If you're thinking of making a last-minute Labor Day getaway, forget the beach (probably overbooked), and take yourself to a mountain bed-and-breakfast instead. Take a walk in the woods, a swim in the lake, enjoy the stars at night — and think about booking a mid-fall return for foliage season.

You can go online to check for last-minute availability, see room photos, get directions, maps, and, in some cases, price breaks.

www.bedandbreakfast.com lists more than 27,000 inns and bed-and-breakfasts around the world. The Book It Now feature allows you to search by state and book online. The site also has a Special Deals section. www.bbonline.com features 4,900 inns, mostly in the United States. You can't reserve your room online, but it's a useful locator, by state or category.

Here, three suggestions:

Meander Inn Bed and Breakfast, Nellysford, Virginia, the Blue Ridge mountains
Fresh eggs and homemade biscuits for breakfast, and something much harder to come by: "This is a place," says proprietor Francesca San Giorgio, "where children can go outside and do what children used to do." Five rooms, $105-$125 a night; www.meanderinn.com; 800-868-6116.

Green Trails Inn, Brookfield, Vermont, the Green Mountains
You can see the lake from Green Trails' front porch — and they'll lend you a canoe to paddle it. Thirteen antique-filled guest rooms, from $90-$164, two-night minimum on weekends; www.greentrailsinn.com; 800-243-3412.

Sierra Shangri-La Resort, Downieville, California, Sierra Nevada mountains
"I never sleep as well as I do there," says one regular. "You can take the clock and throw it in the river." Three B&B rooms ($70-$115), seven cabins that range from $85-$225 a night depending on season, location and size; www.sierrashangrila.com; 530-289-3455.