No room at the inn?

Have you tried calling around only to find everything booked solid? Try these travel tips:

* Call direct

Calling a hotel directly, rather than using the chain's main number, might get you a room at the last minute or during peak travel times.

National reservations desks often have a cap on the number of rooms they can fill at any given hotel, with the rest left to the specific hotel staff. Those working at the front desk have a better sense of the hotel's capacity and will be more likely to check for cancellations or no-shows.

They can also often offer you better rates than you'll find online, and you can make specific requests such as a nice view, a cot or crib.

* Check the consolidators

Third-party consolidators such as Priceline.com, Expedia.com or CheapTickets.com are basically wholesalers often commit far in advance to buying a block of hotel rooms at a set price that they mark-up and re-sell later. Because of that, they are not only a good place to find discounted rooms, but a great place to look when you're having trouble finding a hotel room during a busy period.

Even if a hotel in Orlando has a "no vacancy" sign on it, a consolidator may well have a room available.

* Ask the attraction

If you are traveling for a meeting, or to go to a local attraction, one of the best calls you can make is to the organization or attraction itself.

It's probably not the first time their preferred or partner hotels have been sold out, and they may be able to tell you "unpublished" alternatives. I find that sob stories often work, especially if they're genuine, filled with detail, and presented with desperation - not anger - in your voice.