We come across so many travel websites that amuse, inspire and impress us, that we thought it was about time we shared them with you. Here's the first installment of our monthly travel websites round-up. If there's any you'd like to add, tell us about them using the comment form at the bottom of this article.

1. If you really want to up the stakes at your next dinner party "guess where I'm off to next" exchange, check out the list of alternative hotels on i-escape.com. Book into one of these bizarre bolt holes and you'll out-do even the most intrepid of travellers with stories of your stay in the Brazilian hotel that's shaped like a spaceship, or perhaps the suite with a treetop hot tub in Zanzibar. If you can't find what you want there, we'd also recommend Unusual Hotels of the World, where you can narrow your search for a bizarre hotel to find a lighthouse, floating hotel, or even one underwater.

2. FlightStats.com is a site that will appear to the nerdier traveller because it's stuffed full of statistics, as the name suggests. The latest tool is the global airport flight delay index, which can be used by air travellers to ascertain the likelihood of their flight being delayed. Just plug in your arrival or departure airport and you'll get a real-time flight delay index (updated every 30 minutes) ranging from 0 to 5, with a higher number meaning more likely delays. There's also a flight status service that will send text messages to you regarding the status of a specific flight (for the cost of a normal text message).

3. Nudging in on the already crowded marketplace of travel community sites is www.worldreviewer.com, but this site has an edge - its contributors are not only world-weary backpackers - they include hand-picked travel experts from around the world. It's been launched by the founders of Travel Intelligence, with over 100 travel experts and counting. They recommend their favourite destinations, places to stay, tours, tour operators and websites and also offer practical information like the best times of year to travel.

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Contributors include a couple of surfing champions, a leading volcanologist a Nasa scientist, but also users, who can add their reviews, photos and videos to the experts' opinions. The site builds a profile of its users and will recommend experiences based on the user's preferences. It has caught the attention of Yahoo, which voted it Travel Find of the Year 2007 - watch this space. On a similar vein, also check out Professional Travel Guide, which is written by travel journalists and has comprehensive guides to destinations, hotels, and cruises.

4. Another great site for upping the ante on your intrepid adventures is www.wildernessjourneys.com, which has just relaunched to great effect. The dramatic photo across the top of the homepage can't fail to inspire with its views of rugged African landscapes or a canoeist paddling towards a powerful waterfall. It's not just pretty pictures - there's tons of adventures, from once-in-a-lifetime challenges like skiing the Haute Route between Chamonix and Zermatt and trekking fromt he Andes to the Amazon, to less exotic trips mountain biking and sea kayaking in Scotland.

The search technology is spot on, allowing you to make your search as narrow or broad as possible, by choosing from the menus under holiday type, destination, holiday dates and difficulty grading. The trip information is comprehensive and there's a nod to eco tourism for the environmentally-aware.

5. Another Yahoo Travel Find winner was www.5minutesaway.co.uk, an ingenious and simple site that locates services and facilities within five minutes of the major motorway junctions across the UK. So, it may sound a little pedestrian, but if you want a hearty ploughmans instead of a soggy motorway service station sandwich when you're on the M5, you can find a pub that won't take you too far off course. There's also information on accommodation, hospitals, garages and more - and links to traffic and weather updates. You can plan ahead by checking it at home, or access the site from a mobile or PDA on the move.

6. In a bid to reignite the British love affair with French holidays, the website www.franceyesyoucan.com, has been launched by ABTOF, the Association of British Travel Organisers to France. The site seeks to promote the holidays offered by ABTOF members but does so with simple and fun search technology. Users can search by holiday type, e.g. beach/family/horse-riding, or accommodation, e.g. chateaux/camping/hotel, and from there drill down by destination or month of travel if they wish. There's a Holiday Planner to store ideas and photos, event listings and a free downloadable audio phrasebook.

7. Looking for things to do in the school holidays? Further to our own "Britain's 50 best days out" article, this site, launched by Fat Face, should wear out twitchy kids and give them an experience to remember. Of course it's a ploy to sell more Fat Face clothes, but there's also some good information here - a searchable database of activity centres around the UK. You can forget museums and stately homes - this will occupy kids with activities like mountain boarding, surfing and mountain biking.

8. There are some skiers for who flaunt their prowess by the gashes on their skis and wind burn on their cheeks, and there are some who just flaunt their gear. For the latter, Ski Republic should be their port of call. The online-bookable ski rental, which also has locations in resorts, claims to offer more affordable equipment, but also kit that's trendy and big on technology. Also check out Ski Safari, the website of a tour operator that specialises in ski tours and tailor-made holidays to Canada, the US, Switzerland, Austria, Japan and Chile. Quriky features of the recently relaunched site include options to explore multiple destination ski trips, or add on city and sun breaks.

9. Fab Search is a fun site that lists the hottest restaurants, bars and hotels around the world. It scans recommendations from trendsetting publications like Wallpaper and British Harpers Bazaar and lists them by destination. It's a clean site and easy to use with just enough information to tell you what to expect and where to go. The listings aren't as cutting edge as they should be - old favourite The Ivy is one of the London restaurant recommendations and the Hotel de Crillon is listed under Paris, but it's not a bad place to plan your first night out in an unfamiliar city.

10. Great Little Adventures is an attractive family travel website that recommends child-friendly hotels, restaurants and activities in England. The site was started by two Mums who were frustrated with the lack of family-oriented travel websites. Sadly you have to register to get any information, and although that's free, it will put some people off. Once registered though, there's a wealth of ideas, information and pictures.

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