The absorption spectrum of HDO has been recorded by intracavity laser absorption spectroscopy in the 16 540-17 055 cm(-1) spectral region corresponding to the 5nu(3) band centered at 16 920 cm(-1). The (0 0 5) vibrational state is found to be mostly isolated from the nearby rovibrational states. The corresponding rovibrational transitions were analyzed and fitted in the frame of the effective rotational Hamiltonian model in Pade-Borel approximants form. The spectroscopic parameters retrieved from the fitting reproduce 100 of the 109 determined energy levels with the root-mean-square deviation of 0.0072 cm(-1), close to the experimental accuracy. From the integrated relative intensities of a- and b-type transitions, the angle between the transition moment and the OH bond is estimated to be 46.4 degrees. This value is consistent with an increasing tilt of the transition dipole moment, away from the OH bond, when the OH stretching is excited. The evolution of the orientation of the transition dipole moment versus the vibrational excitation is then compared for the OH and OD overtone bands. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.