Honeymoon – Mostly Inclusive (8 of 10)
Not to complain, but inclusive seems to have many definitions. My wife would chime in at this point to remind me that all “All Inclusive” places follow a similar model, and I’m certain she’s correct. My problem is at least partially based on the fact that I’ve never been to an all inclusive resort before, and before I give Sandals a bad name I would like to point out that it was certainly “mostly inclusive.”
Resorts are big business. There is really no other intelligent way to describe it. To that end, they do everything in their power to get as much money out of you as possible before and during your stay. Before we arrived they successfully sold us safari adventures and romantic dinners for two with exclusive butler service and candle light. During our stay the choices were almost endless.
Tipping was strictly forbidden on Sandals property, that I am infinitely thankful for based on our experience at the airport. Generally speaking, everything you want was included. Assuming you only wanted food and drinks. Wine lists were provided at almost every single meal, and they cost extra. While wondering the resort, the uncommonly pushy camera men working for the little photo shop were around almost every corner like paparazzi. Instead of taking pictures of you, they were there to ask if you wanted them to. Trust me when I say that is almost as annoying. Needless to say, pictures taken cost nothing, unless you actually want them. That meant paying for them. The gift shop was about as overpriced as any other you find in the tropics, but was obviously not included in the price of admission. There was also an almost constant presence of staffers trying to sell you time in their spa or convincing you to book a return visit.
It wasn’t all bad of course, just a little overwhelming sometimes for a guy on the first real vacation of his entire professional career. Thanks to the free meals being readily available, for some time after arriving back home I actually worried that I would go out to eat somewhere and simply get up and leave when I was done as I had done so many times on my honeymoon. The experience of being able to order a 3 to 5 course meal with an alcoholic drink at every meal without concern for price was an awesome one indeed. So, if you go to an all inclusive, be ready to to say “No.” almost constantly to the attempts to upsell pictures, wine, and anything else they can think of. It will still be a blast and a great excuse to put on some extra inches to the old waistline.