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Document a Lodging Comparison

Generally documentation of hotel rate comparison is not required when the business trip is booked according to the lodging policy.

A lodging rate comparison is required when any of the following occur:

  • The trip includes a personal component causing an extension of the lodging stay.
  • The room selection is out of policy, for example, if a standard room was not selected or the room rate exceeds published maximums.

Document a Lodging Comparison

The rate comparison documentation is most often in the form of a screenshot of Stanford Travel of search results taken the same day of booking from a Stanford Travel booking channel. The screenshot must visibly note the time and date of the search (i.e., from the taskbar on your desktop); include a broad set of search results (e.g., all available rooms within policy); and should display the applicable parameters, such as all available lodging options. The expense report must include an attachment with the rate comparison documentation.

If the attached screenshot is dated post-travel, the Business Expense team will calculate an online comparison at the time of processing, and will pay based on the lesser of their own comparison or that provided by the traveler.

  1. Go to stanfordtravel.stanford.edu 
  2. Enter your SUNet ID and password

  1. Select Hotels
  2. Select the traveler's Profile
  3. Enter the travel business locations
  4. Select dates that match the business travel need
  5. Select Search Hotels

  1. Make sure the date and time on your computer desktop are shown in the screenshot
    You can also hover over the time on your computer the moment when you capture the computer screen.
  2. Take a screenshot of the displayed results with the date the screenshot was captured
  3. Save the screenshot and attach it to the expense report in the Expense Requests System
Last Updated: Aug 3, 2023

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