Accommodations Glossary

 

Glossary of Key Terms

Term

Definition

ADR

Average Daily Rate—the average actual rate paid per occupied room across a set of bookings or properties.

BAR

Best Available Rate—the lowest publicly available rate at a hotel on a given date. Dynamic rates are typically expressed as a percentage discount off BAR.

CRS

Central Reservation System—the system hotel chains use to manage inventory and distribute rates across GDS channels and other platforms.

Dynamic Rate

A negotiated discount off BAR rather than a fixed nightly rate. Dynamic rates fluctuate with market demand.

GAM / NAM

Global Account Manager / National Account Manager—chain-level sales professionals who manage corporate accounts across multiple hotel properties, serving as the central link between buyers and individual hotels.

GDS

Global Distribution System—the platform (e.g., Sabre, Amadeus, Travelport) through which travel agents and OBTs access hotel inventory and rates.

Leakage

Travel spend that falls outside negotiated preferred channels—travelers booking non-preferred hotels or using consumer sites instead of the managed booking tool.

LRA / NLRA

Last Room Availability / Non-Last Room Availability—LRA rates are available regardless of how many rooms remain; NLRA rates can be closed out when inventory is low.

OBT

Online Booking Tool—the traveler-facing platform (e.g., Concur, Egencia, Cytric) through which employees book travel.

PACE Data

Forward-looking booking pace data used by hotels to assess how current reservations compare to prior-year trends at the same point in time.

PMS

Property Management System—the hotel’s on-property system for managing reservations, inventory, and rates before they are distributed to the CRS and GDS.

Rate Audit

The process of verifying that accepted negotiated rates are correctly loaded, visible, and bookable in both the GDS and OBT.

RFP

Request for Proposal—the formal document through which a buyer solicits rate bids from hotels.

Solicitation List

The list of hotels formally invited to submit bids in a given RFP cycle.

TMC

Travel Management Company—a third-party company (e.g., American Express GBT, BCD Travel, CWT) that manages corporate travel programs on behalf of buyers.

Volunteer Bid

A proactive bid submitted by a hotel to a buyer before being formally included on the solicitation list—a tool for suppliers to demonstrate initiative and influence solicitation decisions.

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