Escapism
Community-based tour operator Sumak Travel has introduced a new eco-adventure trip to Argentina. The 14-day tour includes a homestay with a family in rural northern Argentina and the chance to experience a tango milonga in Buenos Aires before visiting the Iguazu Falls. The trip costs £1,495pp, excluding flights, at least 40% of which goes to local communities (020-3642 4246, sumak-travel.org).
Travel trash
A London dominatrix is renting out a fetish room to couples wishing to live out their Fifty Shades of Grey fantasies. "The book has inspired people to get more adventurous in the bedroom and the requests are pouring through from new customers," says Georgina Wilde, who has equipped the room in her West End townhouse with flogging paddles, whipping benches and harnesses. Sure beats a kettle and a Corby trouser press.
• From £211 a night, wimdu.co.uk/offers/9IARXLUW
New hotel
French budget hotel chain Mama Shelter has made its first foray overseas, taking its signature blend of Gallic flair, Philippe Starck rooms, and hip DJ nights to Istanbul. If the success of the first two hotels in Paris and Marseilles is anything to go by, this new outpost will soon become the hottest addition to the city's buzzing Beyoglu district. Double rooms start at a wallet-friendly €79 a night (+90 212 252 0100, mamashelter.com).
The Guardian's new hotel booking service
The Guardian has launched a hotel booking site giving readers access to a selection of some of the best independent hotels, guesthouses, apartments and villas around the world. As well as boutique hotels, Guardian Destinations will feature more unusual accommodation options, including castles and university halls of residence.
"We wanted to widen our range beyond tours and city breaks, to enable our readers to personalise their getaways," says Sofia Rehn of Guardian Destinations. "All hotels will be individually chosen to ensure we offer the right mix."
Among the quirkier options are Godwin House B&B, a Tudor farmhouse in Kent which boasts a room in England's oldest oasthouse, and Fernie Castle Treehouse (pictured above), an arborial retreat in beautiful grounds near St Andrews.
• guardiandestinations.co.uk
Travel photography
Lumitrix is a new online photography gallery that aims to showcase the best emerging talent from around the world. It will sell the work of established and up-and-coming travel photographers for the democratic price of £50 a print. Highlights include mesmerising black-and-white images, by Mumbai-based snapper Kannagi Khanna, of slum-women posing alongside photos of Hollywood actresses, and tribal African shots by Matilda Temperley, younger sister of fashion designer Alice (lumitrix.com).
Cheap date
Children travel free on sailings to France booked with Brittany Ferries in the next two weeks. Valid for travel until 31 December, the deal is one of dozens being offered by ferry operators as part of National Ferry Fortnight, 2-16 March. There are also half-price day trips to the Channel Islands with Condor Ferries and 40% off mini-cruises from Newcastle to Amsterdam and Harwich to Esbjerg.
• discoverferries.com/nff2013
