Group Travel

For a group of ten (10) or more travelers traveling on the same flight to the same destination, contact the group travel expert at Christopherson Business Travel (CBT).

Advantages to booking group airfare can include:

• Discounts may be available (depending on the airline, destination, size of group, and lead time of travel);
• Secured seats can be booked up to 11 months prior to the trip;
• Number of seats can be reduced up to 90 days prior to departure date;
• Flights can be secured with an "estimated" number of travelers (depending on the airline, a final list is not due until 35-45 days prior to departure);
• Flights can be secured with a deposit, with full payment not due until 30-45 days prior to departure date;
• Ground transportation between airport and destination can be coordinated to ensure travelers are not separated from each other; and/or,
• In case of flight changes or cancellations, all travelers are rebooked together.

An employee who is the group leader can make pre-trip arrangements and in-travel purchases related to group travel using his or her Travel Card. Examples of these purchases are: cost of conference registrations, hotels, ground transportation, and group meals. All expense related to the group trip should be claimed on the group leader’s expense report.

Employees are encouraged to obtain a Travel Card for University travel-related purchases.

If a group of employees is traveling to the same event but will be submitting individual travel expense reports (meaning there is no group leader covering costs), each employee should pay for his or her own expenses. Each expense report should be a record of one traveler’s trip and one traveler with a Travel Card should not use that card to cover another employee’s trip expenses. The exception is if a vendor cannot separate cost of shared lodging: In this case, one employee should pay the total bill and identify the other employee/s (whose lodging is also included on that bill) in comments on the expense report.

Ground Transportation

Shuttle, charter bus, or other forms of ground transportation can be purchased ahead of time on a purchase order or on the group leader's Travel Card.

The group leader can use his or her Travel Card to purchase food directly for the team or group. Per diem limits apply to group meals, i.e., the total cost of the group meal cannot exceed the total of the individual per diem amounts for that meal. Attach an itemized receipt along with a list of group members to the group leader's expense report.

The group leader can provide the team or group with cash so that group members may purchase their own meals. In this case, the group leader can request a cash advance prior to travel. A list of group members, along with the total amount of per diem paid each day, must be attached to the group leader's expense report.

For additional information see Requesting Cash Advances for University Trips.

Use the Concur Travel & Expense System (Concur) to reconcile expenses related to group travel. Keep in mind the following:

• The group leader reconciles expenses on his or her trip expense report.
• To avoid tax consequences, the expense report must be submitted within 90 days of the trip's conclusion. If a cash advance is involved, the expense report must be submitted earlier according to cash advance reconciliation requirements (see PSC Procedural Statement Cash Advances).
• If the group leader used a Travel Card or personal credit card to cover the cost of group meals, he or she must attach itemized receipts and a list of attendees to the expense report.