Spill the beans... on how to max all-inclusive holidays

juliamarsh

In the Algarve this summer we could buy a big 5 litre container of water from the supermarket for 80 cents which we then kept in the apartment fridge and used as we needed, decanting into smaller bottles to take out with us. We bought provisions from the supermarket to self cater for breakfast and lunch and just ate out in the evening - not every evening but probably 2 out of 3. I don't think it necessarily costs more to go self catering than all inclusive as long as you don't go mad, depends how much you eat and drink I suppose but we managed ok without skimping and that was with 4 teenagers in our party!

tori.k

AI to me just means hassle to get the most you'd would have to be happy to spend the whole time on-site or plan your holiday like a military campaign to ever make it worth the while,

NMSE12

Having done both in the past i prefer the freedom of self catering. I like to eat out in different places and not be "tied" down to meal times and menus. If the food isn't nice and you have 2 weeks of eating food youve paid for i would be very cross.
i think it boils down to what you want out of a holiday.
If you want to get the best value for money the answer is to research the hotel and check that you have lots of variety, flexibility, do they do take out lunches? are you able to eat at all the restaraunts? What are the serving times, do they suit you? i have heard of some hotels only offering 9am-9pm AI.
Either way self catering ussualy can cost more, but i think you are getting more out of your holiday.

hollydays

WishI'dReadSooner wrote: »

Personally I'd avoid all inclusive holidays like the plague.

There are too many people who think an all inclusive holiday is just to throw as much alcohol down their throats as possible and stuff their faces at every opportunity. They daren't leave the complex as that means they are not getting their full value from the holiday. They could be anywhere in the world but many see nothing but inside the complex.

Apart from that many all inclusives are far away from the nearest resort so it costs an arm and a leg if you want to go elsewhere.

So often if the food is no good people are stuck with it as their budget does not include extra food.

Travel is supposed to broaden your horizons NOT to be stuck in one place for 1-2weeks. Get out there - meet the locals, eat where they eat and see the country.

You can, more often than not, eat better, stay at a better hotel and not have obnoxious drunks keeping you and yours up all night.

Presumably,you must have had a bad all inclusive holidaye,which is a shame?

As for saying travel is supposed to broaden your horizons,some people choose to go somewhere just to chill. Surely you are stereotyping people who go on AI?
There is no right or wrong. I have done AI and used local cheap buses (which I made sure were available) to visit local non-tourist spots.Other times I have been AI in a great hotel,in the sort of place you wouldn't want to risk eating in the local eateries.

I have also found,that if you have a fussy eater,AI is a great opportunity to say to my companion-hey try some of this on my plate-after a taste my companion announces he loves the taste-only then do I tell them what it is.Horizons broadened..

peachyprice

There's so much more to a good holiday than 'good value'

You wouldn't get me in an 'all inclusive' resort for love nor money, I can think of nothing worse than spending my entire time with people intent on chucking as much down their throats as they can 'because it's free'. But then I don't do bucket & spade holidays, full stop.

It's my idea of holiday hell.

hollydays

I have been AI about 4 times over the years,once with kids.
On no occasion did I ever experience the drunkeness mentioned.

Winky,_The_House_Elf

AI are as varied as non-AI. It depends where you go, the country and the resort/hotel.

Having experienced the truely exclusive end of the market, as well as the bucket and spade variety, I would say you get what you pay for. Its not just about food & drink but what activities you want to do.

In St Lucia, having the waiter swim up the "Lazy river" to our secluded spot with ice cold drinks, was definately a highlight! No its not about alcohol as I was pregnant! All the water sports including daily scuba diving & water ski-ing was included, as well as one on one tennis coaching. It also had al a carte restaurants etc Which when all added up meant that it was value for money, for a luxuary holiday.

On the other hand whilst a 3* in Majorca with a friend and her 3 & 8 yo children, whilst not my cup of tea (plastic glasses, queuing for one drink per guest at a time etc), I could see that not having to worry about the budget (snacks and drinks soon add up) out weighed any limitations of this type of AI for families. It didn't stop us going on day trips under our own steam, the resort if asked the day before would provide a picnic packed lunch...nothing fancy sandwiches, a piece of fruit, biscuits and a drink, but this meant that we weren't tied to the hotel, and helped again with the budgeting.

Some places I wouldn't consider going AI, as locally it such good value & variety that for what you pay AI you would be paying over the odds, ie Thailand etc

My tips would be to be friendly with staff, they usually don't get tipped as people don't carry money on an AI, and not to think about it as being tied to the resort as most will provide a packed lunch to enable you to get out and about.

Think carefully about what you want from your holiday, would you go if it wasn't AI? No use in complaining about a dive in Benidorm if normally you wouldn't be seen dead there! This is the biggest consideration for me, What's your budget and whether if it wasnt AI and you had to pay seperately for everything would it be something you would want to do?


Winky

bucksie438

I think i would agree with the masses about avoiding the AI package.

I did indeed have an AI to Lanza(g)rote about 7years ago. Whilst the joy before was "All Inclusive, free food and drink".
Not all cracked up IMO. Think about it, self catering and enjoy the region at a fraction of the price, and maybe get friendly with the locals, they will look after you. or all inclusive, being stuck in one place.....

Our holiday wasnt the best, meal times were set at 0800-0930, 1200-1400 and 1800-2000. Not being rude, but when on holiday, i dont want the usual routine, id stay at home if this was the case. Also, the 3 bars the resort had, were open, 1200-1500hrs and 1900-2300. Food and drink werent offered outside of these times. if you wanted a soft drink, it was from a vending machine and i cant remember how much it was, but 20 bensons cost less. (you get the picture).

The last holiday i went on was budget as budget could get. Paid for own flights, own hotel, (self catering) and own transfers via taxis.
The locals were wonderful and looked after us like royalty. We had a budget of 50euros per day (plus emergency 50euro) for ALL food, drinks, spends etc. We made friends with the local bartender on the first night and as a result we never paid full price for our evening meals or drinks in this taverna (spelling???) of the 400 euros spending money we allowed ourselves for the week, we had only spent 120euros.
The SC holiday for the Wife and I cost (with total spent) £420 for the pair of us.
The AI we had 1 year prior, £1200 for the pair of us. The maths say it all.
I cant recommend it enough. But each to their own i suppose.

inthegreen

I have been all inclusive when skiing in France. I thought it was brilliant value as it included ski passes, ski lessons as well as all the food and drink. The outside restaurants were very expensive and easting and drinking on the slopes would have added a lot to the cost had we not been all inclusive. As we were skiing all day we did not particularly want to venture out much at night. All the food was of a fantastic quality. We got ours as a last minute deal and paid upto £600 less per person than some on the same week.

jokeyjo

we have always gone AI with the kids we find it costs far less than going SC we dont spend all day every day in hotel we go out explore and do things it does help though knowing that at end of day we dont have to worry about food and drink(alcoholic ones or not ) it takes away the "where do we go to eat " and also if kids spill drink they have the choice to get another , we were in turkey a few years back and the temp hit 45 so really hot and you had to drink going SC would in reality cost a fortune but we didnt need to worry about also we take money with us anyway so if we want to eat out we do