Maritz Travel, a meeting management company.
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