I have stayed in some dumps in my time. So I know what it means to have a nice place to return to after a day’s exploring. With some savings and old age, clean and comfortable accommodation is a must now. Nothing too fancy or too expensive, although I would never decline such an offer.

These days I find myself as excited in the holiday destination as the holiday accommodation. Looking up unusual or quirky places to stay is really fun as there are so many different types to choose from. These alternatives to conventional hotels and B & B’s are popping up everywhere.

Recently my husband and I stayed in a purpose-built kampung or village-style house in Awanmulan, a retreat located in an authentic village environment outside Seremban.  Called the Sasterawan, the house we stayed in was a little escape from the siren-wailing, noise and air polluted KL city. We not only live right smack in the city but also where one of the MRT stations is being built. We are entertained by thunderous building noises and the beep, beep, beep sounds of reversing vehicles, 24×7, to boot.  A little rant. KL is a very livable city but it feels good to get away, even for a day.

Sasterawan is an open and airy kampung house that reminded me of the kampung houses I used to live in as a child in Alor Star, minus the bespoke balcony. The balcony sold it for me. As it was an exceptionally hot Saturday afternoon and bar air-conditioning, the balcony was the ideal place to sit and read, (no TV or Wi-Fi, yes this is true) to watch birds and listen to them chirp and sing, to enjoy the sunset and daybreak, and have dinner (BYO as dinner is only available with reservation for a minimum pax of 10) and breakfast (we had nasi lemak or coconut rice served by our host).

Although we stayed just one night, we actually felt refreshed as it forced us to slow down a little and not feel like we needed to do something or be accountable for every minute of the day. Not being in our own home, in a quieter and seemingly more relaxed setting made us enjoy our weekend more. This was especially so for my husband who left his novel at home and could not play his computer game as the internet speed was slow and disruptive (he assumed Wi-Fi would be available).

Staying in a house like Sasterawan reminded me of a few other interesting places that we had stayed in over the years. A similar concept but not quite was Eastern Pavilion in Cherating where we treated ourselves for one of our wedding anniversaries. It had 12 or so villas and each was named after a different state in Malaysia. Beautifully designed and landscaped, each villa had its own little garden and a plunge pool. The garden was reminiscent of well-tended kampong houses while the plunge pool was a luxury I wish I had in my kampong house. The villa was comfortable, with hardwood furniture and floors, a 4-poster bed, Wi-Fi access and satellite TV. It also had a veranda facing the pool. To me it was the perfect balance between old world and the necessary comforts of modern loving.

Another wonderful place we stayed in was the Krumlov Pension. Back in the day, when there was no mobile to call ahead or a Booking.com or Expedia.com, we just turned up and hoped we’d find a place to stay. And, what a place we found – a real tower in Cesky Krumlov in the Czech Republic.

A winding staircase, no less, led to our room that was located on the top most floor. Sans lifts, walking up with luggage was an effort but what was precious was the tower looked like something out of a fairy tale. Unusual holiday lets were already available in 2005.

Precious was also the igloo bungalow that we discovered by chance at the Quiver Tree Lodge/Rest Camp in Keetmanshoop, Namibia. We had visited the Quiver Tree Park as part of our one month driving holiday in Namibia, and needed a place to stay for the night.  Quite honestly we were very lucky to chance upon this novel holiday let. It was an interesting structure, and each igloo was shielded by trees, which made sitting outside almost safari-sh like.  For some reason it reminded me of a space ship. Quiver tree or kokerboom is a native desert plant of Namibia.

Last year we stayed in a tree house in Sussex, England. Far from being cramped and having to crawl around on my knees as I have always imagined tree-houses to be, this was a luxurious accommodation. The house was circular in shape, and its open plan interior hugged a living mature oak tree. Honestly, the tree was real and alive and in the middle of the house.  To get to the house, we had to walk across a rope bridge, which was such a happy experience. I couldn’t help but bounce on it. Why, because I could and it made feel young. It had everything we wanted – TV, Wi-Fi and a deck overlooking open fields. One relatively warm day when I was brave enough to sit out on the sun deck, I saw a mummy sheep and her kids grazing on the fields – picture perfect.

Clean and comfortable is a must-have but for me its the unusual accommodations that make for indelible memories and interesting conversations.