We unearth beautiful little hotels, boutique B&Bs and gorgeous rentals in some of the world's most stunning locations. Our 1,500-strong portfolio covers everything from country hotels to city apartments, beach houses to mountain B&Bs, family-friendly villas to honeymoon hideaways – across all budgets, from under £50 to over £500/night. Our key criteria?
Yes, our team of in-house writers and roving reviewers stays at every property on our site. That's how we're able to write such a detailed, personal and authoritative review. In a very few cases, while we await the best opportunity to travel, we write a holding review.
Exactly - with a free booking service and expert travel advice on tap. Call our team of consultants with questions about the accommodation or booking process. Browse our recommendations and blog for inspiration. When you're ready to book, please go through our site. We guarantee that you won’t pay any more than if you booked directly - and you’ll often get a free extra, such as a massage or a bottle of wine, to say thank you.
From any hotel page or listings page, click Book Now or Check Availability, then select your dates, room(s) and guests. In most cases you will have to wait a few hours for the hotel to confirm the price and availability; when they do, we'll alert you by email or SMS. In others, these will show immediately – in which case you can (assuming you’re ready) book it with a credit card.
Some hotels keep their availability constantly updated on i-escape, and can be booked instantly in one step - these are indicated by a lightning symbol on the booking button. But some of our smaller properties don't have the resources to do this, so they handle enquiries on a request basis i.e. you submit your dates and they quickly reply yes or no. We don't want to rule these places out: they're some of our favourite, under-the-radar gems. You won't find them on mainstream booking sites; or if you do, they often show full when they're not (as a precaution against overbooking). Our request system gives you the best chance of finding availability: even if they are full, owners can suggest alternate dates, or workarounds by changing room midstay. And you can ask questions before deciding.
It depends. Hotels with instant booking (lightning symbol) generally won't let you hold a room without paying a deposit. The others - especially villas and smaller B&Bs - may hold it for a day or two: if this is important to you, write a message in your enquiry asking if they can hold it briefly while you check flights or other properties.
Indeed you can – just specify the number and the ages of your children when booking. Each room or lodging shows the maximum occupancy and the exact bed types available, and the price updates automatically as you select. We have taken great care to get those details right, because we know they’re important (most of us travel with kids too). If the numbers don’t go as far as your group size, that’s because you’ve exceeded the maximum occupancy; don’t ignore that, because one of you may end up in the corridor.
When a price is prefixed "from" on the booking pages, this usually means that their room prices change frequently - often based on occupancy levels ('dynamic pricing') or other external factors which can't be fed into our system. In these cases, the "from" price shows the lowest typical price for the given room in the given season. Your actual quote may be higher, especially for peak times, but it will always be the same as if you book the same thing directly.
Some properties can't keep their availability constantly updated on i-escape (see above), so their rooms show as "On Request" during the booking process. In these cases, especially if you're booking popular dates or last-minute, they may well be fully booked. To mitigate against this, book early and (if you're flexible on dates) write your possible alternate dates in the message.
In most cases, you pay a small deposit online when you confirm your booking, and you pay the balance according to the property's payment schedule (this may be shortly after booking or at some point thereafter). Some hotels offer fully prepaid rates which are a bit cheaper - these will be labelled "Non-refundable" or "Prepaid" - in which case you pay the full amount at the time of booking, either online or offline. You can see the precise payment schedule under "Payment & Cancellation Policies" for your booking or your chosen property. You will need a credit card for all bookings.
We are PCI (Payment Card Industry) compliant, which means that we don’t store your full card details, we use the safest encryption when sending any sensitive data, and we have a rigorous code (including log tracking, file integrity monitoring and penetration testing) to protect ourselves from cyber-attack. If you have any concerns about our credentials, you are welcome to email or call us directly - or even to visit us in Bristol.
If you are having problem making the initial deposit payment by credit card (e.g. you've forgotten your 3D password, or the card is not being accepted), then call us during office hours and we can process the payment offline using our Chip and Pin machine.
No. None at all. We never charge any booking fee (or "service fee" as Airbnb call it), nor any credit card surcharges or membership costs. You pay exactly what the hotel quotes. (In a few cases, the property itself levies a small credit card charge due to their own banking costs, but this applies whether you book through us or directly, and you will be notified in advance).
If you want to change your dates (at the same property), please email the property directly to see if they have availability and will agree to a date change without any charge. Once you've done that, forward us the email so we can adjust the dates on our system, and ensure that any change in price or deposit amount is also reflected. If you want to book a different property, this counts as a cancellation (see below).
In the unfortunate event that you need to cancel a confirmed booking (and not just to change dates - see above), please first check the cancellation policy shown on your booking and, where relevant, your own travel insurance policy. It is important to be aware of what costs may be incurred. If you definitely want to proceed, please log into My Reservations, select the booking and click Cancel; you may want to write a short message to explain the circumstances. If you are cancelling within 3 days of arrival, we ask you to also contact the property directly by email or phone.
It’s simple, just choose your stay and type in the voucher code when you confirm your booking.
Then we'll email you a new gift voucher with the remaining balance. The expiry date will remain at 12 months after the original voucher delivery date.
When the amount you have been gifted exceeds the booking deposit, you will be asked to pay for your whole stay at the time of booking. Don’t worry: if you cancel, you’ll get any refunds due.
Yes, so long as they are purchased vouchers, rather than competition prizes or other giveaway vouchers. Just drop us a line and we’ll sort it out for you.
i-escape gift vouchers are only redeemable against the accommodation portion, as quoted and booked on the i-escape website.
The cancellation policy is listed on your booking confirmation - this varies for each property so please read it carefully. If refunds are due, they will be made by the same method as payment was made - i.e. refunded to your card, or reissued as a new voucher.
No problem, feel free to contact us and, in most cases, we’ll be happy to replace the code for you. When this happens, the original code will be voided.
Unfortunately i-escape gift vouchers are not refundable, but we’re confident we can help you find the perfect i-escape trip. Our participating boutique hotels, B&Bs and rentals includes something for every budget, with properties in the UK and around the world. Do contact us for personalised support and advice.
i-escape gift vouchers are redeemable up to 12 months after delivery date. The booking must be made within the 12 months, but the stay can fall outside of these dates.
Yes, just select "Gift Cards" during the purchase process.
Oh dear, not to worry, just contact us and we’ll investigate.
Yes - in addition to our price guarantee, our partner hotels regularly send us exclusive offers which are advertised in our monthly newsletters and in our Offers section. Many are exclusive to i-escape: you won’t find them anywhere else. And most hotels offer i-escape guests extra perks on arrival - room upgrades, champagne, massages etc. Occasionally, we run special promotions which require a code when booking - be sure to follow us in the usual ways.
i-escape is aimed at independently-minded travellers; we'll supply travel inspiration and help you sort your accommodation, but you'll have to book your own flights or transport. We list the airlines serving each destination (click on “Getting There” in any hotel’s Location section), and we recommend our favourite car hire and travel insurance companies, based on over 15 years' experience. If you need transfers on arrival, either ask the hotel (we indicate typical costs), or check our Location > Getting Around link, which summarises local transport options. If that's all too much and you just want someone to propose and book a bespoke itinerary for you, see our recommendations for Tailormade Tour Operators.
No - we don't sell flights or packages, so we are not bound by package holiday regulations. We are purely an accommodation bookings agent, and your contract is with the accommodation provider itself.
From 9am-6pm Monday-Thursday, and 9am-5pm Friday (UK times).
Our contact details are here
If you think your hotel or rental is perfect for i-escape, please check this summary of how we work first, and then apply to join from there. Do bear in mind that we are very selective, and that we visit every new property in person to write our own detailed review.
If you've visited a wonderful small hotel or villa / apartment rental which you think deserves to be included in our collection, please tell us about it here.
Ah, you’ll be wanting our Kids Collection – over 800 of our most family-friendly hotels, house- and apartment rentals, reviewed by parents for parents, and packed with practical details on everything from stair gates to craft clubs and adventure activities.
That’ll be our Honeymoon Collection – over 600 of our most seductive boltholes, reviewed by couples for couples, and chosen for their utterly sensuous bedrooms, their pampering spas, their secluded location or private beaches.
Yes, we list our favourites for all these, and more. You'll see all our top-rated places first, with a note to explain why (hover over the rating). You can then whittle them down by location, price etc.
Yes, yes and yes: check out our Editor's handpicked hotlists for these and more - including ski chalets, barefoot luxury and teenage kicks.
Most certainly. Bland chain hotels. Run-of-the-mill guesthouses. Amateurish house rentals. Unvetted private apartments. Over-decorated, overpriced design hotels. Under-staffed, underwhelming hostels. And anywhere that we don’t really love and wouldn’t rush back to given a few days’ leave.
It’s a mystery – and a source of great sadness to us. But don’t let others miss out: share the love with your facebook friends, your twitter followers and your real-life, flesh-and-blood mates. They’ll thank you for it.