Travel Management Software: A Guide for Project Teams in 2025

Project managers know the drill. You book rooms on Booking.com, track expenses in spreadsheets, and spend weeks chasing contractors for receipts. Meanwhile, your finance team reconciles dozens of credit card charges while crews use personal cards because corporate cards don't work at check-in.

When projects shift—and they always do—you lose money on non-refundable bookings or pay hefty change fees. Most travel platforms assume you have dedicated travel coordinators and approval workflows that slow down real work.

The truth is, most travel management software is built for consultants flying business class, not construction crews needing 15 rooms near a job site or manufacturing teams tracking costs by project code.

This guide walks through what actually works for project-based companies that need to book crews, track costs, and handle the operational reality of field work—starting with Engine, the only platform built specifically for teams who do the real work.

Why Engine Works for Project Teams

Before diving into specific categories, here's why Engine consistently outperforms generic travel platforms for project-based companies:

Universal Booking Platform: Book flights, hotels, and car rentals in one place. No jumping between systems or losing corporate rates.

Up to 60% Cost Savings: Negotiated rates that actually matter for project budgets, not theoretical "savings" that disappear at checkout.

Project Code Integration: Tag every booking with job numbers so costs roll up correctly without manual work.

FlexPro Protection: Company-wide coverage for modifications and cancellations when project timelines shift—which they always do.

Direct Bill & Incidental Coverage: Engine pays upfront and invoices monthly. Your crews check in without credit card hassles.

24/7 Support: Real support for real problems, not chatbots that can't handle weather delays or site access issues.

Most platforms treat business travel like vacation booking with corporate discounts. Engine treats it like the operational necessity it is for companies that build, manufacture, and maintain the infrastructure we all depend on.

1. Expense Management

Finance managers tell us the same story: "We're drowning in receipts from 30 different crew members across 12 job sites, and half the charges don't match our records."

The problem isn't just tracking expenses—it's the manual work that happens when your current system can't handle project-based workflows.

The Real Problem: Manual Work That Never Ends

Most companies start with what seems logical: QuickBooks for accounting, personal credit cards for bookings, and spreadsheets to bridge the gap. This creates three major pain points:

Receipt chaos from field crews who travel to remote sites without reliable internet, lose paper receipts, or can't remember which project to charge expenses against.

Working capital constraints when employees use personal cards for group bookings, then wait 30 days for reimbursement while your company's cash flow suffers.

Project cost allocation nightmares where finance teams spend 13+ hours per project manually categorizing expenses and chasing missing documentation.

Engine's Expense Integration

Engine eliminates expense management headaches by connecting travel bookings directly to your project codes. When someone books through Engine, costs automatically flow to the right job without manual categorization.

The platform's direct billing means no personal credit cards, no reimbursements, and no working capital problems. Monthly invoices show costs by project with all supporting documentation attached.

For companies needing deeper expense management beyond travel, these platforms handle the complexity of project-based operations:

Ramp

Ramp adapts to how construction and manufacturing teams actually work. The platform automatically categorizes expenses and matches receipts through built-in scanning technology. Your crew takes a photo of the receipt, and Ramp handles the rest.

For project teams, Ramp delivers real-time spending insights by job number. You can see exactly what each project costs as it happens, not three weeks later. Teams earn 1.5% cashback on all travel expenses, and the platform connects directly to QuickBooks.

Brex

Brex works well for smaller companies and growing teams. The mobile app is fast and intuitive—important when your crew is filling out expense reports from a job site with spotty cell service.

Brex sends immediate notifications after every transaction, prompting users to categorize expenses while they still remember what they were for.

Emburse

Emburse handles project-based complexity by separating employee expenses, team costs, and centralized spending—critical for companies managing multiple active jobs.

The platform connects to existing accounting systems, so financial data flows automatically instead of requiring manual entry.

2. Flight Booking

Operations managers consistently report the same frustration: "We need reliable flights for our crews, but every booking platform assumes we want the cheapest option with three connections."

The challenge isn't finding deals—it's finding flights that actually work for project timelines and crew logistics.

Why Standard Flight Search Doesn't Work for Project Teams

Consumer travel apps are designed for leisure travelers who have flexibility with dates and times. Project-based companies need the opposite:

Schedule predictability because missing a connection means delaying project milestones and potentially costing thousands in standby time.

Group coordination when you're flying 8 technicians to the same location and need them arriving within a few hours of each other.

Change management for when projects shift timelines—which happens constantly in construction, manufacturing, and energy work.

Engine's Flight Platform

Engine's Universal Booking Platform handles flights as part of their integrated travel management approach. Instead of searching consumer sites that prioritize price over reliability, Engine pre-filters options based on corporate travel needs.

The platform offers negotiated rates on flights and handles group bookings without forcing you to call airlines directly. When project timelines change, you can modify bookings through the app with FlexPro protection covering change fees.

Group coordination becomes simple when you can book multiple travelers on the same flights and track everything through one dashboard with unified invoicing.

Alternative Platforms

For companies that prefer standalone flight booking, these platforms handle business travel better than consumer sites:

Navan

Navan (formerly TripActions) combines travel booking with expense tracking, though it's designed more for consultants and white-collar business travelers than project teams. The platform offers corporate rates and group booking capabilities, but lacks the project-specific features that construction and manufacturing teams need.

TravelPerk

TravelPerk provides clean booking interface and automatic notifications about flight changes. The platform is free for up to five bookings per month, making it viable for smaller project teams, but lacks the robust project tracking and direct billing that larger crews require.

Direct Airline Relationships

Some operations teams build relationships with one or two carriers. Southwest Business (SWABIZ) works well for companies within Southwest's route network, providing corporate promotions and tracking tools that work with project codes.

3. Car Rental

Field supervisors know this scenario: Your technician lands at the airport, gets to the rental counter, and discovers the reservation doesn't include the insurance coverage required for job site work. Now they're stuck paying extra fees or spending an hour on the phone with your office.

The Hidden Complexity of Business Car Rentals

Car rentals seem straightforward until you factor in the operational requirements of project work:

Job site access requirements where standard passenger cars can't handle unpaved roads or need specific insurance coverage.

Tool and equipment transport when your crew needs vehicles that can safely carry equipment to remote locations.

Extended rental periods for projects lasting weeks or months, where daily rates add up differently than weekly or monthly pricing.

Corporate liability coverage that protects your company when employees drive rental vehicles for business purposes.

Engine's Integrated Car Rental

Engine's Universal Booking Platform includes car rentals with transparent corporate pricing and fast pickup processes. The platform handles insurance coverage, additional driver costs, and modification policies upfront during booking, eliminating surprises at the rental counter.

When project timelines change, FlexPro protection covers modification fees. Direct billing means no credit card authorization hassles, and unified invoicing keeps all transportation costs organized by project.

Alternative Car Rental Options

Avis and Enterprise Direct

Both Avis and Enterprise have built their business programs around companies with mobile workforces.

Avis Business Programs include small business discounts, best price guarantees with an additional 10% off matching rates, and E-toll coverage for Northeast travel.

Enterprise Business Programs focus on transparent upfront pricing and extensive pickup locations near airports and job sites. Their pickup service works well for crews arriving by air.

Both companies handle corporate accounts differently than individual reservations, enabling faster pickup and fewer delays.

4. Hotels

Here's what doesn't work: Searching through thousands of hotel options that don't meet your crew's needs, comparing rates on multiple sites, then finding out the "deal" doesn't include breakfast or parking fees that add $50 per night.

Construction crews, manufacturing teams, and field service technicians need accommodations that consumer travel sites don't filter for—extended stay options near job sites, properties that handle group bookings, and reliable Wi-Fi for end-of-day reporting.

The Group Booking Challenge

Try booking 15 rooms through Booking.com or Expedia. You'll quickly discover that consumer platforms aren't designed for group reservations. You'll end up calling hotels directly, losing negotiated rates, and dealing with individual confirmation numbers instead of centralized management.

Project-based companies need booking engines that understand operational requirements:

Job Site Proximity: Hotels near active construction sites, manufacturing plants, or energy installations—not tourist attractions or downtown business districts.

Extended Stay Capabilities: Properties with amenities like kitchenettes and laundry facilities that matter for long-term stays.

Group Coordination: Single-invoice billing, room block management, and the ability to modify multiple reservations when project timelines change.

Engine: Built for Group Accommodations

Engine was built specifically for companies that manage crews, handle group bookings, and need project-level cost tracking—not individual business travelers staying in downtown hotels.

Group Booking Engine: Handle reservations for 9 to 9,000+ rooms with dedicated trip managers who negotiate rates and manage logistics. No calling hotels individually or losing corporate discounts.

Project Cost Tracking: Custom fields for job numbers, cost centers, and project codes track expenses correctly from booking through invoicing. Your finance team gets clean data instead of manual work.

Direct Bill and Incidental Coverage: Engine pays hotels upfront and sends unified monthly invoices, eliminating credit card authorization hassles. Your crews check in like VIPs.

FlexPro Protection: Company-wide coverage for modifications and cancellations when project timelines shift. Average savings of $440 per cancellation.

The platform partners with over 700,000 hotels worldwide and focuses on properties that meet business traveler needs. Engine has booked over 23 million nights and serves 75,000 monthly users.

Negotiated rates, central invoicing, multi-room booking, and 24/7 support—built for companies that understand the difference between booking one room for a sales call and booking 47 rooms for an installation crew.

5. Entertainment

Your crew is working a three-week project away from home. Keeping morale up matters for productivity and retention, but you can't spend your time researching entertainment options for every destination.

The practical approach: Offer company-wide discounts and let each person control their free time.

Why Employee Perks Matter for Project Work

Field crews and traveling technicians often work extended hours in challenging environments. Small perks that make their downtime more enjoyable translate directly to:

Better retention rates when employees feel the company cares about their well-being during extended assignments.

Improved productivity from crews who aren't stressed about personal expenses while traveling for work.

Better company culture that recognizes the sacrifices employees make when working away from home.

The Low-Maintenance Approach

Instead of trying to coordinate entertainment for different personalities across multiple job sites, focus on broad-based benefits that require minimal administrative effort.

Our Pick: Tickets at Work

Tickets at Work provides company-wide access to discounted entertainment, shopping, and experiences without requiring ongoing management from your team.

The program includes reduced prices for theme parks like Disney World and Universal, discounts at major retailers, cheap movie tickets, and local attraction deals. Employees access everything through their own accounts, and customer service handles individual questions 24/7.

This creates a valuable employee benefit that costs nothing to administer and requires almost no setup beyond initial registration.

6. Meeting Services/Event Management

Planning events from a distance creates obvious challenges—you can't personally inspect venues, coordinate with local vendors, or handle day-of-event logistics. The software you choose needs to bridge that gap effectively.

The Remote Planning Challenge

Project-based companies often hold events in locations where they're working—client sites, regional conferences, or training sessions at manufacturing facilities. Planning these events remotely requires different capabilities than booking standard business travel.

Venue Research and Selection: Finding appropriate venues near job sites or client locations, with the right capacity and technical capabilities for business presentations.

Vendor Coordination: Managing catering, audio/visual equipment, and other services without local contacts or direct oversight.

Hybrid Event Management: Coordinating in-person attendance with remote participants who can't travel to the event location.

What Event Management Software Should Handle

Good platforms manage the entire event lifecycle while accounting for the logistical constraints of project-based work.

Location-Based Venue Matching: Advanced search filters that identify venues based on proximity to job sites, capacity requirements, and necessary amenities like parking and AV equipment.

Vendor Network Access: Direct connections to local service providers with vetted quality ratings and transparent pricing.

Registration and Communication Tools: Fast attendee management that connects with your existing contact systems and handles both employee and client invitations.

Our Pick: Cvent

Cvent handles the complexity of planning events across multiple locations while managing virtual, in-person, and hybrid formats.

The platform filters venue searches based on your specific requirements and connects you directly with properties. Collaboration tools help coordinate with local vendors, while marketing and registration features handle attendee communication automatically.

The investment in event management software typically pays for itself through increased efficiency and better vendor negotiations.

Conclusion

Projects shift. Equipment breaks. Weather happens. Your travel platform should handle reality, not assume perfect conditions.

Construction teams need group booking capabilities and project cost tracking. Manufacturing companies need reliable flight options and extended stay accommodations. Energy and logistics firms need flexible change policies and direct billing to handle unpredictable schedules.

Most travel platforms are built for consultants. They assume you have dedicated coordinators, flexible schedules, and single-person bookings. They're designed for people who file expense reports, not people who build things.

Engine is built for project teams. Universal booking for flights, hotels, and cars. Direct billing that eliminates credit card hassles. FlexPro protection when plans change. Project code integration that works. Group booking that actually works for groups.

For 2025, what actually works for project teams:

• Comprehensive Travel Management: Engine for flights, hotels, cars, and project tracking in one platform
• Expense Management: Ramp for automated project tracking Brex for smaller teams, Emburse for complex project needs
• Entertainment: Tickets at Work for zero-maintenance employee benefits
• Events: Cvent for remote planning and execution

Good travel management isn't complicated. It's just not built for consultants.

A good corporate travel policy ensures every trip delivers value for the project budget. Using a platform like Engine that understands the operational reality of project work gives you professional coordination without the enterprise complexity that slows down real work.

Sign up for your free Engine account now!