There are a lot of really great things about all-inclusive vacations but there also a few things that you should know and be aware of before booking your first trip.
I have been fortunate enough to experience these types of vacations three times; Dominican Republic (Punta Cana), Cuba (Cayo Coco) and Bahamas (Paradise Island). I’ve had good experiences at all three of these resorts, and so I’ve listed below tips to help you make the most out of your next trip!
Everything is included: Upon booking, everything and I mean everything is paid for; your flight, hotel, hotel transfers, all meals, all booze and most hotel activities. For those who love to have their vacation paid for up front and not have to worry about anything while travelling these types of vacation are the perfect fit.
Meals are all cooked for you: Not only are they included in the price of your vacation, they are also prepared for you. While most of your meals will be buffet style – you are generally allocated a certain number of meals in one of their ‘restaurants’. Make sure you book your nights in the restaurants soon after arriving because they often book up quickly!
Drinks just keep on flowing: This is obviously a positive (and a negative) for most. Because the drinks are included, basically anytime of day, you can stroll up to any bar on the premises and request whatever you fancy (within reason). Just make sure you’re drinking lots of water because it can be very easy to get dehydrated, I’ve seen it happen in the worst way.
Check out the On-site bars and clubs: All-inclusives have at least one bar and club on site. These can be hit or miss – depending on the other people staying at your resort at the time. It’s always worth checking out though but try asking some of the resort staff what nights tend to be the busiest.
Safety: You’ll be hard pressed to find many news articles that have violence involved with or taking place at an all-inclusive. I actually find that the hotel staff are much nicer and much more accommodating than most other hotels. Cubans absolutely love Canadians (and for good reason) so they treat you like royalty when you’re staying at any all-inclusive in Cuba.
You usually lay around all day doing – not much: For the most part when you get to any of these all-inclusive resorts you have one thing in mind: lay on the beach all day and drink. Well, maybe that’s two things. While I’m not typically the type of person to love these kinds of vacations, I know many who are and so for that reason these are great!
Research what activities there are before you go: There are generally really great activities and day trips you can find as an add-ons to your trip. Make sure you do your research before going so that you can budget appropriately before going.
The other patrons are a gamble: This can make or break your stay at an all-inclusive in my opinion. I’ve been on trips where there were not many other people my age, or it was a quite week at the resort which made it hard to meet others. However, I’ve also been at resorts when we’ve met a great group of people and had amazing times. This is out of your control but something to consider when booking
Have anymore notes to include? I’d love to hear them!
I haven’t been to an all-inclusive resort before but they sound like a lot of fun. I have friends that always do these types of vacations, I should jump on the bandwagon someday 🙂
http://www.mintnotion.com
It’s definitely worth trying once so you can know what it’s like for you 🙂