Escape the package holiday

Travel website, i-escape.com, turns the idea of the traditional package tour on its head by offering the discerning traveller with a list of hidden gems to globe trot with a difference

If you are one of those travellers who plan a holiday meticulously and love discovering little-known hideaways, you must check out i-escape.com. In a jiffy, the experts on this website (it specialises in 'uncovering some of the world's best kept travel secrets') will take you to unheard of places, help you make a booking and, if you're lucky, get you special discounts and freebies too.



Started by travel enthusiasts Laila Ram (a former management consultant) and Nikki Tinto (a former investigator), the award-winning website has a string of regular and freelance contributors who not only share a passion for travelling but love the unusual experience.

Destinations mentioned on the website have been personally visited either by the core team of one of the contributors so you can expect authentic information, great detail and lots of photos. The website steers clear of large hotel chains and resorts and instead brings you bed-and-breakfast or boutique set ups in the Rs 3,000 to Rs 35,000 range.

Although they offer online booking services, i-escape.com insists it is not a front for a travel agent or tour operator and that hotels do not pay them to be featured on the website. Their USP is their independent, highly researched interactive travel guide.

In fact, we were impressed with their travel options for India. The focus, unsurprisingly, was on Rajasthan, Kerala and Goa but we managed to find a couple of places including the Hermitage Guesthouse, near Belgaum in Karnataka and The Dune, near Pondicherry, are definitely worth a look in before we plan our next
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