Tourism NI describes incentive travel as using an exceptional travel experience to motivate or recognise participants for their performance. VisitBritain’s toolkit expands MICE as meetings, incentives, conferences and events. It notes that a DMC may handle some or all of a MICE programme. UN Tourism records that the International Congress and Convention Association and Meeting Professionals International prefer the term meetings industry, because MICE does not recognise the industrial nature of these activities.

How it is measured

• In the UN’s international tourism statistics, attending meetings, conferences, trade fairs and exhibitions counts as business travel, but incentive trips that employers organise and pay for as a reward, involving leisure, sport or recreation, should be classed, where feasible, under holidays, leisure and recreation.

• VisitBritain reports, using International Passenger Survey data, that 2.6 million inbound business visits to the UK in 2024 were MICE visits. That was 38% of inbound business visits and 47% of business visitors’ spending, or £2.8 billion.

Rules for business travel

• The Package Travel Regulations do not apply to packages bought under a general agreement between a trader and a business for booking that business’s travel. The government’s guidance takes this to mean framework contracts with business travel agencies, so business travellers who book through consumer channels without one keep their protection.

• Sellers do not need an ATOL for flights and flight-inclusive packages sold in line with a general business travel agreement that includes any terms the CAA has published. The CAA recommends the agreement says the exemption applies.