As you might guess from the name, this would imply that once you arrive at your destination, everything’s included….but not all resorts are equal, so you have to notice the details and differences and decide if this fits the type of vacation you want.

Drinks

One resort might include all beverages, including top shelf liquor and champagne, while another will have “restrictions”.

For example – here’s the policy at Club Med Ixtapa, very clearly spelled out for the guest:

A full range of the major brand name drinks and snacks, to enjoy daytime and evening during bar opening hours in all the bars of the Resort, including the disco.

Fair enough…spelled out and easy to understand.  You certainly don’t want to end up at a place where cheap drinks are free, but something basic like water or soda are extra!

Food

Yes, the food is included….but…is it good food?  Who cares if you have unlimited resources if its nothing that you want!   Many resorts will offer a buffet, which is fine, but personally, I don’t want to eat a buffet for every meal. I want to have choices. That’s why I think it’s important for an all inclusive resort to offer a restaurant, service orientated type of experience for their guests.

Activities

For motorized activities, such as boats, jet skis; or scuba diving there will be an additional charge (in other words, the more expensive activities).  There will usually be board games, tv, videos you can check out, various sports – tennis, volleyball, etc., with offsite excursions and tours at an added fee.

The biggest advantage of an all inclusive vacation is that you know up front exactly how much your trip is going to cost with very little out of pocket expenses once you’re there.  (my husband and I stayed at two different Sandals resorts for a total of 10 days – I spent $8 on a 3×5 watercolor and we bought a bottle of Appleton Rum at the airport – that was it).

This is why these resorts are so popular with honeymooners – there are so many costs involving the planning of the wedding; doing an all inclusive resort is easy — I can handle all the arrangements for the prospective bride and groom, and they can even make monthly payments for their honeymoon if they choose.

Other all inclusive resorts are geared primarily to singles and we can help you find the right resort that’s best suited to your vacation needs.

FAMILY VACATIONS

CLUB MED

JANUARY SPECIAL – MUST BE BOOKED BY MARCH 5TH

Book a 7 night all-inclusive escape and enjoy 50% off the second person.

This offer is valid at these locations:  Sandpiper Bay, Florida; Turkoise,Tturks & Caicos; Ixtapa, Mexico; Cancun Yucatan, Mexico; Punta Cana, Dominican Republic; Columbus Isle, Bahamas; Caravelle, Guadeloupe and Buccaneers Creek, Martinique

BONUS OFFER:    Whether you book your own flight or use Club Med’s airfare, they offer at $200 air credit if travelling to Ixtapa, Mexico or a $100 credit to Sandpiper Bay, Florida.

 

The best vacations are when every member of the family is catered to – and that’s Club Med.  Gone are the days when the name conjured up “swinging singles and bar beads” – that’s SO yesterday!  Today’s Club Med has spent millions of dollars upgrading their resorts and now have more clubs that are family resorts than singles!

Parents can relax while the kids are in the Baby Club or Teen Programs.  The kids are happy and well taken care of and Mom and Dad can enjoy all the amenities such as spa treatments, tennis lessons, scuba & snorkelling, or maybe just going to a quiet area on the beach to relax with a book.

Let’s look at a few of the resorts so you can get a feel for the new Club Med:

IXTAPA

This resort has had a multi-million dollar rennovation; if you’ve been here before you’d never recognize it now!  I was doing an inspection in April – a great 3 days filled with some nice beach time and fabulous food!

What I was most impressed with (besides the food….ok, it was REALLY good!) were the programs for the kids.   A group of us agents were touring the property and dropped into the Baby Club (unannounced).  There were three G.O.’s and four little ones — talk about personalized service!  Later in the day we went to check out the Pizza Party for the Mini Club.   The Chef and several of the G.O.’s had the kids sit around a square table where the kids were handed out dough, sauce and cheese and made their own individual pizzas, which were then collected by the Chef and put in the oven.  The G.O.’s marched the kids out, with their messy hands held high to rinse off!  The pizzas came out and the kids were THRILLED – kids always love things they make themselves (and are more likely to eat it too)!

Baby Club – Ages 4 – 23 months

After the family breakfast, a G.O. will give a personal welcome, and it’s onto fun activities, meals, resting, and hugs.   The program combines gentleness and respect for each child’s biological rhythms.   There’s educational games, walks, a nice nap before the kids are taken outside for games and an afternoon snack.   From 6.30 p.m., the Baby Restaurant welcomes babies and their parents for a family dinner.

In addition to the Club itself, there are amenties such as:  the Baby Corner, located in the main restaurant of the Village, offers suitable meals for children.  The Baby Feeding Room is open 24 hours a day and has all the utensils necessary for preparing meals: a mixer, sterilizer (provided on request), microwave, fridge, bottle warmer; mineral water, fruit, full-fat and semi-skimmed long-life milk (baby formula milk not provided).   Sirena is the children’s restaurant located inside the Mini Club Med and is open for all meals and there’s an activity program at meal time as well.  The Baby Restaurant creates meals that address the nutritional needs of children and are created by the chefs; the G.O. takes on the responsibility of supervising the children, but the parents can join the kids if they want to.

Baby Gym – from 4 months to 3 years.

Here’s the spot where the little guys work on their motor skills through a fun and stimulating psychomotor course.

You’ll be able to share the excitement as your baby crawls, climbs, hangs, swings & tumbles. Toddlers love being exposed to new, stimulating activities, and there’s an Interactive Parent & Child workshop(45 minutes each day, 6 days a week).  Playing and learning go hand-in-hand, and parents can learn new ways to help their child problem solve, think creatively and grow to be an independent learner.

Petit Club – Ages 2 – 4

At this age, it’s all about creativity and letting off steam!  WOW!  So much energy and just like a sponge — children have a thirst for everything and the Mini Club has planned activities to respond to that need – sports, game, fun & creative activities.   The children are distributed into sub-groups according to their age. One hour shower stop before dinner.

Junior Club – Ages 11 – 18

Hmm…what do teens want to do?  Well, most of my friends tell me their kids pretty much want nothing to do with THEM, because, you know, Mom and Dad are like…. OLD and so LAME !    What Club Med does is separate them into two groups according to their age and then the G.O.’s will  propose everything — but impose nothing.    They’re offered a place to meet, a series of fun activities and a place to hang with new friends without Mom and Dad.

Restaurants include:

El Encanto – Entirely renovated and open for breakfast, lunch and dinner there are five themed, air-conditioned rooms – the mirror room, the mask room, interior garden, aquarium and the planetarium.    Outisde, there’s a big terrace with white columns and orange trees – it faces the ocean and is so beautiful at night!   Baby corner available for parents.  (smoking permitted only on the terrace).

When I visited, my little group was completely addicted to the fresh guacamole served daily here.  Some of the women went there several times a DAY just for that!

La Luna Azul – Located in the center of the gardens, this is a sophisticated, romantic restaurant with upscale cusine.  Only open in the evening.

El Miramar – Featuring a grill menu; open for late breakfasts, all day snacking.  For dinner, it turns into an Argentinian steakhouse; located on a big terrace facing the ocean.

CANCUN

This is one of my favorite resorts because it’s located on the Caribbean side of Mexico; I hate to be disloyal to the Pacific Ocean, but the water in the Caribbean is so warm and blue with fantastic snorkelling!

Again, this resort has been completely refurbished; it has 376 rooms that are designed in the Mexican hacienda style.   The resort’s located between a lagoon and the Caribbean Sea on a private peninsula.

Restaurants include:

La Hacienda – completely renovated and located right in the middle of the resort; it’s open for breakfast, lunch and dinner  There are five rooms in the restaurant, each with a different theme; the rooms are air conditioned, or you can sit out on the terrace, overlooking the pool.      International buffets and local Mexican dishes served.  A  baby corner is available to help parents prepare food. for their little ones.  (smoking permitted only on the terrace).

Las Cazuelas – is built on stilts, with unobstructed views of the ocean. During the day, it’s a buffet with local Mexican food; in the evening it’s reservations only with waiter service.  (smoking permitted only on the terrace).

La Pergola – this is the place to come and just stare out at the ocean — in the mornings for a late breakfast, in the afternoon it features an ala carte menu and from 7:30PM to 10:00PM, Mediteranean tapas are served, and if you’re still up at 1:00AM the ala carte menu’s available.