What do a former jail, out of service train cars, and a retired lighthouse all have in common?

These three structures and seven more have been dubbed the Quirkiest Lodgings in America by the editors of TripAdvisor, the same company who helped bring the Great Texas Mosquito Festival to the Internet’s attention.

Several of the inns are repurposed from abandoned buildings making them green in a way and one other is actually green because it’s a set of treehouses.

The Out ‘n’ About Treesort in Cave Junction, Oregon is in the Siskiyou Mountains and has 14 tree house bed and breakfasts situated on 36 acres for guests to hang out in during their stay. If they prefer they can also hang out in the trees via the zip line set up on the property. The Treesort is in many ways for the adventurous only. While majority of the reviews on TripAdvisor recommend the resort if you have younger children and like to rough it a bit, if you are looking for amenities you’ll want to look elsewhere.

Earthship Biotecture, located in the desert city of Taos, New Mexico, is a eco-friendly resort of pods to stay in- but it is nothing like camping. The structures are suitable for year-round living if you want to build your own.

Earthships are made of recycled or sustainable materials like a whole bunch of rubber tires. “The major structural building component of the Earthship is recycled automobile tires filled with compacted earth to form a rammed earth brick encased in steel belted rubber. This brick and the resulting bearing walls it forms is virtually indestructible.”

The team in Taos have addressed the issue of offgassing saying: “Tires are hazardous in piles, not Earthships.”  Hopefully, the people wanting to build their own Earthship and are in the process of collecting tires aren’t keeping them in a huge pile.

At last but not least you can spend a night or two in jail. The Jailer’s Inn Bed and Breakfast is Bardstown, Kentucky’s former Old Nelson Jail which ceased to admit criminals in 1987.

The 200 year old compound now has seven rooms for guests to stay and in to admire the 30 inch thick limestone walls and windows with bars on them.

The owners have kept the original jail bunk beds in a black and white themed room in the renovated “Front Jail” where all the guest rooms are located. They have left the “Back Jail” untouched to give visitors a peek at authentic jail conditions.

It may not be too late in the season to book at one of these odd resorts to end the summer unconventionally. Think about it: who wouldn’t want to send their child to school so when they are asked “What did your family do this summer?” They can reply nonchalantly in that voice only children can muster sincerely: “Mom and Dad spent a few nights in jail.”