Adtrav long has been a provider of travel services to the U.S. federal government as well as state governments, but when it landed the five-year contract this year to manage the FedRooms lodging program, it brought the Birmingham, Ala.-based travel management company to a new level of prominence in the government travel sector.
Adtrav beat out longtime incumbent CWTSatoTravel to manage FedRooms, which is an optional hotel program offered by the U.S. General Services Administration to any U.S. government and military personnel traveling on official business of fewer than 30 nights.
CWTSatoTravel has managed FedRooms for many years, as it has other federal travel programs, and protested the award to Adtrav, challenging the manner in which GSA evaluated Adtrav's pricing proposal, but it was unsuccessful. Adtrav will begin managing FedRooms on Feb. 1, 2025.
Earning such an award from a prominent veteran incumbent is noteworthy, and Adtrav now has responsibility for a large program: More than 10,900 properties in more than 3,000 markets are included in the FedRooms program, according to GSA, and the TMC will manage the program's sourcing, including negotiations with participating hotels, and oversee data management and reporting.
It's a role that Adtrav had sought for many years, CEO Roger Hale told BTN in July, adding that the TMC's government and corporate travel management experience has readied it for the next step.
"This is something that we've had our eyes on for a for a number of years because it's something that mirrors what we currently do for a number of our corporate customers. And so this was a natural extension for us," Hale said. "This is obviously much larger than a standard corporate program or a state program, but the principles are very, very, very similar."
For what is likely the most prominent federal travel management award in Adtrav's 40-plus-year history, the company will have to be ready to take the next step.