Campus Travel Unveils Academia’s Most Remote Destinations

If you’ve been to Omsk, Tbilisi or Lome then chances are, you may have visited these destinations as part of an academic or research trip.

University travel specialist Campus Travel has highlighted a number of travel trends in the Australian university sector, including a list of some of the most remote locations that academics are visiting. The data was extracted from travel reports covering the past 12 months.

While many academics are heading to the usual city centres of Singapore, London or Hong Kong, a handful of Campus Travel customers are broadening their travel horizons with work in places such as Kabul (Afghanistan); Novosibirsk and Omsk (Russia); Tabriz (Iran); Urumqi, Bishkek, Tbilisi (Central Asia); Kano, Lumbadzi, Tamale, Abidjan, Lome (Africa); and Clyde River, Iqaluit (Canada).

Campus Travel’s general manager Cathryn Cole, said that making bookings to long-haul destinations required experienced travel consultants who had exceptional knowledge of air carriers, countries and cultures.

“Some of our academic customers have itineraries that are 10 legs long, include many different destinations, domestic flights with local carriers and ground transport options that our consultants will source direct from local suppliers,” said Ms Cole. “Looking after the travel needs for the academic sector is very different to the needs of corporate customers who tend to travel point-to-point i.e. Brisbane to Sydney or Brisbane to London return, or retail customers who are heading to holiday destinations.”

Ms Cole said that travelling for important, often life-changing research or going to conferences to present papers linked to critical research in their fields were important aspects of academic travel.

According to Campus Travel’s reporting:

The top 10 international destinations booked by academic travellers were:

Singapore
London
Hong Kong
Los Angeles
Beijing
Auckland
Kuala Lumpur
San Francisco
Jakarta
Bangkok

The busiest month for travel was May, with the average length of stay being nine days.

Campus Travel booked approx. 24,500 international trips during the past 12 months for academic customers.

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