ALL-INCLUSIVES - WHAT"S YOUR EXPERIENCE?

[thepiranha]

My family stayed at an all-inclusive resort in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico, about four years ago, and we were less than satisfied with our experience. While it's great not worrying about how much your meals and drinks cost, we felt confined at the resort, and ended up leaving our stay early and moving to a traditional hotel. We're pretty adventurous travelers and like to do a lot of exploring when we travel, so that might have been the problem. I was wondering what others felt about the all-inclusive experience. Care to comment?

[kconnell]

I think your thoughts are right on,,,,,For young people or couples where the alcohol and food and on site amenities are most important the all inclusive concept works fine. If you want to immerse yourself in the culture and sites of the area you are not going to find it on the resort grounds. Thats what we are into when we do a vacation outside the country and for us the all inclusive is not what we look for

[Mountie]

[thepiranha]

I don't get it.

[travel2fun]

My guess is mountie has posted an image metaphor or simile - I always get the two confused. I think in this case it is a simile. The spectators are giving the standing gladiator the thumbs down. I am thinking mountie is not big on All-Inclusives.

[thepiranha]

Aha! I was looking at the gladiator and not the crowd, so I didn't get it. It would be a metaphor rather than a simile because a simile makes a comparison using like or as. Thanks for the explanation.

[kyshel]

Great question!!
We rarely go to AI's these days. We've been to close to 2 dozen, I guess. We get so many VERY last-minute deals for airline employees, it makes our heads spin.
This is my take:
Upscale ones can be quite nice--some require you reserve the a la carte restaurants in advance or have restrictions and/or surcharges. The middle tier ones are okay for a fun getaway if you want to "veg out". The budget/average AI's are "you-get-what-you-pay-for" resorts. The clientele is typically representative of the price paid.
Dominican Republic resorts have a different level of star ratings than most of the Carib/Mexico. Consider at least one star below the norm for their "opinion" of their properties.
We never spend more than 4-5 nights. So,unless you're going out for side trips, a week can get very boring. I prefer wine over most mixed resort cocktails, but what they serve by the glass is not close to decent quality and if you want a nice bottle, you usually pay for it at a premium (at least, in most Mexican AI's)I'm a fan of the bubbly and it's not so tasty when it isn't chilled and has bubbles the size of fish eyes!
Thumbs UP:
Aventura Spa Palace Mexico if the price is right and you like large spas
We don't golf or play sports at AI's, but kayak and that sort of thing.
Thumbs DOWN:
Cabo--I agree with you! Can be very isolating, high taxi prices to go ANYwhere. Most of the resort beaches are not swimming ones--you must have hated that, having lived in Hawaii!!! The area that might be very interesting is too far from the bulk of the resorts. We spent 4 nights there once and could not wait to leave.
We took husband's kids to Costa Rica once and they swam their hineys off in the pools. Dark sand beaches were not very inviting in Guanacaste . They loved trekking for howler monkeys and boating for dolphins--all there for small fee at resort. For more $$ the ziplines were outstanding!! They still talk about them!
That's my word...we're having much more fun "traveling" to places like Prague, Jordan, Bali, Thailand, South Africa...

Message Edited by kyshel on 11-14-2008 12:16 PM

[kyshel]

I have to add without making the previous post too long:
LL has several "Nearly" All Inclusive packages (not standard AI resort format)

Meson Compania, MX
Meson Capuchina, MX
Hacienda Sepulveda, MX
Ariau Towers, Brasil
Beqa Lagoon, Fiji
Cotton Tree Lodge, Belize
Most African Safaris

Some of these deals include massages/tours etc as valuable bonuses, too!!
Anyone have others to add?

[bonniejoy03]

I just returned back from two nights at an AI...Turtle Beach in Barbados. Typically we are not all inclusive people but needed a hotel near the airport and this fit the bill (I did notice that many of the hotels in Barbados are AI.) We enjoyed the experience for a few nights. We did have a sit down dinner that was very good. The other night was a buffet. I think that I am negatvie towards ai because it typically is a bigger resort. I really like the small boutique properties. It becomes like a zoo with everyone lining up for food. However, this AI was adequate and seemed to work very well for families. I think it is a great concept if you are watching your money and really want to enjoy yourself on vacation without having to worry about every cost.

[rickogo]

Depends on the location and the fine print. The key is reading the fine print. It's always dissapointing to get to your vacation spot and find out that you aren't getting what you thought you paid for.