Business travel, as it is often referred to, is on the rise especially with foreign business markets opening up. Business travel is generally accepted as being a corporation's 3rd or 4th biggest expense after staffing, rent and rates and possibly IT and communications. Many airlines began to concentrate on providing premium service on long haul flights especially for the first and business class travel with the development of more sophisticated business traveller needs over the last 15 years.

Business travellers need to be prepared for the most likely and even unlikely scenarios. From how to dress to efficiently pass through security checkpoints to how to quickly get in touch with your family if you're stranded, here are tips that work.

BEFORE YOU LEAVE...

•    If you must go, ensure that key documents (passport, driver's license, identification card) are up to date and won't expire during your travels.
•    Scan and email your important documents to yourself (e.g., passport, vaccination card, driver's license). If they are lost or stolen, you can get copies via the Internet.
•    Leave a photocopy of your passport and itinerary with a family member or friend at home. Thus if these are lost or stolen, copies can be sent to American officials overseas.
•    Create an ID card and carry it with you at all times, including data like your age, hotel, how to contact loved ones, blood type, and other important medical data. If possible, have the information written in the language of the country you're visiting.
•    In business travel, always carry your important numbers. In fact, print out copies or download to your PDA a list of airline, car rental, and hotel phone numbers, embassy phone numbers, and international dialling codes.
•    If travelling internationally, buy or rent a global cell phone and/or PDA in case you need to look up information or contact loved ones quickly. Many U.S. cell phones won't work abroad.
•    Bring back-up batteries for your cell phone and PDA in case you are stranded.
WHILE TRAVELING...
•    If you are travelling to a place where there is unrest, register with the local embassy or consulate upon arrival.
•    Carry a card with the name, location, and directions to your hotel, in the local language. If you need to return to your hotel immediately, you can simply show the card to a taxi, bus, or hotel courtesy driver.
•    Carry vital personal belongings with you at all times, such as prescription medication and eyeglasses and bring extra along. If you get stranded at an airport during a weather delay, or your luggage is lost, you'll have immediate access to your medicine. It's also a good idea to bring a copy of your prescription or a note from your doctor when travelling with medication, especially if you must carry items such as syringes or painkillers
•    If you are travelling with others, create a crisis plan in advance. Select a central location where you'll meet should you get lost or separated. Talk with all group members about safety and security, and discuss any special problems in the regions you will be in. You might also want to share cell phone and hotel information, as well as contact information for each other's next of kin.
•    Carry an internationally accepted credit card and/or traveller’s checks with you in the event money becomes a problem. Never travel with large amounts of cash. If your personal property is lost or stolen, you are usually minimally responsible, or not responsible, for fraudulent use of your credit cards or travellers checks. Once cash is lost, however, it's gone.
•    Download phone numbers for your card companies and credit bureaus to your PDA or add them to the "phone book" on your cell phone. If your wallet or credit cards get lost or stolen, you will be able to cancel them immediately.