Tech traveller: Fantastic places and where to find them

From luxury igloos to fairytale treehouses, there are many wonderful, bizarre and fantastic places in the world to bed down, but how on earth do you find them?

By Kate Russell
Published 8 Apr 2019, 23:40 BST, Updated 15 Jul 2021, 15:25 BST

Some of the world's most out-there accommodation is easier to find than you think.

Photograph by Getty Images

If you enjoy the great outdoors, Hipcamp lets you find and book unique camping experiences on over 300,000 campsites, ranches, vineyards and public parks, mainly in the US at the moment. The unusual listings include a ranch camp in Yellowstone or a roundhouse hut in the Puerto Rican Cloud Forest. 

Another website for camping fans, Tentrr, connects you with private landowners so you can pitch up and experience places that are completely off the tourist map. For a little more luxury, PlansMatter features homes across the world including Japan, Australia and Wales that could easily feature on Grand Designs.   

SecretEscapes, meanwhile, works directly with operators to secure exclusive deals, pledging to save you up to 60% on luxury hotels and holidays.

Many of these sites work on the 'peer-to-peer economy' business model, connecting renters with those who want to loan out their home via a website portal. Make sure you're financially protected by booking with a credit (not debit) card. Doing so means if the product (or holiday) you're buying costs over £100 and up to £30,000, you're covered by Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act.

Get the gadget // NextBase 612GW Dash Cam
When travelling by car it's worth thinking about getting a dash cam. For starters, you can use the footage as evidence if you have any incidents on the road. Some insurance providers even offer discounted premiums if you have one installed, so it's worth checking around. When you look at quality of the footage recorded on this 4K camera with 150% wide-angle lens, you could also find it provides a remarkable addition to your holiday memories folder. It's easy to mount and has an 'Intelligent Parking Mode', which will record footage if someone bumps into your car when unattended and leaves the scene. The company has a range of cameras going down to £49.99. RRP: £249.99. 

Published in the December issue of National Geographic Traveller (UK)

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