I was never one to prefer very organized and carefully mapped out trips. Though I wouldn’t call myself adventurous, I have a flair for the unexpected, for wandering down strange alleys and deserted beaches and going to the other side of the sand dune to see what lies behind.
In the later years, cheap all inclusive has become a favorite with most of my family and friends, especially when travelling to the Caribbean and other tropical areas.
The way I see it, all inclusive is more or less like a cruise with sodas and alcoholic drinks included. In a way, the disadvantages of all inclusive travel are the same as its advantages: It’s comfortable to have everything in one place, but this also means that you get to see less of the surrounding areas, and it’s great not to have to go to far for dinner, but you can get bored of your resort’s cooking styles, for example.
Travelling can be very rewarding, but it can also be very exhausting. When people only have a week off work, most of them don’t wanna be running around rushing from one attraction to the other. I believe this type of travellers who really want to rest and do nothing all day are the ones who have popularized all inclusive and cruising. It is not only about knowing beforehand how much you are going to spend; which is also a very attractive feature of this type of vacation, it is also about knowing that there’s gonna be no rushing, no fuss about anything whatsoever, just relaxation time.
To me, the biggest issue here is PICKING THE ALL INCLUSIVE RESORT. My advice is that it should be in a spectacular spot, so that this idea of “not having to move around” can really pay off. Then, you know you might get a little restless eventually, so it’s always best to select a resort that is not too far to some attractions and spots you really wanna see.
If you end up in an all-inclusive resort at a place you don’t like, then you will spent double the money, trying to find and having to pay for alternatives, as well as transportation to that othere cooler place.
As for the quality of rooms, food and service; in my experience, it is always worth it to check out customer reviews. Tripadvisor.com is generally reliable, but there are tons of sites where you can find genuine feedback from people who have visited the resorts. I find that some resorts pay for feedbacks, but you can usually tell when a review is genuine. Authentic reviews tend to be a bit more balanced.
I do as a matter of fact advise against going for all inclusive in the case of places like the Med, where there will sure be many spots you wanna see and independent tours you wanna take. Unless you are just going to one island for a beach break, all inclusive won’t be the way to go here.
Families on the other hand will usually appreciate all the activities that all inclusive resorts provide for kids, who sometimes have no place in tours that are lengthy or include a lot of walking, listening to a tour guide, etc. If you are travelling with kids and are on a budget, money saving all inclusive holidays with UlookUbook might just do the trick,
This is the other thing you must take into consideration: the kind of crowd you’ll be surrounded by; if you are gonna spend 24/7 seeing the same faces over and over again, they’d better be people you at least wanna talk to once in a while…
Then again, there is adventure in all-inclusive as well, because you never know what you’re really gonna get, until your are there, living that cash-less, suntanned life…