Start with evidence, not a discount demand. Summarize your real travel volume and priorities, send the same brief to selected hotel sales teams, compare written terms, and verify the accepted rate in your authorized booking channel. No universal discount or room-night minimum applies.
Build a request from real demand
Use booking records to list destinations or preferred hotels, annual room nights, spend, booking lead time, stay length and cancellation patterns. GBTA's pre-RFP guidance recommends analyzing those patterns before soliciting hotels. Label forecasts as estimates rather than guaranteed volume.
Contact the hotel's official sales or business channel. Clermont Hotel Group, for example, asks for business information before a sales representative discusses rates. One Silver Cloud hotel RFP asks for estimated annual room nights, average stay length and payment method. These examples do not set universal requirements.
Swipe the table to see all columns.
| Item | Put in the request | Verify in the response |
|---|---|---|
| Demand and scope | Hotels or cities, actual room nights and labelled forecasts | Covered hotels, rooms, travelers, dates and any review conditions |
| Price and availability | Fixed, dynamic or hybrid preference; LRA or NLRA question | Pricing basis, blackout dates and exact availability scope |
| Inclusions and rules | Breakfast, parking, cancellation, billing, taxes and fees | Included, excluded or separately charged items and full rules |
| Booking and audit | Authorized users and booking channels | Correct rate and terms are visible and bookable |
Compare the complete offer
GBTA's solicitation guidance recommends using consistent requirements and evaluation criteria. Compare total cost and conditions, not only a headline discount. The GBTA glossary defines a dynamic rate as a discount from BAR rather than a fixed nightly amount. LRA means last-room availability; NLRA availability may close as inventory tightens. Neither term, by itself, tells you which room types, dates or exclusions a specific offer covers.
Ask the hotel to state any minimum volume, effective dates, blackout dates, eligible travelers, proof requirements, cancellation and payment rules, and included amenities. Unstated breakfast, parking, taxes or fees remain questions. This process is for recurring company travel, not a one-time group block, an existing employer code or a single long-stay quote.
Verify the accepted rate
An agreement and a usable rate are separate checks. If your company uses a GDS or online booking tool, confirm that the accepted rate and rules appear in that authorized channel. Marriott's GDS support page distinguishes a valid negotiated contract from rate loading; that workflow is Marriott-specific, but the verification principle is useful.
- Build the demand brief from actual records.
- Send the same brief to a focused hotel list.
- Compare written price, availability, inclusions and rules.
- Confirm authorization and rate loading before travelers book.
If your company already has an approved rate or code, use the separate guide to how corporate hotel rates work instead of starting a new negotiation.