Arlington, VA. Fort Sill, OK *. This is bad news for a lot of federal government employees, who not only got great rates when traveling for work (saving the taxpayer money, the U.S. federal government is in many cases the single largest buyer of travel) but also as a perk for their time off too. What is their military discount? If you are a resident of another country or region, please select the appropriate version of Tripadvisor for your country or region in the drop-down menu. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Government rates are generally rates negotiated by the General Services Administration for the benefit of employees of US government agencies wihen traveiling on government business. Fine print is usually buried somewhere on their main sites but it's there. Thats $750 when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards. To use our mobile site, please enable JavaScript. When you click on that hyperlink or button, you may be directed to the credit card issuers website where you can review the terms and conditions for your selected offer. Banner advertising, in contrast, is paid for by advertisers (we do not directly control the banner advertising on this blog). Excludes Free Night Stays. Marriotts policy, said director of media relations John Wolf, is also to let the individual hotels decide. "Note: At most Marriott hotels the government rate is available to eligible guests regardless of whether they are traveling on business or pleasure. The Student Advantage Card caters to college students and faculty only. Showing a state issued employment ID should be enough. A special ID is needed. The discount at Hampton hotels is capped at 15%. For example, you can become anAARP member (anyone of any age can join AARPfor $16 per year). Ill share how the government hotel rate compares to a regular room rate. Plus, I prefer to use hotel points for free stays to avoid paying anything at all! We outline how to book into a Ritz-Carlton hotel with a discount in more detail below: Get Free Benefits With A Luxury Travel Agent. It can apply to people traveling as government contractors too or for something like scientists sponsored by government grants traveling on business to a science meeting or collaboration. Im so frustrated. Hilton, for example. Government hotel rates only apply to federal employees on official government business. :), 2023 MillionMileSecrets.com. Editorial Note: The opinions, analyses, and evaluations here are mine and not provided by any bank including (but not limited to) American Express, Chase, Citibank, US Bank, Barclays or any other company. Discounts for government rate hotels at individual Marriott properties are subject to availability. Were providing an environment that aligns with expert protocols. The government employee rate is ~$100, or 45% cheaper than the pricefor loyalty members, seniors, and AAA members. Members of Marriott Bonvoy will receive an exclusive, preferred rate (Marriott Bonvoy Member Rate) on this promotion when they book rooms at participating hotels in the United States and Canada via direct Marriott booking channel such as Marriott.com, worldwide telephone reservation center, mobile app or directly at a hotel. The rate plan appears to include breakfast for two. In any case, theres no reason to offer deep discount inventory to stimulate extra room sales to government workers taking a weekend getaway, since hotels are in many cases filling these rooms at much higher prices. My understanding is that you are only eligible for the state government rate in the state where you are a state government employee. EDIT: After rereading Marriott's policy, it sounds like the valid ID is a state issued ID and travel orders. Here's how it works: 1. If you find a lower rate for the same hotel, same room type, and same reservation dates on a non-Marriott website or non-Marriott Bonvoy app ("Comparison . You would think that the hotels would know those rules and match the Per Diem rate, but maybe they think they could get a few more bucks from contractors. Mostly aimed at those who travel on reimbursement terms. La Quinta also offers a Returns Military Reward program. Valid for all days of the week based on availability. My guess is that too many people who werent entitled to this benefit used it in the past, and that hotels want to make more money. It seems that Marriotts are now enforcing the actual rules when it comes to allowing customers to use the Federal Government rate. Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater. Instead, I write primarily about cards which earn airline miles, hotel points, and some cash back (or have points that can be converted into the same). Click Here for a quick link to check availability for a Reservation. When planning a family vacation, finding a discount on a hotel can save you a little bit of money. You get a preferred rate if you are a government employee he book via the proper channels. Free Access to Admirals Clubs for Military Members, How to Get Your Annual Fees Waived on Chase Credit Cards, Trying to Use Miles for Official Travel and Then Get Reimbursed Doesn't Fly, My Epic Journey to Antarctica Getting There, Veterans Day Discounts and Free Meals Travel Blogs, do rental cars include liability insurance? If someone books all those rooms you are out of luck. All Rights Reserved, BonusTracker: Best credit card bonus offers, When to use miles or points vs. paying cash (using our points calculator with newly added features! Govt rates are particularly good in high cost areas. Now, it seems, they uniformly require the guest to be on official business when staying at this (frequently deeply discounted) rate. I'm One of the First Alaska 100Ks - So What Does That Mean? An official website of the U.S. General Services Administration. Marriott Proprietary Information. And there are multiple ways to verify of someone is on official work or not. We offer an impressive range of hotels, with sought-after locations from Aberdeen to Portsmouth, where the most specific of needs for bedrooms and suites, meeting space, ballrooms, restaurants, bars and leisure clubs are met with ease. When a military installation or Government-related facility (whether or not specifically named) is located partially within more than one city or county boundary, the applicable per diem rate for the entire installation or facility is the higher of the rates which apply to the cities and/or counties, even though part(s) of such activities may be located outside the defined per diem locality. Getting discounts on paid hotel stays is sweet. But in 12 years on the job traveling to at least a dozen states, I've never had a hotel even mention that when showing them a California employee ID, so I wouldn't worry at all about that. Property was not great so maybe that has some bearing. Traveler reimbursement is based on the location of the work activities and not the accommodations, unless lodging is not available at the work activity, then the agency may authorize the rate where lodging is obtained. last week for $125 a night regular $259. Please review the specific policies and terms and travel guidance at the hotel being reserved. Sometime in the past couple of months Marriott changed the rules for stays on government rates. Each hotel could be different as far as requiring travel orders or not too. Step 2: Start Your Reservation. Continue with Recommended Cookies. Theres no longer a need for a policy of looking the other way., Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Laziness on the part of the check-in staff? View from the Wing is a project of Miles and Points Consulting, LLC. Create new memories with our favorite packages of the season and save. Press J to jump to the feed. I was ID'd once, and used my university ID (which were the same for students, faculty, and researchers). For example, Holiday Inn and InterContinental Hotels allow government contractors to use the hotels' government rates, while Marriott's website states that contractor employees are not eligible to . The End Date of your trip can not occur before the Start Date. The system will first check your physical address to ensure that you have not already completed FEMA hotel registration. Note that there is availability on this rate plan outside of the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, and Latin America (these are listed on the page). The rate the OP is talking about, the Hilton Alternate Government Rate, is one of these general offers. Hilton hotels absolutely do extend their military discount to retired service members and their families. The other 20% or less is for leisure travel often I have chosen Marriott in the past rather than other brands. . Really sad to see the rules posted that it is for official travel only. An official website of the United States government. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. In the past I wasnt asked for proof very often, but it appears from the linked thread that hotels will be enforcing this. It would be great of Marriott clarified this. Valid identification is . Rates were often close to the other options, so Marriott got my business. To register a hotel with FEMA, you will need to go to https://apps.usfa.fema.gov/hotel/. Maximum of 2 rooms per ID. Per OMB Circular A-123, federal travelers must provide a tax exemption certificate to lodging vendors, when applicable, to exclude state and local taxes from their hotel bills. GSAs SmartPay team maintains the most current state tax information, including any applicable forms. ^ This. Book A Cheap Stay With Our Travel Auction. Proof of Canadian Government identification or work orders at check in is all that is required. Signing up for credit cards through partner links earns us a commission. However, some hotels may only make the government per diem rate available to guests traveling on official business. If you're 62 years or older, you can save at least 15% on your room rate. Marriott tends to update and clean up the terms and conditions of its guest loyalty program every few months. Whether its a souvenir T-shirt for yourself or a book or map for your classroom, you might be able to knock up to 15% off the price tag. Here is a list of hotels with military discounts that you might be staying at on your next vacation. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. However, just like cheap airline seats, once a hotel sells however many rooms they set aside for that rate, it will become unavailable. Required fields are marked *. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. They use to list contractor on them but all of mine have not stated that so it is the same badge as an FTE.