Developments in business travel can often seem completely at odds with each other. While services are being personalised, for instance, technology is allowing us to bypass personal service for speed’s sake. And while increasing competition between airlines is good for customers, savings in basic fares are often wiped out by hikes in taxes. Here are some other things you’ll probably notice in the coming months.

1 HOTEL LOBBIES

Realising that queuing and form- filling are the last things people want to do when they arrive, more hotels are phasing in electronic check-ins. Hyatt’s Andaz mini- chain has no reception desk but greeters with iPads and freshly brewed coff ee. Omni Hotels allows guests to confirm their details 48 hours before arrival and collect their key when they get there. Some Aloft hotels from Starwood are even posting out an electronic key card ahead of time, so you don’t have to stop in the lobby at all. At the same time, Wi- fipowered lobbies will become more inviting places to linger with a drink, or work in a less isolated way than in a guest room. After all, they won’t be filled with luggage-laden arrivals waiting to check in.

2 HIGHER PRICES

With governments looking for new sources of income, travel is in the firing line. The US is proposing to double the 9/11 passenger security fee and then raise it in successive years until 2017, with much of the money – which would rise to $10 per round trip – going to general funds. IATA, the airlines lobby group, opposes the change, but prices are creeping up elsewhere too; travel consultant Advito forecasts corporate travel prices rising as much as 6% worldwide in 2012, building on healthy demand and pricing this year. Hotel rates are due to rise most strongly in the US, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific, with ‘gateway cities’ such as New York seeing double-digit price rises.

3 GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR

The ‘incidentalist’ pricing model that budget airlines have trained us into accepting are working their way into hotels – but not just by slugging you daily for Wi-fiand ‘resort fees’. This way strips out all the extras – and the costs – and then you add back in what you think is worth paying for. Malaysian chain Tune Hotels, for example, offers a bed and a hot shower in central London for an eye- catching daily rate. But factor in an extra £1 for a hairdryer, £2 to use the safe, £3 to use the television and £7.50 for daily cleaning on a stay of more than one night. You also pay for towels and toiletries. Or don’t.

4 GREEN CAR HIRE

With corporate travel policies pushing for not only cost-effi cient but environmentally friendly options, eco-cars are being taken more seriously, and the rental chains are getting on board. Low-emission, hybrid and electric cars are being added to fleets, and new green-only rental companies are popping up. Hertz Europe has got orders in for the Nissan Leaf and Sixt has been trialling electric vehicles. Technology is also making the booking and car-collection process more efficient as online booking is streamlined – Sixt says return customers can book via an iPad app in less than 10 seconds – and confirmation comes with a barcode that can be scanned on arrival. Meanwhile in Asia, look out for rental cars with drivers included, to take some of the stress out of driving in diffi cult- to-navigate and often badly signed cities.

5 LOCALISED MINIBARS

As restaurants play up the inclusion of locally grown and sourced ingredients, minibars are being stripped of many of the ubiquitous global brands we’ve come to expect, in favour of local specialities, or just more exotic items. The W in Austin, Texas, now stocks Paula’s Texas Orange liqueur, while North Fork potato chips, Brooklyn Brewery beer and Hudson Whiskey are moving into upmarket New York hotels. The Trump Chicago offers hard-to-find Tasmanian Rain water, all the way from Australia. Not so easy to replace with one from the 7-Eleven before you leave.

6 BUDGET TRAVEL FOR BUSINESS TRIPS

A growing range of budget airline options – and some deals that go beyond cheap headline fares – are making cheap flights more appealing to the business traveller. Asia has been a hotbed of development in budget travel, and Singapore Airlines is expected to launch its own budget line, Scoot, mid-2012, rumoured to include in-flight Wi-fiin the cost of tickets. Europe’s easyJet is targeting business travellers with flexible tickets that allow for last-minute decisions on flying times – and include luggage – and compensation if you’re more than 15 minutes late. And Ryanair is looking to expand across Europe, buying as many as 300 aircraft for delivery between 2015 and 2021.

7 SHOWER POWER

A long soak in the bath at the end of a working day will become an increasingly rare treat, as more hotels do away with tubs in favour of bigger showers, or just saving space. Monsoon heads and seats in some of the more luxurious offerings help make up for the loss. Holiday Inn recently lowered its proportion of bathrooms with tubs from 95% to 55%, and the Marriott chain is planning on having 75% with showers only. Out too are mini-bottles of shampoo and shower gel – more hosts are opting for fixed dispensers that help save on plastic (and expense).

8 TRACKING CHANGES

High-speed rail is becoming a more attractive option for business travellers, especially in Europe, where governments are investing in connections that gel with implementation of the EU Emission Trading Scheme. David Trunkfield, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers in the UK, says: “More than three-quarters of journeys by PwC people to Paris and Brussels are now by train. This has increased with the introduction of High Speed 1 [the Channel Tunnel Rail Link from London through Kent] and is likely to increase again when Deutsche Bahn destinations are available through Eurostar.” As well as off ering Wi-fithroughout the journey and less hassle than an airport, trains tend to take travellers right into the city centre, unlike airports.

New services include the just-launched link between the Turkish capital, Ankara, and the city of Konya, reducing a 10-hour trip to just over 100 minutes. Lines due to open in the next year include Paris to the upper Rhine and Burgundy, and Umea, on the Swedish coast, to Stockholm. US trains may even start to pick up speed. The US High Speed Rail Association has plans for a $600bn network across much of the country, built in four phases, by 2030.

9 LIGHTER FOOD, TO GO

With small meals being substituted for packets of biscuits on short flights, and cooked options on long-haul trips tending towards the stodgy, demand for lighter, healthier meals to take on board is growing  
... and it’s not just sandwiches and a bowl of fruit to choose from. There’s always a queue for the air-side juice at Dubai International Airport, and the launch by London-based sushi specialists ITSU of their first airport outlet at Heathrow’s Terminal 5 – with a take-away service designed for taking meals on board – is even helping sway some passengers’ decision on which airline to use.

10 PREMIUM OFFERING

A growing list of airlines is wedging a form of enhanced economy travel between the cheap seats at the back of the plane and the much higher priced business-class cabin. Delta has recently joined the crowd, with Economy Comfort, with extra legroom in the same style as SkyTeam partner KLM’s premium offering. As well as space, the seats come with priority boarding rights and free drinks. United Airlines already has its Economy Plus option with extra legroom, and close to 20 other airlines also have similar options. ranging from upgraded meals and amenities to entirely reformatted cabins, as with Air New Zealand and Turkish Airlines. Some industry watchers are expecting Business to become the new First Class, making premium economy the new default option for business travellers.