Bermuda's executives are still travelling as much as ever on business trips and some even more so — that is according to travel agents across the Island.

Carl Paiva, CEO of C-Travel said that despite the rising cost of fuel and a number of airlines going out of business as a result, the Island's businessmen were making the same number of flights as before.

Cheryl Hayward-Chew, president of Meyer-Franklin Travel, agreed that the volume of business travel was unchanged or up on last year, but added that many international and local companies in Bermuda were keeping a closer eye on their projected travel and entertainment expenses for the rest of 2008.

But, internationally, Continental Airlines Inc. executives reported in a conference call that some firms are cutting back on their travel and many are limiting how their employees fly — in coach rather than first class, for example.

Business travellers are a lucrative market for airlines, and they were viewed as less vulnerable than leisure travellers to higher fares and a weakening economy.

"Nothing has changed with the business travel," Mr. Paiva said.

"Everything is consistent — I mean, people in business know that the most important aspect of business is the personal relationship and that means travel. We have not seen any decline in business travel or on a conscious level with spending on business patterns."

Mr. Paiva said Bermuda was in a unique and protected position from the global situation with fuel charges increasing, because while many of its corporate workers needed to travel regularly to do business, they were not seeing a big rise in air fares.

"Air fares have kept reasonable in relation to the rising cost of fuel," he said.

"There have been decent seat sales in light of what is happening, with a number of airlines being in trouble."

Ms Hayward-Chew said business travel was typically gearing down for the holiday season, while bookings for the annual September and October overseas conferences seemed to be consistent with previous years.

"Increases in travel prices seen thus far in 2008 haven't been great enough yet to impact business travel," she said.

"I suspect that due to the rise in fuel costs and, for some companies, the tightening of the US economy, many international and local companies in Bermuda are keeping a closer eye on their projected travel and entertainment expenses for the remainder of the year."

Ms Hayward-Chew said companies must continually weigh the benefit of doing business face-to-face overseas with the costs of getting and staying there.

"There is no doubt that sky-rocketing fuel prices affect the airlines and must ultimately the cost of air travel," she said. "So the only questions right now are how high will the travel prices go up and ultimately how much will business travel be affected."