TYPES OF ACCOMMODATION

Where would you like to stay?

There are many different types of accommodation.

Think of the advantages and disadvantages of each type.

Which would you choose? Why?

Hotels provide private serviced rooms for guests. They range from very basic budget-style to extremely luxurious accommodation.

Hostels (often referred to as "youth hostels" or "backpackers") are a loosely-defined form of guesthouse, generally low-budget compared to other places to sleep. Although often used by youth there is usually no upper age limit

Capsule hotels are a cheap form of accommodation in Japan, usually more or less on par with a dorm bed in a hostel, in terms of pricing. The "rooms" are little more than small one-person capsules with only a mattress, radio, and TV.

Note that most capsule hotels are segregated by gender, while many, if not most, don't accept female guests at all.

Bed and Breakfasts (B&Bs) and Guesthouses provide hotel style rooms. However, they are typically smaller residences and you will interact with your hosts and other guests, often eating together and sharing common spaces. Bed and Breakfasts and Guesthouses are found both inside and out of major centers. There are many associations and websites that offer help finding a Bed and Breakfast in your travel area.

Motels. Rooms usually open out to a parking lot. As the name implies it caters mostly to motorists.

A hospitality exchange or home stay network is an organization that connects travellers with local residents in the cities they're visiting. If travellers can connect with the right people at the right time, they can get room and sometimes board in the place they're visiting for free or at a deep discount. Network size goes from a few thousands to a hundred thousands, and most networks are growing steadily.

Serviced apartments offer the comfort, privacy and flexibility of a self-catering property, combined with a city centre location and often with the added benefits of many hotel-type services – such as maid service, room service and reception.

Holiday villages/ resorts. With pools, sports centres, horse riding, evening entertainment, and many other activities you can’t help but have fun. Many also have a ‘Kids Club’, so Mum and Dad can relax a little more during their stay. From the more traditional holiday camps, to the modern climate-controlled sites, they are a great way of combining accommodation with on-site leisure facilities and entertainment.

Car camping, Caravanning, RV camping... it goes by many names, and the experience varies widely, but this form of camping involves carrying your equipment in your motor vehicle, which you drive right to your campsite. Unlike more traditional camping, car camping allows you to carry quite a bit more equipment, and the focus is usually to enjoy the site, cook-outs, day hikes, and other outdoor activities

Camping is do-it-yourself accommodation: you carry your roof and your bedding in your backpack or your car. It's often the only choice of accommodation you have when you're travelling off the beaten track, but there are also very popular sites for camping holidays.

Vacation rentals. Many residents of popular tourist destinations lease their houses and apartments to vacationers. The residence may have been bought specifically for this purpose or the normal occupants may vacate it during some parts of the year.

Exotic hotels in sandstone

caves: Goreme(Turkey), Ia(Santorini, Greece)

in rock caves: Matala(Greece) on trees: Rafter's Retreat in Kitulgala(Sri

Lanka); tree houses in Çıralı(Turkey) on rock cliffs ice hotels: Jukkasjärvi(Sweden), Norway,

Canada, Finland and Romania: Ice hotel island hotels: Sveti Stefan (originally a fishers

village) underwater bedroom: Conrad Maldives

Rangali Island (Maldives)

Can you think of any other types of accommodation?

Which ones have you stayed in?

Which is the weirdest place you’ve ever stayed in?