One city, several lodging ceilings
Some GSA destinations have one lodging rate for the full fiscal year. Others have seasonal periods. The destination chart and table show the ceiling for each calendar month, ordered from October to September to match the fiscal year.
The chart’s height is scaled to that destination’s maximum. It is useful for seeing its seasonal pattern, but the heights on two separate destination pages are not directly comparable. Use the side-by-side tool to compare dollar amounts for the same month.
Split a trip at the boundary
If one month’s ceiling is $150 and the next is $180, a hypothetical three-night stay with one night in the first month and two in the next has a $510 room ceiling: $150 + $180 + $180. Multiplying three nights by the first night’s rate would understate the limit by $60.
That arithmetic example illustrates the method; it is not a quoted rate for a real destination. The calculator applies the actual official rate separately to every night.
A peak is neither an average nor a price
The changes page compares the highest monthly ceiling in each edition. That peak may occur in a different month in each year. To understand your own trip, compare the same month on the detail page.
A seasonal ceiling does not guarantee hotel availability or prove what hotels will charge. Federal travelers still need to follow booking requirements and obtain authorization if normal limits cannot be met.
Official sources
This guide explains a general method. Your travel authorization and applicable policy determine the claim. Report a correction.