The Air Force is seeking a commercial hotel partner to take over on-base lodging at 58 installations across the U.S. and its territories. The service expects to finalize leases and transfer operations by fall 2027. (Courtesy photo)
The Air Force plans to privatize on-base lodging at 58 installations across the U.S. and its territories, marking a shift in how the service maintains and manages its hotel facilities.
The service said it is seeking a national hotel partner under a 50-year lease to ensure long-term revitalization and upkeep of the properties. The move comes amid what the service described in a statement as “evolving funding priorities.”
The transition will roll out in phases, starting with 23 installations stretching from Alaska to Florida, according to the statement. The Air Force expects to select a partner by summer 2026, with leases finalized and operations transferred by fall 2027.
The change follows a 2018 Pentagon directive that eliminated taxpayer support for military lodging and required such facilities to become self-sustaining.
In response, the Air Force increased nightly rates in 2019 and began closing select facilities in 2022 due to funding shortfalls.
While the Air Force has not said whether privatization will lead to higher prices, comparisons with Army lodging suggest that could be the case.
The Army began privatizing its on-base hotels in 2009, turning over aging facilities to InterContinental Hotels Group, the parent company of Candlewood Suites and Holiday Inn, for renovation or replacement.
The shift improved infrastructure in some areas but also led to higher nightly rates.
At Fort Carson, Colo., for example, summer rates advertised Tuesday at the installation’s Candlewood Suites are $15 per night higher than those at the Pikes Peak Lodge on nearby Peterson Space Force Base, which is operated without taxpayer funding by Air Force Inns.
Both facilities are in the same county and fall under the same lodging rate limit set by the Defense Travel Management Office.
A larger price gap exists in Alaska, where a room at the Holiday Inn Express on Fort Wainwright costs $69 more per night than a stay at Eielson Air Force Base’s Gold Rush Inn. Both installations share a lodging cap of $254 per night.
Some military lodging facilities allow leisure stays, while others are solely for official travel. For stays such as permanent change-of-station moves, lodging costs are typically covered by the military.
That means privatization should not cause higher out-of-pocket expenses for service members on official travel. However, increased nightly rates would drive up overall Air Force travel costs.
