After purchasing such a tour, you will not need to pay extra for anything on vacation. After all, everything from a beach towel to unlimited beer is already included in the tour price. Is it so?
All-inclusive is a magic formula for vacation. It means that after buying such a tour, you will not need to pay extra for anything on vacation. After all, everything from a beach towel to unlimited beer is already included in the tour price. Is it so? Or does “all inclusive” vary? Let’s find out with Mandry.
The first all-inclusive hotels started operating in the Caribbean back in the 1950s and 1960s. The experiment for the “experimental” group of tourists was so successful that today all-inclusive hotels are in the lineup of almost all the world’s beach resorts and hotel chains. Why beach resorts? Because this system involves tourists staying on vacation mainly on the hotel premises. If you plan to spend your vacation moving around the country or resort in search of new discoveries, all-inclusive is not for you.
It is also worth choosing an all-inclusive hotel if, for example, eating out on vacation, even in the lunch + dinner mode, is expensive; if, on the other hand, street food is cheap and interesting, and local cuisine is one of the reasons you came to the country, all-inclusive is not the way to go either.
For example, in Thailand, breakfast or breakfast + dinner meal plans are much more popular than all-inclusive: it means that you will walk around and try Thai exotic food. And all-inclusive is available in a limited number of expensive Thai island hotels with a large territory.
All-inclusive hotels operate in most resorts in Turkey, Egypt, the UAE, Tunisia, Greece, Spain, the Maldives, the Dominican Republic, Cyprus, and in recent years in Ukraine (Black Sea coast, Carpathians). However, all-inclusive options vary: it depends on the specifics of the country, the policy, and star rating of the hotel, and even the season.
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The standard all-inclusive formula provides that the hotel will provide you with three meals a day with a buffet, snacks (snacks, ice cream and/or sweets throughout the day), soft and alcoholic drinks without restrictions, as well as a range of in-house entertainment: animation, kids’ club, sauna, evening shows, sports activities such as yoga or water aerobics, free sunbeds, umbrellas and beach towels on the beach and poolside.
“Ultra all-inclusive” and its derivatives are more of a marketing ploy than a real expansion of the line of free components of a vacation.
“Ultra all-inclusive” may mean a little more variety on the buffet, some imported rather than local alcohol in the bar menu, freshly squeezed juice for breakfast, a welcome cocktail upon arrival, free access to an a la carte restaurant during the stay, a more diverse room minibar with daily replenishment, and the availability of bathrobes and slippers in all room categories.
What services in all-inclusive hotels remain paid for
- Spa treatments: massages, peels, etc. Saunas and hammams (Turkish baths) are free of charge in most all-inclusive hotels, but procedures are charged.
- Dinner at an a la carte restaurant. In some hotels, one visit to an a la carte restaurant may be free, but in most hotels you need to pay extra for an alternative to the buffet.
- Romantic dinner at the hotel. Want a more private and romantic setting instead of a banal buffet? Let us pay for it. Do you want a more private and romantic setting instead of a banal buffet? Let us pay
- Babysitting. Babysitting services are paid by the hour, the availability of the service is determined by the hotel policy. Stroller rental in most all-inclusive hotels is also paid.
- Some activities and sports. For example, tennis lessons are included in the all-inclusive concept, but equipment, court lighting in the evening, and coaching services are paid additionally. Motor sports such as kitesurfing and water skiing will also be charged, as will diving with an instructor.
- Room service. If you want to order room service, you will pay for it separately. Usually in hotels, the menu of additional services is on the table in the room.
- Any additional services, from henna tattoos on the beach to excursions, also require payment outside the all-inclusive concept.
In Ukraine, the all-inclusive system is just taking root and is still balancing between the “European” system with restrictions on alcohol or services and the “Turkish-Egyptian” system with the maximum possible set of freebies on the hotel premises. Therefore, in a Ukrainian all-inclusive hotel, you may well find paid sunbeds or a sauna, or face a three meals a day meal system with a limited set of buffet dishes. But the all-inclusive system is beneficial not only to the tourist but also to the hotel – and in Ukraine we are already seeing a turn to our favorite all-inclusive and are happy about it.
