The Easy Way to Bag a Hotel Room Upgrade for No Extra Cost, According to a Travel Expert

• A travel expert has revealed the really easy way to bag a hotel upgrade for no extra cost, and this is the kind of advice we live for.

We've read so many things about how to get upgraded on a flight. Whether it's wearing the right clothes, the inflight meal you order or booking onto an oversubscribed plane, the mythical free flight upgrade is something we all strive for.

But what about getting your hotel room upgraded? While free Champagne and extra leg room on a flight is brilliant news, your hotel room is actually where you stay every night on your holiday, making it the height of importance.

So, how do you go about getting bumped from a normal room to a suite? From a substandard double bed to a king size with a view? Somewhere with a BATH?

According to the travel experts at Hotels.com, the trick isn't to pretend you're on honeymoon or attempt to flirt with the reception, but rather to check into your room late. This is because the most common level of room booking might now be full, meaning they have to upgrade you to one of the available - and more expensive - rooms.

"If you check in late, then there is a chance that the hotel might have run out of standard rooms," the insider tells Cosmopolitan UK. "Which is generally the room category the everyday traveler books, so an upgrade to a higher room category could be on the cards."

This does make sense in theory - if a hotel oversells the standard room on the basis that some customers might not turn up, and then you do but a bit later, they'll have to put you in one of the available ones.