All-Inclusive Versus Self-Catering: Things You Might Not Know

The thought of an all-inclusive holiday might have you shaking in your boots, but there might be things you don’t know which make an all-inclusive holiday more affordable and more appealing than you think.

When you think all-inclusive you probably think of luxury, excess and extravagance, but believe it or not, you might actually end up spending more money on a self-catering basis.

One of the great things about all-inclusive holidays is the huge range available. Package deals can offer outstanding value as they will include everything you would ordinarily spend money on during the course of your holiday: from flights, airport transfers and accommodation, to all food and drinks during your stay.

If you can be flexible with the dates and times of travel, then you can actually find extremely good deals on cheap all-inclusive holidays.

When planning a holiday, if you are thinking about going down the self-catering route, you have very little to plan ahead of reaching your destination. You really only need to book travel, flights, train, taxi or car rental and accommodation, the other fine details are usually organised when you get there. At the time this might seem like the cheapest option, and it certainly spreads the cost, but when you consider the additional costs once you are there, you may actually end up spending more money on a self-catering basis than if you had meticulously planned an all-inclusive holiday.

Let’s think about one of the major contributors to the cost of holidays: food and drink. During an all-inclusive holiday, all of your food and drink will be included in the price of your holiday, this is really useful if you tend to lose track of your holiday spending money. Think about it, even if you have the best intentions, planning a daily budget for food and drink, you are likely to go over.

As well as the threat of breaking the budget, the constant penny pinching can put a real dampener on your holiday. If you wanted to break it down to cost per meal or drink, then you would actually be getting a better deal on an all-inclusive package as the price per meal or drink is likely to be less. Plus, you would certainly eat and drink more if it was pre-paid and already included.

There are a lot of hidden costs when it comes to booking a self-catering holiday. How will you get from the airport to your accommodation? Will you book a taxi or hire a car? Will you shop at the local supermarket or eat out? Will you spend a lot of money on drinks at a local bar? It is worth thinking about the kinds of things you will be doing on your holiday and decide if you would actually be better off paying up front and spending your money on an all-inclusive holiday.

With some careful research and planning, an all-inclusive holiday for you and the whole family could be a lot less stressful and a lot cheaper than going self-catering!