Whenever I’m in the mood for alternative travel experience that’s neither in the realm of traditional camping, nor in the mundane world of staying in big corporate hotel chains, I like to look for those out of the way places that challenge my sense of what it means to go on a camping holiday. This sort of thing is sometimes called “glamping,” as in “glam camping” or upscale camping. When I’m making my travel plans, I usually find myself skipping over big hotels and even inns and instead looking for unique holiday cottages.

Rather than exclusively travel to major cities, I like to use my free time and vacation budget to explore interesting corners of America (and sometimes exciting places abroad). These smaller towns and villages can be a great place to experiment with unique holiday cottages like you won’t find anywhere else. I once had a a really great stay in a shepherds hut, then moved on to one of a chain of small locally owned villages in France.

I haven’t tried all of these yet, but if you know where to look you can even go on holiday in a tipi (which is a lot more comfortable and spacious than a conventional tent), or do your holiday in a yurt, which is a sort of hut that’s been used pretty much forever by nomads in central Asia. I was also lucky enough to find some really lovely and special unique holiday cottages abroad, including a really fantastic Scottish holiday cottage to which I may very likely return next year.

I guess I’m just rambling about unique holiday cottages, but I hope this gives you some idea of their appeal, or at least encourages you to try a locally owned option instead of a big hotel, maybe even something truly exotic like a converted train car or church (I’ve done both in various states around the U.S.) Unique holiday cottages aren’t always easy to find, but if you do some research, you’ll find out that the best out of the way vacation spots often have such options. Check out this website for more: www.oneoffplaces.co.uk