All inclusive holidays vs self catering

[musingonhol]

Which would be your choice?

Love the convenience of AI but can see why some hate it… especially at buffet time! I often think self catering must be peaceful but paying all that money to come away and have to do a food shop and wash up?!

Is there a compromise?

We do B&B and eat out
Or get crusty bread, crisps, cured meats etc for lunch

both times we’ve done AI we’ve had D&V so it’s not for us

Aparthotels might be the compromise? More facilities than a hotel room - but in a hotel so you've restaurants there.

Or just self-catering but eat out all the time!?

AI but one with a la carte restaurants included. We also budget fir a meal.or 2 out plus stop at a few bars. We like our drink (not club 18- 30 style tho!) so it's definitely a cheaper option fir us. Also like knowing we have paid for everything already.

Comprise would be SC but eating out quite a lot.

I don't love AI but can see why people do. We do self catering in Europe usually spain and do breakfast at accommodation a big "menu of the day" for lunch around 2/3 this way we get to eat proper local food and then just do evening snacks/pizzas for the kids. Added bonus is we're not all stuck in a bedroom from 8.30pm. But mine are still very little. I don't feel like we're constantly washing up or cooking and enjoy the food a lot more than buffet style.

For me self catering means eating out every night at different restaurants, not doing a food shop and cooking!
Did our first SC holiday this year and much preferred it to AI. We aren't big drinkers, and loved trying all different places for lunch and dinner, we just got pastries and fruit in for a quick brekkie.
We also hired a car and explored the towns and beaches, rather than being around the hotel pool. If we were to be pool lovers, I'd go for the AI option to be fed and watered!

We tend to change it each year. Nice all inclusive with decent restaurants one year, cheap all inclusive in a resort and eat out when the mood takes us another year and self catering in a quiet town another year. I can't face the same type of holiday each year. I love the convenience of all inclusive but by the 3rd day I am tired of getting dressed up for dinner! We're self catering this year - own pool and hot tub and importantly dishwasher and washing machine.

We don't share rooms with our kids either. That's not relaxing as one is a very early riser.

I'm the opposite. I can understand why people like AI but it's not for me.

We like SC (usually in France) but buy local produce from markets for simple lunches, do quite a lot of barbecues, buy meals from the traiteur (which can just be heated up) we also eat out a few evenings a week. It's not exactly taxing.

I don't go on holiday to cook but AI isn't great for the local area. When I was mobile I'd always book on a bed and breakfast basis and go out to a different restaurant each night - seems the best of both worlds, but you have to make sure there are plenty of places in walking distance or rent a car.

Self catering if I can afford to eat out. I can't so all inclusive otherwise I'm cooking and cleaning and it's not relaxing

Self catering - apartments, villas, cabins, camping even. We holiday mainly in European locations with access to great food, local markets, fresh produce etc. So buying and preparing that (minimal cooking as it’s so hot - more assembling - salads, maybe grill some fresh fish). Breakfast is fruit, yogurt, fresh local bread and cheese. Plus eating out on restaurants on 25-40% of the evenings.

AI I’ve tried but feels so artificial. All the tourists in one hotel eating the same options at the same place at the same time. Not for me (although my kids loved the endless deserts the one time we did it!)

Have done sc, b&B, half board, full board and AI.

All have their merits and downsides I feel. So, like AI merits; not having to decide where to eat every single meal (and compromising on places depending on company my Sister is a low fat vegetarian, mother won't eat spicy food, 3 year old not keen on chips ... ) not having to go to supermarkets, no cooking/cleaning etc. everyone just goes and gets whatever they want. Perfect.

Downside; the bloody queues! Quality not so great. Having to sit next to greedy fuckers who load their plates to a gross level/kids staring at loud tablets.

We like cooking though (minimal as it is) and we trained the kids to wash up after while we digest with a cold drink on the balcony or terrace.

I love AI but I don’t limit myself to just eating at the hotel. We still go out for meals, it being AI it takes the stress out of thinking about what to do for every meal and let’s us have what we want to drink for those lazy days by the pool.

Of course there is! We always go B&B in a good hotel, near to lots of restaurants. Then we can eat somewhere different every night.
Buffets are so dreary.... I want a proper dinner, with wine, good service and all the trimmings.

My preference goes for self catering (which will include meals at the restaurant too). I think it makes for a nice balance.
If we go for food included, we never go for more than half board. Otherwise we get sick of food for day 3.

You must have been to really shit AI or been very unlucky, I've been to countless ones in different countries and never been ill.

I don't think you can beat a buffet for young kids. No waiting, can choose what they want, see what they're choosing, and try loads of different stuff that's all low stakes because they can change their mind if they don't like it.

Anything involving any kind of cooking or clearing up is not a holiday for me.

We’ve never stayed all inclusive, but as we love being out and about, and hate buffets I’m guessing it’s not for us!

We normally do a combination of self catering (remote villa with a pool/ lodge by a lake or beach/ ski chalet sort of thing) and hotels in towns and cities, or more remote areas. We tend to eat out in local restaurants, have picnics and bbq’s- that’s part of the fun for me.

I won’t book into a hotel these days, I love the freedom of self catering and have booked many Airbnb’s.

We mix it up with eating out and catering for ourselves, I absolutely love it. We no longer have children at home, which was when we mostly did all inclusive, it does make kids entertainment easier for you.

Give it a try, there’s a beautiful village just outside Nerja in Southern Spain, absolutely gorgeous, it’s called Frigiliana. We picked a hire car up at Malaga airport, which gave us the freedom of doing our own thing in the day. It’s a very different type of holiday, quite adventurous and exciting, I love them 😝

We did AI once pre kids for 4 nights and it was good but I felt a bit institutionalised by the end! I don't mind cooking etc so SC works better for us with some eating out.

We tend to do self-catering but with a dishwasher as an essential, and lots of easy to cook meals and sides, so not much prep. I prefer the flexibility and we are usually out on excursions so wouldn't want to be stuck in one place. For lunches we make up a packed lunch daily and take it out with us at the start of the day, and usually don't get back to the accommodation until dinner time. I like having a proper apartment/house with washing machine, separate bedrooms and living area. We eat out a few times on holiday, not too often as the dcs are young and get bored and are fussy.

This.

I hate AI and being trapped in a resort to 'get your money's worth'. I also hate chores on holiday.

Nice hotel, breakfast if possible, going out for dinner. I don't usually bother with lunch if I have breakfast. Or vice versa.

We do self catering in a villa always. We do a shop and get breakfast stuff and salads for lunches. Then we alternate evening meals out so bbq at the villa one night then out to a restaurant the next. We usually eat lunches out but have salad at the villa if we end up staying there.
Love the freedom SC gives you and you get the chance to try local cuisines.

The AI works with kids, there’s something to said for food just being sorted for you.

we did self catering last year and we ate out a couple of times, got a take away 2 evenings, but I have to think and plan meals, pick up bread and croissants etc in the evening for the next day, still have to wash up and clean up the table etc after takeaways. It works in the uk when I can do a shop before hand and batch cook things like a bolognaise sauce to take with for first night, but I’m not in a rush to do self catering aboard again next year.