Hotel Group Room Blocks/Event Venue Negotiating Procedures

The university has a contract with Crown International Travel, a travel management company that has experience negotiating hotel and venue contracts around the globe. Use of Crown International Travel is encouraged, especially for complicated negotiations.

Crown International Travel charges a fee for its services. However, these fees are typically negated by the rates they are able to negotiate. Departments should establish a mutually-acceptable fee for service arrangement with Crown before the commencement of services.

When negotiating a hotel group room block or event venue, considering the following points:

• Whenever possible, please provide the hotel or event venue with USC's preferred legal terms and conditions. If these provisions can be included in the property's contract, authorized signing by a Business Services representative can be expedited.
• If a hotel offers frequent traveler points (Hilton HHonors, Starwood points, etc.), there is usually an opportunity for the university to request a lower price in lieu of points. Note that any frequent traveler points received by an individual for coordinating a group hotel event are property of the university or sponsored project, according to the university's Expenditure Policies and Procedures (pdf). Points for group hotel events may not benefit an individual, and must be turned into the department for business use.

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