World's top ten quirkiest hotels

The most unusual and unique hotels in the world have been tracked down to give holidaymakers looking for something different the ultimate list.

The top ten includes hotels that are located deep in the Amazon rainforest, made of ice and built into ancient caves.

In the number one spot is the Ice Hotel Quebec-Canada, a breathtaking building made of ice that features an ice chapel, an ice bar and an art gallery with ice sculptures. Holiday activities on offer at the hotel include cross-country skiing, ice fishing, archery, snowmobiling, snow tubing and even dogsled driving.

Europe's quirkiest hotel, according to the study, is Britain's Malmaison Oxford Castle, the first UK prison to be converted into a hotel. Without its iron-barred windows and hard beds, the property offers luxurious accommodation near one of the UK's top historical cities, and at reasonable prices.

A nautical experience can be had at the Imperial Boat House in Ko Samui, Thailand. With 34 authentic teakwood rice barges converted into land-locked luxury suites, lavish outdoor pools surrounded by a lush garden, beach-front, a boat-shaped pool and original canons, this is an ideal place for an exotic holiday.

Canada is the only country to make it in the list twice, thanks to the extreme way Canadian hoteliers choose to combat their extreme weather. The Fantasyland Hotel & Resort in Edmonton is the nemesis of the Ice Hotel Quebec.

It is an over-the-top all-year-round indoor paradise that is a shock to the senses. With temperatures of -30 degrees common in Edmonton, this hotel is ideal for families as it has a huge 217,800 square-foot indoor water park, an indoor ice rink, indoor golf and even its own indoor roller coaster ride.

The lush greens and tree-tops of the Amazon Rainforest are well in reach of holidaymakers going to Ariau Amazon Towers Hotel in Manaus, Brazil, which accommodates its guests seventy feet up into the forest.

The hotel features catwalks connecting an entire tree-top complex, along with holiday activities including a jungle walk, swimming with dolphins, a caiman hunt and even piranha fishing. The rooms are rustic and set in amongst the incredible wild flora and fauna. Do not be surprised to see monkeys and parrots at your window.

The Al Maha Desert Resort in Dubai is the holiday that lets you really get away from it all. Set in the middle of the Dubai Desert, the Al Maha Desert Resort is an oasis with luxurious accommodations, including private pools and an authentic "Bedouin" encampment design.

Activities that might be hard to find anywhere else include sand dune driving, falconry and camel trekking.

The ultimate luxury cave experience is the Yunak Evleri, in Urgup, Turkey. A hotel carved out of a stunning mountain-side cliff, its honeycombed structure includes six cave houses, with rooms connected by narrow, maze-like passageways and stone stairways.

Decorated in Ottoman style, Yunek Evleri provides private patios offering dramatic views of the Turkish Mesa.

The list has been put together by the website TripAdvisor based on hotels that were most popular with visitors and the site's editors.
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