Do you like all inclusive resorts or not?
Posted by Happy-Hour88@reddit | AskBalkans | View on Reddit | 25 comments
I don't really get the people who go to those restrictive resorts where you have to eat 3 times a day at the same hotel restaurant. I've done it but it's so boring. Some of these resorts like Sunny Beach can be fun for partying but I'll still just get a hotel without 3 or 2 meals per day. Even having breakfast at the same hotel restaurant every day will get old fast.
Another pet peeve is resorts like Albena that literally have barriers at entry. It's like you go to some zoo for people or something. In general I prefer staying at smaller hotels in actual towns or cities, not resort towns that were built on empty lots just for tourism. I also usually book rooms without breakfast and meals included.
casual_philosopher02@reddit
hell no, I don't travel to see the resort, I wanna support the local stores and taste different stuff
Olivejardin@reddit
You need to stay at a big resort in the Caribbean to really get a taste of how it works. 20+ restaurants and bars you can choose from.
vladedivac12@reddit
Exactly, in some resorts you won't even be able to go all restaurants / taste all menus during your stay.
It's really a matter of preference and what type of vacation you're looking for. I've enjoyed vacations in Croatia renting small apartments visiting different beaches, restaurants, cities, etc but I've also enjoyed all inclusive resorts vacations where I just click Pay on a website and everything is taken care of from the flight ticket to airport transportation, hotel, food, drinks. The hotel room is usually a few minutes walk from the beach, you don't have to plan anything, you can really relax.
Happy-Hour88@reddit (OP)
I don't like resorts full stop. I prefer coastal towns and cities that have existed before beach tourism became a thing. Except if the once town or village turned into something like Benidorm. They offer a more authentic experience. For example as someone from an inland city away from the sea the beaches in Glyfada near Athens are underrated. So I had a cultural tourism for the ancient ruins / beach holiday in the same place. Beach resorts are like theme parks to me, inauthentic experience. Bulgarian resorts often have just meal slices, cheese slices, boiled eggs, butter, jam and bread as breakfast. Aside from them using local cheeses, nothing else is authentically Bulgarian in any way. I've had the same food, except the cheese was German in hotels in Germany.
I also like things being taken care sometimes but, at least in my country, one can arrange that for hotels in actual cities or towns. You don't need a resort for a travel agent or website arranging hotels and tickets for you.
Happy-Hour88@reddit (OP)
I mostly do solo travel and all inclusive places are more targeted towards couples and families.
XRaisedBySirensX@reddit
The one thing that gets old is the free beer and wine is the cheapest shittiest there is. And you'll probably get tired of Pina coladas after a day or two. You won't eat the same thing twice though. Punta Cana, Cancum, Tijuana..
TheEagle74m@reddit
Sloppy people eating like pigs š·
Equal_Beat3778@reddit
Not that I don't like it, but I totally hate it. Only tried once and it ruined the idea of vacation to me. It makes you feel captive in that resort (you paid a lot so you need to consume). No one should go on vacation (especially seaside) and the main topic when they return home is " we had tons of food and booze available 24/7". Fuck that shit.
GimmeFuel6@reddit
Absolutely not
Hefty_Jaguar4305@reddit
If the service is good, then sure, why not? It's just that breakfast isn't for me. Neither is lunch. Because I only eat a hot meal in the evening and I don't like breakfast.
Happy-Hour88@reddit (OP)
In Bulgaria at least the people who most often go to all inclusive resorts are seen as trashy. Going to all inclusive resorts is seen as a thing for people who know no better and have no taste. Maybe it's just a Bulgarian thing.
vladedivac12@reddit
I don't know about Europe / Africa, but in the Caribbeans it all depends where you go. The more you pay, the less trashy it gets. Go to a cheap Cuban resort, it'll be full of trashy Russians and Canadians. Go to a 5 star hotel in Playa del Carmen and you'll get a different crowd (less trashy but also a lot more boring, depends on what you're looking for)
No-Championship-4632@reddit
I was exactly in a 5-star hotel in Playa del Carmen (not in Playacar, but the northern side of the town). It was full of annoying trashy Americans.
Happy-Hour88@reddit (OP)
OMG going all the way there only to end up being next to some Karen and her snotty kids.
immortalx74@reddit
I don't fancy resorts and I prefer visiting sites and places. But for a brief period (\~5 years) they offered me and my wife exactly what we wanted: We were in our late 20's/early 30's with 2 kids. We both work and I also do physical work. We were both exhausted and to be honest it was the right call for the time.
Since then we never got to a resort and don't plan to, but there's certainly some value depending on the situation.
AmbientRiffster@reddit
I can see the appeal of completely turning your brain off and pretending to be rich and decadent for a few days, but I grew up going on holiday to small Greek seaside villages, where nothing is catered to tourists. I remember walking barefoot from the little rented house directly to the small beach that's 90% locals, cooking small meals on the little stove you get, no convenience store in sight. Can't get the same feeling when someone's fat uncle is screaming on the phone next to you in the pool area.
True-Blacksmith4235@reddit
Been to Tunisia years ago. Had a blast. Open bar all day. Stayed by the pool, maybe went to the beach three times during the entire stay. Slept through breakfast every day.
I donāt think that is my kind of vacation anymore though. I would probably be bored after three days.
Archaeopteryx111@reddit
Did the resort have local Tunisians? Is that country chill with alcohol laws?
True-Blacksmith4235@reddit
Very chill in the resort Iāve been to. I assume the same thing in other resorts. I donāt recall seeing Tunisians as guests. But it was a while ago.
Hefty_Jaguar4305@reddit
"Bezness" refers to a controversial practice in Tunisiaāand other North African nationsāinvolving romantic relationships between local muslim men and often older, wealthier west-European women. This phenomenon is frequently characterized as a one-sided, business-like transaction disguised as love, designed primarily to obtain money, gifts, or a visa for migration to Europe.
https://migrantknowledge.org/2019/07/15/knowledge-about-love-migration-and-borders/
https://www.bezness.net/bezness-prevention-2.htm
ImamTrump@reddit
Usually because it tends to be family friendly and have many activities to do. Otherwise I find our buddy camping trips end up in bbq, substance abuse, sad stories by the fire pit.
No-Championship-4632@reddit
I hate them and avoid them whenever possible, but sometimes it is the safest way with kids. Like I went back from Mexico a few days ago. We could probably have rented an airbnb, but that would involve also renting a car to get to beaches and groceries. In many countries that would be OK, but I am kinda afraid to do that there, there are too many scams. While we were there I followed the local news, two Americans got arrested for renting a car cheaply because the car they rented turned out to be stolen. Encounters with local police are frequent and mostly unpleasant. It takes a few days to get around and avoid the bad tourist traps that are very much overpriced. And mostly, it feels somewhat unsafe in the night unlike the big hotel. It is definitely not impossible, but you are going to get some unpleasant surprises which could get even more unpleasant with kids.
I tried to compensate with as many trips (both organized and self-organized), but it is not the same, unfortunately.
scales_and_fangs@reddit
Hell no! I like to visit various historical sites and sample the local restaurants. I can find good breakfast, sometimes even lunch from the local supermarket
Mestintrela@reddit
If I visit a foreign place I want to try the local cuisine, sightsee , see how the local people act etc.
Otherwise I would just stay in my home and visit the local beach or pool.
Not to mention just the mere idea of having to see and hear all the children monsters running around screaming in these resorts is enough to give me a horrible headache. Why would I make myself suffer that torture?
Substratas@reddit
No.