For ease of research and real-time reservations, the Web is a superior tool for finding a hotel room. Here are some sites that can help you find a good deal on a Washington-area hotel room. Where available, the links below lead directly to Washington-specific search pages.

Hotel Reservations Network
This site offers a large inventory of brand-name properties in the Washington area. Their strength is mid-range to budget hotels and motels, and the ability to deliver discount prices and availability on sold-out dates.

Quikbook
Quikbook offers reduced rates on a mostly moderate-to-upscale inventory of hotels in several U.S. cities. This is not the place to score bargain-basement lodging; but if you're looking for a nicer hotel in Washington, Quikbook can reliably deliver a room at a price well below published rates.

Travelscape
This is a full service booking site, but its strength is in the areas of vacation packages and hotel deals, where it is able to negotiate proprietary rates. Travelscape delivers discount prices for mostly mid-range properties in and around Washington.

Travelocity and Expedia
The so-called big two of travel booking have an impressive inventory of area hotel properties, and are able to incorporate corporate and other discount rates (AAA, AARP, etc.) into their databases.

www.bbonline.com
BBOnline is an excellent tool to search for an inn or bed and breakfast. As well as several listings in the Washington area, this site also has a good assortment of properties throughout the mid-Atlantic, with hundreds of listings in regional vacation spots. Note: Very few B&Bs offer online booking, so you'll probably need to pick up the phone to book a room.

Hotel Chain Web Sites
Many chains now offer Internet-only discounts, so it's worth checking the corporate site before making a reservation. This is especially the case for last-minute deals, as many chains offer deep discounts to fill rooms that are unreserved for the coming weekend.

-- Ben Abramson