Travel secrets for the bargain-hunter

NEW YORK -- Looking for a hotel bargain?

Then heed the findings of CheapTickets.com's "Cheapometer," which offers month-by-month projections for when hotel rates will be cheapest in 2008 in popular destinations around the world.

For example, hotels in Athens will be 68 percent cheaper in January than at its peak tourism period, the Web site said.

Other January bargains include Jackson Hole, Wyo., 64 percent cheaper than peak, and Paris, 48 percent cheaper, the site said.

Hotels in California's wine country in Napa and Sonoma is 47 percent cheaper in February than peak, CheapTickets said, and London is 35 percent cheaper in February.

Venice hotels are 55 percent cheaper in March than what you might pay other times of year, and Montreal is 40 percent cheaper that month.

Hotels in Hawaii are 22 percent cheaper in May than in peak season, according to CheapTickets.

For Las Vegas, the best time of year for snagging a cheap hotel room is June, when prices are 26 percent lower than peak, the Web site said,

And if you're looking for cheap in Miami, Jamaica or Cancun, try September, when prices are around 50 percent what you might pay otherwise. The tradeoff: You'll have to deal with hot weather and take a chance on a stay at the height of hurricane season.

CheapTickets calculated the differential by taking the average price of three-star hotels by month in each destination, and comparing the lowest monthly rate with the highest monthly rate over 12 months.