Is there such a holiday as this - AI but in northern Europe?

[FKAT]

Want to do an all-inclusive or at least a holiday which doesn't involve supermarket shopping, driving or planning / cooking meals and where all the food and activities are on site. But Greece/Turkey/Canaries look really hot and I've been to Costa Brava/Mallorca a lot.

Is there a holiday like this in France, northern Spain, Scandinavia, Netherlands, northern Italy etc?

Not Eurocamp or centre parcs.

Have a look at Kinderhotels, or Familienotels. They have some lovely places in Germany, Austria and beyond, where everything is laid on.

Pierre et Vacances has a lot of places all over France where you can do a half board option.

We're going to Portugal next weekend, 25/26°c with a breeze. Perfect for us pale gingers

There are AI resorts on the Baltic coastline in Poland and Germany

www.expedia.com/lp/theme-vacations/all-inclusive-vacations/6051329/Baltic-Sea-Coast

Portugal, Menorca, Ibiza

A cruise?

All food included and you can buy a drinks package if you like

How about the French alps? Plenty of ski resorts have hotels and catered chalets open in the summer. Alpine Elements do holidays with half board and activities included.

These all sound really great ideas. Thanks so much.

We've been to Portugal a lot - otherwise it would be on the list.
The baltic place looks interesting - but we did a former Eastern Europe summer holiday last year and DH wants something a bit more conventional

I'm leaning towards some of the French ideas but thank you everyone.

Good quality all inclusive is certainly available in the Austrian Alps. e.g. in Saalbach there is the Alpinresort ValSaa or Hotel Sonne. The town also provides a free Joker Card, which gives free use of the cable cars and local bus system, as well as facilities like the open-air lido.

Kinderhotels are also popular with families that have young children. Not all are all inclusive, but most are half-board, and the range of activities for children (including childcare and kids clubs) is extensive.

All-inclusive holidays are just an extension of full-board package tours, which are mostly aimed at people who want sun/pool/beach and not much else. Exceptions obviously apply, but that's the core market. Switch off, cocktails all afternoon, kids looked after, get a tan, no cooking or washing up.

So you will typically only find them in places where summer sun is guaranteed, land to develop near-ish to a beach is not too expensive, and locally-produced alcohol can be offered at low buy-in costs in unlimited quantities. In Europe that means Portugal/Spain/Croatia/Greece/Turkey. In fact lots of people go on holiday to those places from all of the countries that OP mentioned, and most of the Dutch or Swedes or French are not going there for the local culture any more than most of the Brits are.

(And I don't want to imagine what you would have to pay for an all-you-can-drink deal in Scandinavia!)

I am honestly wondering what you deem a conventional holiday. The German Baltic coast is definitely not Eastern Europe and some areas were never part of the GDR in the first place.

You will find the same hotel/service as if you would go to Bavaria.

The Baltic coast is supposed to be lovely. I have friends who live in Germany who go there for their family holidays.

You could check out Club Med. I believe some of their ski hotels do summer stuff too.

I have nothing against the Baltic coast, the quality of German hotels, or unconventional holidays. For various reasons that have nothing to do with the Baltic standard of hospitality, I won't be booking there this year but might look at it in future.

The use of 'conventional' was very on the fly so I wouldn't read much into it.

I just meant a hotel resort where everything's on site and everything is easy & relaxing (no 5 mile runs to Carrefour for milk and bread, no washing up, no cultural excursions, no trying to find a taxi from the restaurant at 11pm). But not somewhere 44 degrees.

You didn't mention if you had kids. I based my response on an assumption you did. I don't cook on holiday, though we normally go for self-catering accommodation as I like a wine fridge and coffee machine. Supermarket shopping involves buying wine and coffee and maybe salad/something to BBQ, as in popping in there quickly. Breakfast buffets are wasted on me as I'm generally not hungry first thing in the morning. (Premier Inn full english I can force myself)

Club Med in Provence?

https://www.roompot.com/destinations/the-netherlands/zeeland/water-village/?_gl=119ck2ul_gcl_auNjk2OTIwMDIyLjE3MTg5OTE2NDM.FPAUMTU4MTU5MDk0Mi4xNzExNDgyMjc1_gaODE1MzYxOTA1LjE3MTg5OTE2NDQ._ga_86SWJ0ZT3BMTcxODk5MTY0NC4xLjAuMTcxODk5MTY0OC41Ni4wLjA._fplc*VmpsWWoxdnQwRlI2dzZyeFdTR2hCTXM1bU1PNGtwJTJGR09IbmltOG9HdktIS09sdEs0TnE0ZWF2NU5ENE4lMkJuZ2J3Z2tJdDFWZE9BZnp3dXUxMERpaEo2aUlpbHNqWVFIeHNNMFlFOUYydWxZQk0lMkZjR1pzdzRxYndOR1RHYWh3JTNEJTNE&_ga=2.260741197.1731293343.1718991644-815361905.1718991644 We stayed here a couple of years ago. They will bring your shopping and there's a restaurant and takeaway on site. Beach 5 mins.

Yeah @MissAmbrosia I have kids but they are too old for kids clubs but need feeding a lot and I want a break from constant meal planning and cooking.

That Water Village looks nice. We've stayed in similar in Belgium and Netherlands.

Roompot have some lovely places and Beach Huts. I know you said no Centre Parcs but the European ones can be fun. And you can get a dine around option and breakfast delivered (usually massive amounts), or they will supply raclette or table grill stuff with all the ingredients supplied. De Kempervennen has an indoor ski slope. At the Waterpark place, the breakfast they delivered was vast! A couple of days worth at least.

We did a fab All-inc holiday in St Johann Austria about 10 years ago. August, the weather was warm but without the exhausting heat. It was lovely, food was incredible, I put on 7lb, the pastries were never ending and the puddings omg.

I went to Hof van saksen in the Netherlands last year. Its not AI but it is easy and would work out AI prices if you ate out every night, which we pretty much did.

It's a landal park and is pretty classy. There's a waterpark and every activity you can think of. Hiring bikes was wonderful.

The restaurants were great. In 7 nights we ate once at snack bar on first night then twice at a lovely buffet restaurant, twice at an Italian and twice at a brasserie place.

You could get food from the on site shop or have it delivered ready cooked. They delivered breakfast which you could order from the shop.

Lunch we did a mix of snack bar, cafe and bought ham and cheese and Olives and had fresh bread delivered with breakfast croissants.

There's also places to visit nearby to eat at if you want to bike.

Drink we mainly got a couple with dinner and them had wine and beer in the fridge. Spent about £5,000 or £6,000 for 8 nights including a night in Amsterdam, easyjet flights and car hire that I wouldn't bother with next time I go because we didn't use the car as having too much fun on site. Next time I would catch the train.

I just meant a hotel resort where everything's on site

To me the essence of AI is unlimited food and drink. If you don't mind paying for your drinks as you go then it's going to be easier to find places, but I don't think they would meet most people's definition of "all-inclusive". They certainly don't meet mine, anyway. 😂

Pretty much any of the kinderhotels/jeugdhotels in the 4 or 4 superior class will fit what you want. Most of them are half board or full board. If it is older teens then Natuur/aktiv resorts are similar. Very good food is usually included, drinks often not. But they all usually have large spas and swimming pools, plus outdoor and indoor activity programmes.

Most regions offer free public transport and entrance to other attractions for hotel guests, and also have activity programmes for kids and teen.

I really don't know why they aren't more popular with Brits because they are fabulous, but I've hardly ever seen any.