Briton Jared Nehra tried last week to book a package holiday to Beijing for next summer's Games through Thomas Cook, the UK's leading travel agent, and was told to call back later in the year as no bookings can be made prior to 331 days before the event.

Lin Zeshuai's father and daughter prepare beds for their family inn.

"Actually, you're the first person I've had calling about the Beijing Games," said saleswoman Kirsty Neilson.

Although it is still early days, waiting lists at top hotels in the Chinese capital are already filling up, with prices either not-yet-fixed or rapidly spiraling out of control.

The Shangri-La Beijing, an international brand five-star hotel, has already filled 70-80 percent of its rooms for August 2008 by putting guests on a waiting list, but has not yet fixed its prices, according to its local sales department.

Another five-star hotel, Kunlun, which will allocate 70 percent of its rooms to accredited clients of the Olympic Family, plans to raise its deluxe room rate from 1,280 yuan ($165) at present to 12,000 yuan per night during the Games - an almost tenfold increase.

This has caused concern among the local media that such profiteering may drive potential Olympic fans away unless the government steps in and issues a set ceiling, something the city's policymakers are reluctant to do.

"The hotels are fully within their rights to determine what room rates they are going to charge their guests during the Games," said Beijing Vice-Mayor Ding Xiangyang. "The government won't arbitrarily set the prices."

Ding suggested that basic economics laws at play would ensure the situation takes care of itself.

"Beijing has enough resources to accommodate all of the Olympic tourists, so the hotels cannot set their prices unreasonably high.

"As well as the star-rated hotels, the city has over 4,000 unrated hotels, and some local companies have their own guesthouses. The government is also busy selecting suitable households to provide lodgings for international guests," he added.

There are also traditional-style guesthouses in Beijing's hutong, or preserved alleyways, which currently offer rooms for 100 yuan a night, although these are expected to be snapped up next summer by students and visitors traveling on shoestring budgets.

So far, in fact, there are few indications that the rising prices are having a negative impact.

"At present, reservations are steadily coming in and the prices appear acceptable to both sides. So the administration has no plans to intervene," said Du Jiang, director of Beijing Tourism Administration, speaking late last month at the Beijing International Tourism Expo 2007.

He said the government would only step in if hotels begin asking visitors to pay outrageous prices "such as $10,000, despite having plenty of vacancies."

Beijing is famed for its sense of history and exoticism, offering such treats as the Forbidden City, the Great Wall and Peking roast duck, and its affordability. The last thing the city wants is for tourists to leave next summer feeling like they've been squeezed for all they are worth. But then again, the Olympics have never been cheap.

And the local hospitality industry knows it.

"The prices of hotel rooms, vehicles and tour guides in Beijing during the Olympic Games will all be at least four times higher than normal," said Yao Yuecan, president of the China International Travel Service Head Office.

He said few local tourist agencies or hotels have released their prices yet because "booking these services in advance will put a lot of pressure on our capital flows and thus create a lot of risk."

Another sticking point is the questionable availability of tickets for popular Olympic events, from basketball to diving to the opening ceremony, he added.

Of all the 60 hotels in Beijing listed on an online hotel reservation website, only two have come out with an "Olympic price list." Wangfujing Grand Hotel in the city's downtown business district will, for example, jump to 5,700 yuan from 699 yuan at present.

The rest are waiting for the market to give them a clearer pricing signal, treading carefully not to repeat the mistakes made by their forebears during the 2004 Athens Games, when rocketing prices deterred sports fans and forced many hotels to suddenly drop their prices days before the Games to fill vacancies.

If you wish to book early to guarantee your place at the table next summer, your best bet is to make a group reservation. This is less likely to see you being told to call back later, and more likely to result in a negotiated off-the-table price.

Do not expect early-bird discounts, bear in mind that you may have to abide by the hotels' minimum-stay rules -- such as booking for seven straight days during the Games - and, if you are really well-off, you may have to accept a downgrade: Olympic officials and sponsors booked all the best rooms years ago.

BOCOG, the organizing committee of the Beijing Games, has signed service contracts with 112 star-rated hotels here. This has effectively swallowed up 70 to 95 percent of their rooms, which are mostly located in the northern part of the city, where many of the Olympic venues are housed.

If you are an accredited participant of the Games, such as a sponsor or organizer, BOCOG has also vowed to protect you.

"As we promised in our Olympic bid, the highest price for a standard room for accredited participants will be no higher than $370," Xiang Ping, vice-director of the Games Services Department of BOCOG, announced recently.

With more domestic travelers preferring to stay in star-rated hotels, the local tourism administration plans to upgrade 1,000 unrated hotels this year, said Du Jiang, Beijing's tourism chief.

Beijing now has 280,000 star-rated hotel rooms with 570,000 beds. At least 10 more hotels in this bracket will be added from April-December 2007, providing the city with a further 3,121 high-quality rooms. The same thing will happen in 2008, according to market projections by Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels.

An estimated 550,000 overseas tourists and 2.58 million domestic visitors will arrive in Beijing for the Games next August.