You’ve heard all-inclusive vacations are fabulous because they include everything including air, hotel, food, and drinks – even beer, wine & alcohol. People who do imbibe immediately see the value in all-inclusive, but what if you don’t drink alcohol? Are they still such a great deal? We crunched the numbers and have the definitive answer for you.
Yes, all-inclusive vacations are worth the money even if you don’t drink alcohol. Cost savings can range anywhere from hundreds to thousands of dollars for a 6 night trip for two, depending on the destination.
In order to answer the question “are all-inclusive worth the money if you don’t drink” we compared pricing for several Caribbean vacations. Specifically, we compared pricing for two adults for the following “types” of vacation bookings:
- All-inclusive vacation package
- All-inclusive hotel + air & airport transportation booked separately
- A la carte hotel + air + airport transportation + food + drinks
Let’s dig in…
Are All-Inclusive Worth It If you don’t drink? The Numbers Revealed
All-inclusive vacation packages have a cost-benefit over all-inclusive hotels alone and booking your vacation a la carte.
Comparison A: Riu Palace Jamaica in Montego Bay, Jamaica for all-inclusive hotel and Half Moon for the a la carte.
The numbers for a vacation in Jamaica reveal a cost savings of $547.37 when booking an all-inclusive vacation package versus booking the hotel, air and air transportation separately and $256.37 savings with a la carte booking when travelers are not consuming alcohol.
| All-Inclusive Vacation Package at Riu Palace – Montego Bay, Jamaica | All-Inclusive Hotel Riu Palace – Montego Bay, Jamaica | A La Carte at Half Moon – Montego Bay, Jamaica |
| $ 3,633.63 | $ 4,181.00 | $ 3,890.00 |
Comparison B: Warwick Paradise Island in Nassau, Bahamas
The numbers for a vacation in The Bahamas reveal a cost savings of $952.00 when booking an all-inclusive vacation package versus booking the all-inclusive hotel, air, and air transportation separately, and a whopping $2,401 cost savings over the a la carte booking when travelers are not consuming alcohol.
| All-Inclusive Vacation Package at Warwick Paradise Island – Nassau, Bahamas | All-Inclusive Hotel Warwick Paradise Island – Nassau, Bahamas | A La Carte at The Reef at Atlantis – Nassau, Bahamas |
| $ 3,393.00 | $ 4,345.00 | $ 5,794.00 |
Notes on the Comparison Methodology
- I chose two different destinations, Jamaica and The Bahamas, to show varying costs between locations.
- For the a la carte option for both locations I chose similar hotels. i.e. hotels with the same rating and room type. The reason I had to choose a different hotel is that all-inclusive hotels do not offer a la carte options and vice versa.
- For the a la carte meal and drink costs I used pretty fair estimates and excluded the cost of alcohol:
- Meals: $75/person/day for the Bahamas and $55/person/day for Jamaica
- Soda: $20/person/day
- Snacks: $10/person/day
So what’s the difference between the 3 different types of vacation bookings? I’m glad you asked. There may be different definitions out there but these are my definitions as it relates to this article – or anything related to all-inclusive on this website.
All-Inclusive Vacation Package, All-Inclusive Hotel & A La Carte Booking Definitions
All-inclusive Vacation Packages are vacations that include roundtrip air, roundtrip airport transportation, hotel (which includes food, drink, and alcohol).
- Travel companies put these packages together by negotiating rates with hotels and airlines.
- Flights are commonly chartered allowing for nonstop flights.
- In some cases, the organization purchases a group of seats on a commercial flight at a discounted rate rather than charter a flight.
- Typically the hotel is “all-inclusive” meaning it includes food, drink, and alcohol. There used to be a time when hotels that these travel companies worked with offered European Plans (where one meal was typically included, no booze) or a-la-carte (where no food or drinks were included) but those are less common these days. For the sake of this article, hotels within the all-inclusive vacation packages do include food, drink, and alcohol.
- Many travel companies have on-site representation to assist you with issues or concerns while at the hotel.
- Examples of organizations that provide all-inclusive vacation packages are Apple Vacations and Funjet Vacations.
All-Inclusive Hotels are hotels that include food and drinks (including alcohol) with their pricing. There are strictly all-inclusive hotels and resorts and if you stay with them you have no choice but to go all-inclusive. Some hotels & resorts offer an all-inclusive option so you can choose to go all-inclusive for an additional cost or non-all-inclusive for a lower cost.
- Air is not included.
- Airport transportation is not included.
- All-inclusive hotels are more common in popular Caribbean destinations such as Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, and the Mexican Caribbean.
- All-inclusive hotels are rare in the US.
- Examples of popular all-inclusive hotel chains are Sandals & Beaches, Riu, Bahia, and Secrets.
- All-inclusive hotels can be booked directly with the hotel or sometimes the travel companies that offer all-inclusive vacation packages (i.e. Apple Vacations) allow you to book just the hotel on their websites.
A la Carte is a vacation where the hotel does not include anything but your bed you have to book the air, airport transportation separately and pay for your food and drinks out of your wallet.
Now that we’re on the same page when referring to ‘all-inclusive’ let’s dig into the comparison details.
Details of comparison A – Montego Bay, Jamaica
| All-Inclusive Vacation Package – Riu Palace – Montego Bay, Jamaica – Junior Suite Gardenview |
|
| Air Roundtrip | Included |
| Airport Transportation Roundtrip | Included |
| Hotel | Included |
| Meals | Included |
| Snacks | Included |
| Soda | Included |
| TOTAL | $ 3,633.63 |
| All-Inclusive Hotel – Riu Palace – Montego Bay, Jamaica – Junior Suite Gardenview |
|
| Air Roundtrip | $ 1,180.00 |
| Airport Transportation Roundtrip | $ 40.00 |
| Hotel | $ 2,961.00 |
| Meals | Included |
| Snacks | Included |
| Soda | Included |
| TOTAL | $ 4,181.00 |
| A la Carte – Half Moon – Montego Bay, Jamaica – Resort Room |
|
| Air Roundtrip | $ 1,180.00 |
| Airport Transportation Roundtrip | $ 40.00 |
| Hotel | $ 1,650.00 |
| Meals | $ 660.00 |
| Snacks | $ 120.00 |
| Soda | $ 240.00 |
| TOTAL | $ 3,890.00 |
Details of comparison B – Nassau, Bahamas
| All-Inclusive Vacation Package – Warwick Paradise Island Bahamas – Nassau, Bahamas – Island View | |
| Air Roundtrip | Included |
| Airport Transportation Roundtrip | Included |
| Hotel | Included |
| Meals | Included |
| Snacks | Included |
| Soda | Included |
| TOTAL | $ 3,393.00 |
All-Inclusive Hotel – Warwick Paradise Island Bahamas – Nassau, Bahamas – Island View |
|
| Air Roundtrip | $ 1,190.00 |
| Airport Transportation Roundtrip | $ 68.00 |
| Hotel | $ 3,087.00 |
| Meals | Included |
| Snacks | Included |
| Soda | Included |
| TOTAL | $ 4,345.00 |
| A La Carte – The Reef at Atlantis – Nassau, Jamaica, – Studio Ocean View |
|
| Air Roundtrip | $ 1,190.00 |
| Airport Transportation Roundtrip | $ 68.00 |
| Hotel | $ 3,278.00 |
| Meals | $ 900.00 |
| Snacks | $ 120.00 |
| Soda | $ 240.00 |
| TOTAL | $ 5,794.00 |
Non-Monetary Benefits of an All-Inclusive Vacation Package
You can’t put a price tag on:
- Less stress
- Convenience
- Ease
These are all things that all-inclusive vacation packages offer.
The company has already coordinated the availability and timing of the air, hotel and airport transportations. This makes planning with a large group simpler. Since your dates are pre-set just give your travel companions 2-3 of the available dates to choose from rather than a wide-open calendar of available dates.
And, there’s just one price, one button to click, and boom your trip is booked!
Safety and security come standard with an all-inclusive resort. You don’t have to leave the property to get meals, buy groceries or anything else.
Additional advantages all-inclusive hotels may offer
While many hotels offer free shuttle service to nearby popular attractions, some all-inclusive hotels even include upgraded amenities such as;
- Spa credits
- Free use of neighboring resorts
- Free transportation to other islands
- Free use of water sports equipment such as kayaks and water trampolines
Caveats to be aware of with all-inclusive vacation packages
Be aware of the Type of Alcohol you get at an all-inclusive
For those who are drinkers, or traveling with someone who enjoys alcohol, be aware that alcohol does not necessarily mean Grey Goose or Jim Beam brands.
Those are usually top-shelf booze that even a bar at home would charge more for. Unless you’re at a luxury resort such as Sandals, your booze is likely going to be house booze. If it’s important to you, check the hotel’s fine print.
Some people don’t care while others are sorely disappointed when this little known fact hits them.
Hotel Ratings
A “great deal” is only great if the quality is up to par. If you stay at a subpar all-inclusive resort and the food choices are limited, don’t look appetizing, taste bad or it has a poor ambiance, it is NOT a good deal.
Make sure you choose a hotel that has great ratings. My personal rating minimums are:
- Apple Vacations: 5 Apple
- Funjet: 5 Stars
- TripAdvisor: 4 Stars (these reviewers tend to be more critical)
- Google: 4 Stars
Hotel Reviews
Also, be sure to check out reviews for the hotel
You can either Google the hotel to read the Google reviews or go to tripadvisor.com and check out reviews there.
Take reviews with a grain of salt. Oftentimes only the complainers and nay-sayers will leave a review so be sure to examine the reviews with a critical eye. Look for recurring themes that are more likely to reveal a legit problem versus a pick person with unrealistic standards complaining.
Related Questions
What if I’m going to a resort that is not all-inclusive but I want to bring my favorite alcohol or wine?
Pack a bottle in your checked bag. Easy peasy.
