Language 
8 Tips on how to save money on business travel
Learn how to save money on business travel with tips on travel policy, booking windows, and negotiated rates.
Consider this:
The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) forecasts that global business travel spending will reach a substantial $1.71 trillion in 2026. To help you optimize your budget, this guide outlines eight tips on how to save money on business travel.
If your team travels internationally, Holafly for Business keeps employees online with secure mobile data.
Business travel made easy
1. Set up a travel policy
A business travel policy for employees sets expectations for travelers and bookers and provides a framework for your budget. It should cover:
- Booking process and spending limits for flights, hotels, rail, and car rental
- Fare class rules (economy or business)
- Nightly hotel caps
- Meal allowances or per diems
- Airport transfers
- Approval steps
- Reimbursement process
- What to do if a trip is canceled or an emergency occurs
Review the policy as prices and team needs change, using the spend data from tip three below.
2. Centralize booking and payment
Routing company-paid trips via one booking tool and company cards gives you one source of spend data and prevents employees from paying out of pocket.
You can centralize in one of two ways:
- A corporate booking tool builds your policy rules in (e.g., it can flag hotels above your nightly cap), unlocks business rates, and stores all expenses in one place.
- A travel management company (TMC) adds human support and spend analysis, which suits higher-volume programs.
Whichever you choose, ensure it integrates with your accounting system (see our guide to travel and expense management software for more details).
3. Track spend
You can’t reduce what you can’t see, so spend data comes before every other savings move.
Here’s what you can measure:
- Spend by category
- How far in advance people book
- Who books outside the policy
- Trips you could combine
- Duplicate charges
Tracking also deters fraud.
In the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners’ (ACFE) 2026 Report to the Nations, expense reimbursement schemes appeared in 12.7% of occupational fraud cases, with a median loss of $36,000.
4. Book in advance, inside the right window
Fares and hotel rates climb in the final weeks before departure, but booking months out costs more, too, so you need to aim for the right booking window.
According to Expedia’s 2026 Air Hacks Report, booking domestic flights 15–30 days out saved travelers an average of $130 compared with booking six months or more in advance.
In other words, if you book a conference far in advance, check the price again when the window opens. If the trip is less than two weeks away, treat the airfare as mostly fixed and save on the hotel and ground transport instead.
Pro tip: Keep approvals quick, too, as a slow sign-off can push a booking past the window.
5. Stay flexible on travel days and fares
Per the Expedia report above, Tuesday is the cheapest day for domestic flights, and Sunday is typically the most expensive.
So, anchor the key meeting mid-week and build the trip around it when possible, as shifting even one leg can reduce the fare.
For fare type, default to non-refundable fares unless the meeting is likely to move, since refundable tickets cost more. When dates are movable, travel in the off-peak or shoulder season, when fares and hotel rates are usually lower.
6. Negotiate corporate rates and concentrate spend
Volume is your leverage, so concentrating spend with a few preferred suppliers strengthens your position with hotels and airlines. Start with the destinations your team visits most, and ask for perks along with the rate, such as:
- Flexible cancellation terms
- Breakfast
- Late checkout
- Last room availability
These savings can add up.
In fact, Emburse’s Business Travel Snapshot 2025 found that its corporate customers paid an average of $209 per night for hotels, compared with a market rate of $264, a 20.9% discount (check our guide on how to get hotel corporate rates to learn more).
As for airlines, they generally offer a negotiated discount at ~$500,000 in annual air spend (see our guide to business travel discounts).
7. Use loyalty programs and travel cards
Loyalty programs turn repeat costs into perks, so enroll frequent travelers in one main airline, hotel, and car rental program. As status grows, it can bring:
- Free checked bags
- Upgrades
- Fee-free changes
- Breakfast and late checkout
- Lounge access
Book hotels directly where possible, as third-party bookings may not count toward elite status. If your policy requires a booking tool, check whether your preferred chain awards credit for that channel, and ensure loyalty numbers are attached to every booking.
You may also want to consider travel rewards cards, which earn points and perks (e.g., lounge access, rental car coverage) and keep spend on one statement.
Just note that co-branded airline and hotel cards can limit your carrier choices, so compare the annual fee to how often you will use the perks.
8. Trim hotel and food costs
Book the right level of hotel for the trip, as the cheapest option can cost travelers in sleep and commute time.
For trips of about a week or more, compare extended-stay hotels or serviced apartments, where a kitchen and laundry reduce what travelers spend on meals and cleaning. Short-term rentals (e.g., Airbnb) are worth pricing for long stays, too.
On the food side, a per diem keeps spending predictable, and it’s a good idea to encourage a few habits that stretch it further:
- Skip room service.
- Research restaurants and lunch menus in advance.
- Ask locals for tips to avoid tourist traps.
- Choose chain restaurants or local markets for everyday meals.
Allow an exception for client dinners, and ask travelers to check per diem and hotel caps before booking, with written pre-approval for anything above them.
Give traveling employees secure data with Holafly for Business
With your travel costs in check, secure mobile data is another priority.
Holafly for Business is a business eSIM provider available in 160+ destinations, activating on your team’s devices so employees don’t have to buy local SIM cards or incur roaming charges. You also get access to our centralized management platform, the Holafly Business Center, where you can manage individual eSIMs, invoices, and data usage.
Holafly Plans for Business come in four tiers, all featuring hotspot, 4G/5G, and 24/7 multilingual support:
- Daily: Unlimited data with pay-per-day flexibility, built for short business trips under 16 days a month.
- Monthly: Unlimited data for teams traveling more than 16 days a month, a fit for frequent travelers and long-term remote staff.
- Annual: Unlimited data for ultra-frequent travelers, suited to long-term global operations and predictable annual budgets.
- Enterprise: Bespoke plans for companies managing travel for 20+ employees a year, with volume discounts, a dedicated account manager, priority support, and custom integrations, built to optimize costs, streamline operations, and ensure seamless global connectivity across teams.
Not sure which plan is right for your team? Book a demo.
Business travel made easy
I’m a writer with over eight years of experience in digital content. My work has appeared in publications such as The New York Times, Forbes, Business Insider, and the BBC. At Holafly, I write clear, practical guides to help travelers stay connected with eSIM technology. In my spare time, I enjoy car detailing, biking around Warsaw, and capturing portraits.
