Originally Posted by
mecabq
the U.S. State Department is probably the organization in the world whose size, geographic breadth, and resources make it best-positioned to calculate such rates. There is no need to grind your axe at an "Americocentric" approach. It's logical. It would be silly for a company to waste money compiling such a list when they can get it for free (courtesy of the American taxpayer) on the internet. .
These rates have been discussed here on FT before, but to give one example of why you would NOT use a US organisation (with a US organisation's sense of geography), stand at the front door of London Heathrow Terminal 5 and look northwards over the runway 27L threshold. The Sheraton to your half-right is in the London Borough of Hillingdon, and thus gets the London rate of USD 499 a day, whereas the comparable Marriott (with similar rates) to your half-left, equally served by the Heathrow Hoppa hotel bus shuttle, a bit further west along the A4 road, falls into "Other" (because it is over the boundary in Berkshire, with a Slough postal address and postcode on the receipt) and only allows half this amount, USD 255 a day.
Even Liverpool reimburses more. Liverpool !
