Written by Peter Brooker in Travel on the 14th July 2015

You may be looking to impress a date, your wife, or keep the mistress sweet. Why not keep the lady on her toes and whisk her away somewhere different. After all, the secret to sustaining a good relationship is to keep each other guessing, to surprise each other constantly, and to remember to delete your internet history from all the erroneous sites you may have "accidentally" clicked on whilst your wife was at her Pilates class. Here are the top 5 hotel alternative ways to travel.

Beds on Board

You'll feel like your ship has literally come in once you set up camp in the Sunseeker Powerboat, docked at the Haven harbour in Lymington. Outside there is a massive cockpit area with a full canopy, overlooking Lymington River, with views to the Isle of Wight and the Needles. The outside living area is perfect for lounging around, night or day. The only thing you'll need to avoid is the temptation to sail the damn thing to France after a couple of bottles of vino. The kitchen (galley) is set up for very basic meals, as there is only a 2-burner halogen hob, and a microwave and you can even utilize the large sunbed on the front of the boat. The Haven harbour (co-owned by Chris Evans) is open for breakfast and stays open all day. There are another two pubs within a 5 minute walk, and loads more within a 15 minute walk. The only downside is due to marine law, you can't curl one out in the Powerboat, so leave yourself plenty of time to reach the Restroom in the harbour should you need to use the big white telephone.

Flip Key

Flip Key feature 300,000 vacation homes located in over 11,000 cities throughout the world. Every owner is verified by Flip Key staff to ensure you are only dealing with nice and trusted people. Although you should still never trust a man with a beard or toothbrush moustache. They feature the largest collection of authentic guest reviews and photos in the industry. Always check this site before purchasing your holiday as 5,000 special deals are featured on the site every day.

HomeAway

Not to be confused with antipodean soap opera on channel 5 where once every 5 years, someone gets eaten by a shark. HomeAway is part of the HomeAway family, the world’s most comprehensive, trusted source for holiday homes. The site certainly boast some beautiful homes that feature more space, privacy, and amenities than hotels, often for less than half the cost per person. HomeAway can be traced back to 1996, established in London, but has now spread all across the world, offering a global collection of sites to help families and friends create unforgettable travel experiences by staying together in holiday rentals. They specialize in providing travellers with the means to find their home away from home, where they can enjoy the added space, freedom and comfort of a holiday rental.

Cottages4U

As my Grandfather always used to tell me, "the best way to relax is to spend a weekend cottaging." I don't think he quite knew what he was referring to, or maybe he did. Regardless, Cottages4you provides fantastic, self-catering holiday cottages in the UK, France, Ireland and Italy. Perfect for a cosy romantic retreat, a fun-filled family getaway, or somewhere to escape and be with your thoughts. The site offers over 14,000 holiday cottages overall, ranging from a fisherman's cottage in Cornwall, to a rustic French gite or a terracotta-tiled villa in Tuscany.

Travel Counsellors

If you're too busy to organise your own holiday, or you're just a lazy a-hole, then arrange your very own personal Travel Counsellor to do all of the leg-work. They provide you with a simple and hassle-free way to compare, perfect, and book your holiday. By taking the time to get to know you personally, your Travel Counsellor will understand the places you like to visit, the things you love to do on holiday and any of those little requirements that make all the difference. Their inspirational tales range from surprise upgrades, to 3am wake up calls, to reuniting a lost teddy bear with its family, to quite simply, showing the stag-party where the strip house is.

We feature Flip Key, Beds on Board, Home Away, Cottages 4 U and Travel Counsellors in this guide to the Top 5 Hotel Alternative Ways to Travel.