Black Meetings and Tourism Resort Round-Up

ALL ABOUT ALL-INCLUSIVES:
Black Meetings & Tourism Resort Round-Up
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All-inclusive resorts come in all shapes and sizes. Some include airfare and hotel. Some include airfare, hotel, transfers, and some meals. Others include all meals and activities, but not airfare. Often, purchasing airfare as part of the package can be a better deal than doing so separately, unless you are using frequent flier miles.

For enhanced value and the ease and convenience of a pre-paid package, La Cabana All Suite Beach Resort in Aruba offers the Club Cabana All-Inclusive package. This package features accommodations in a spacious, air-conditioned Grand Suite; daily breakfast, lunch and dinner; unlimited drinks during bar hours (house brands for personal consumption only; happy hour not included); use of beach and chaise lounges and plush towels; use of the deluxe Health & Fitness Center featuring squash and racquetball courts, aerobics and top-of-the-line work-out equipment; daytime tennis on five courts; daily activities program (such as bingo, beach volleyball, water polo, shuffleboard and other games); an invitation to the Manager’s Cocktail Party; free sign-up in the Camp Cabana fitness program; and service charge and government tax.

Many all-inclusives have, as part of their program, child-care facilities that are often a resort-within-the-resort for children, a "day camp" that is special and that kids look forward to attending. And many all-inclusive resorts give incredible price breaks to children (they don't drink liquor, after all,) while some even have no charge for children up to 17 sharing their parents' room.

What are advantages of going all-inclusive?

The security of knowing that one price covers everything, with none of those nasty surprises that can blast a hole in any planner’s or vacationer’s travel budget. All meals, entertainment, activities and sports, as well as airfare and accommodations, are generally included in one price, depending on the property and the package you buy. You can forget your worries about carrying lots of extra cash for expenses, and just sit back and enjoy your travel experience.

Who should check out an all inclusive?

Planners who are on a tight budget. Travel agents who are booking vacation travel for families that are traveling with the kids, receiving the trip as a wedding gift or getting married on the honeymoon.

So, is an all inclusive resort right for you?

If you are the type of traveler that enjoys sampling all of the local fare, then spending all of your time at an all-inclusive resort may not be for you. If you like to go somewhere and just be able to relax after the meeting day is over without worrying about taking out your wallet every couple of hours to pay for food, drinks, or activities, then there's probably an all-inclusive resort that's just right for you. Of course, many meeting attendees, especially African-Americans traveling to the Caribbean, like to sample the best of both worlds. While they may spend the majority of their pre-and post-convention free time on the resort grounds, most will venture off occasionally to hit the local craft market, try the local cuisine, and mingle with their Caribbean brothers and sisters to experience the culture on an up close and personal basis.

And while much is touted here about the wonderful properties to be found in the Caribbean, don’t be mislead to believe that’s the only place where you can find all-inclusive resorts. They can literally be found on all corners of the globe, including right in your own back yard. Like for example, the Garden City Hotel in Long Island, NY, which now offers an all-inclusive group meeting package for groups of 10 or more people that includes superior guestrooms, breakfast, lunch, morning and afternoon breaks and meeting room.

All-inclusive resorts can be costly. On the other hand, they can also provide great value. If you are going to a destination where the cost of meals, snacks, liquor and activities are expensive, and your hotel or resort is high quality with an expensive nightly rate, an all-inclusive might end up saving you money.

If, on the other hand, you don't drink much, you enjoy lazing on the beach and getting an early night’s sleep, you are dieting and choose simple salads for your meals, you would probably be overspending for an all-inclusive resort. Bear in mind the drinks are only the less expensive local brands which may not be very strong.

On the down side of all-inclusive travel, some folks get a bit weary of dining in the same restaurant night after night. The resort rooms may be smaller than standard hotel rooms. Some, and not all of the all-inclusive resorts provide shows. And some of them have a different show every night.

Some resorts have kids clubs for the little ones. Kids clubs begin at any hotel at 4 years of age. Nannies or babysitters are extra costs not included in the all-inclusive package. Almost all the all-inclusives have activities from beach volleyball to bingo and other games.

It's a good idea if you want a cashless travel experience in a secured environment, if you are satisfied that the dining options offered will be suitable for your tastes, if you take advantage of the watersports, child-care and bars.

If you are adventurous and want to spend your free day hours exploring the country you are visiting and your evenings trying in-town dining options, you might be better off choosing a resort that offers a more flexible all-inclusive package.

What is usually included in a true all-inclusive package?

All meals and drinks, beer, wine, premium liquor and tipping, government taxes, gratuities, entertainment, activities and sports, as well as airfare and accommodations are generally included in one price. Depending on the property, meeting space may be included as well.

Airfare and hotel transfers are optional when buying an all-inclusive package. Tipping is not allowed. One benefit of the all-inclusive resort is that the single up-front price covers unlimited activities.

Phone calls and items purchased at the gift shop are not included. The more expensive all-inclusive resort is going to have nice sit-down restaurants. The next step down will have all buffet dining.

Tennis and squash courts may be free and often there may be night-lit courts, but bring your rackets, as you'll probably have to pay to rent them. Most packages do not include golfing fees. In most cases you have to rent a golf cart, but compared to the price of play on most courses, that cost is negligible. Sailing craft are free as often as not. Snorkels, masks and fins are usually free, but may have a time limit (note: bring masks from home if you can, keeping in mind that the one-size-fits-all variety is often useless on little faces, leaving kids to snorkel miserably with a face-full of salt water). On-property snorkeling is free, but the most interesting underwater sights are usually somewhere else. The latter will cost you, if not for the snorkeling itself, then for the transportation to get there and back. With motorized sports, costs can climb upwards of $60 an hour. Parasailing is another costly venture. Divers, too, might find an all-inclusive cost-effective. Tanks have to be paid for separately, but diving excursions are included in some of these resorts. If you are not certified, most resorts offer a "resort certification" which will allow you to go on closely supervised guided dives. A resort certification is a great introduction to the sport. If, however, you are already a certified diver, some resorts, such as Sandals, Beaches, and Gala Resorts, offer one- or two-tank dives a day in their all-inclusive packages.

Many all-inclusive resorts offer spa treatments as part of their packages, with the option of paying for more intensive therapies.

Do not forget to budget extra cash for some excursions that weren't included in your all-inclusive package. A swim with the dolphins, for example, runs about $100 per person — more than small change if you're traveling with a family of four.

Consider carefully these additional factors before purchasing an all inclusive vacation package.

Price is often relative to quality. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. However, sometimes it's possible to get an amazing and legitimate deal, depending on the negotiating skill of your planner or other travel professional that is booking your package for you.

For detailed information about over 400 all inclusive hotels in the Caribbean and Mexico check out www.sunvacations.org and www.iberostar.info.

This all inclusive vacations directory, which consists of 36 main sections arranged alphabetically by destination for quick and easy access, consolidates all-inclusive resort information not previously available from any other single source. Researched and compiled by a group of travel agents with experience in the Mexico and Caribbean resorts, the directory offers a quick shortcut to travel-related information on the Internet. Each listing contains resort's web address, reviews, and pictures, slide show, virtual tour, virtual map and resort rating. For both seasoned and inexperienced Internet all-inclusive travelers, SunVacations.org will eliminate hours of search time. Instead of conducting key word searches, users can simply reference destination descriptions in the directory, and then go directly to the all-inclusive resort they want without having to sift through information that is unrelated or unwanted.

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