Free Business Travel Checklist: Business Trip Packing List, Business Trip Planner with Meetings and Bookings, and a Before-You-Go Office Checklist (PDF, Word, Excel)

What is on the page

Per diem

A fixed daily amount the company pays for meals and small expenses, instead of each receipt. Check your travel policy.

Confirmation numbers

The booking references for flights, hotel and car, which you need to check in or change a booking.

Cost center / project

The budget code the trip is charged to, needed for approval and the expense report.

Handover note

A short note for whoever covers your work: open issues, who to call, what can wait.

Receipts

Keep every receipt and sort them by day; it makes the expense report quick. Photograph paper receipts.

Packing for a short work trip

For two to four nights, carry-on only saves time at both ends. Plan outfits around one color so shoes and jackets go with everything, pack one shirt or top per day plus one spare, and wear the bulkiest items on the plane. Tech is where trips go wrong: check the charger, a plug adapter if you're going abroad, and keep the presentation both on the laptop and in the cloud or on a USB stick. Liquids go in a clear bag for security. For a longer or international trip, add the travel document checklist.

One page for the whole trip

The trip planner puts every booking and meeting on one page, with confirmation numbers and phone numbers, so you are not searching through emails at the airport. Share a copy with your manager or office. Write the purpose of the trip and what you want to achieve at the top; it helps you plan meetings and makes the expense approval straightforward. For detailed flight and hotel records over a year, use the flight details planner and hotel booking tracker.

Expenses and getting back

Most companies want an expense report within a set number of days. Keep receipts in one folder or photograph them daily, and note what each was for (who was at the dinner which client). Log costs as you go on the trip expense tracker, then submit them on the company's expense reimbursement form. Send follow-up emails while the meetings are fresh, ideally within two days.

Editing the files

The PDFs are fillable. In Excel, the trip planner totals the booking costs. Add your company's policy limits to the before-you-go list in Word.

Questions

What should I pack for a business trip?

Work outfits for each day, one casual outfit, sleepwear, a laptop and chargers, a plug adapter if abroad, ID, cards, business cards, toiletries and medicines.

What is a per diem?

A daily allowance for meals and incidental expenses on a work trip, set by the company or, for government travel, by official rates.

What should a business trip itinerary include?

Flights, hotel and transport with confirmation numbers, and each meeting with time, address and contact.

How do I prepare the office before a trip?

Get approval, block your calendar, write a handover note, set an out-of-office reply and save documents offline.

How soon should I file an expense report?

Check your company policy; many expect it within one to four weeks of returning.