All Inclusive Resort vs Hotel or AirBnb

Deciding between an All Inclusive Resort vs Hotel or AirBnb can be a tough choice. There are Pros and Cons to both, and your choice may be driven by your lifestyle, the cost, and what you are looking for in your vacation. This post will help you choose between an all inclusive resort vs hotel or airbnb. I will start by discussing the differences and then show a Pros and Cons list for both.

My husband and I recently visited Tulum, Mexico for our honeymoon. We spent half our trip at a cheap AirBnb and the other half at a nice all inclusive beach resort. I was able to fully compare the two options.

Of note, we stayed at TRS Yucatan for adults only. Many of the people we met there said it is the best All Inclusive Resort they had ever visited. So my comparisons are based on staying at a nice all-inclusive; I’m sure crappy ones exist.

Cheap vs Expensive

Depending on where you are traveling, you can often find cheap AirBnbs or Hotels.

A night at an All Inclusive Resort will always be more expensive than an average hotel or AirBnb. This is for a few reasons.

Your food and drinks are included and unlimited.
All Inclusive Resorts have the reputation of being fancier and nice.
All Inclusive Resorts often include extra amenities like an ocean-side pool or paddle-boarding or shows.
Because of all the extra things that are included, they have to pay staff to provide the amenities.

You can try and justify the cost of the all-inclusive because it includes all your food and drink. However, the money you would spend on food and drink in Mexico or many other places would not add up to the amount of money you’re spending on each night at the All-Inclusive Resort.

For example, the AirBnb we stayed in was around $30 per night. TRS Yucatan was $500 per night. It would be nearly impossible to spend $470 on food and drinks in Tulum each day. You can have a delicious meal with a smoothie in town for $10 or less.

Explore Cenotes VS Chill at your own resort pool

Explore the destination vs Relax at your resort the whole time.

If you stay at a hotel or AirBnb, you will spend most of your time exploring wherever you are visiting.

If you stay at an All Inclusive Resort, you will want to stay at the resort for most of the time. When you are spending so much on the resort and food/drink, you don’t have much of a desire to go explore and spend money on food elsewhere. You want to take advantage of the resort.

Maybe you would rather just lay at the pool everyday and not have to think about driving to the next attraction – an All-Inclusive would be perfect for that. For those who want to spend very little time at your lodging, an AirBnb or Hotel would make more sense.

Local amazing burritos VS fancy resort meals

Try local foods vs Eat “fancy” meals and at buffets.

One of my favorite things about traveling is eating the local food. I want to try it all, and some of my favorite travel memories are ones when I have almost cried over perfect meals.

Staying at an AirBnb or Hotel means you will explore the local food nearby. You have the opportunity to read Yelp or travel blogs to pick your dining spot or you can just follow the crowds to the delicious food.

All-Inclusive Resorts serve many different kinds of food. TRS Yucatan offered Thai food, French food, Italian food, Mexican food, and more. Breakfast and lunch was often buffet-style. The food was delicious and free, so it’s a fun experience to order whatever you want.

Plan your day/trip vs Everything is easy and there for you.

Some people hate planning trips. I get that.

If you stay at a hotel, you will have to make decisions on what to do that day, where to eat, how to get there, etc. It requires a lot of planning beforehand and decision making during the actual trip.

When you stay at an all-inclusive, everything is there for you. You can wander to the pool and walk to lunch whenever you want. You can view their schedules of shows and walk over or catch a golf cart to take you. There isn’t a lot of planning involved.

If you’re visiting Tulum, check out the 10 best outdoor activities!

Visiting Tulum Ruins VS Drinking by the Pool

More immersive experience vs Not experiencing the real place

When you visit a new city or town, you probably want to experience that place. You want to see how the locals live their lives, eat at local restaurants, drive around, and try different activities. When you stay at a hotel or AirBnb, it is easier to do this, especially if you choose AirBnbs and hotels that are owned by locals.

All-Inclusive Resorts are not an example of what real life in that place is like. Many resorts employ locals (and they should), but the experiences in getting to know them can feel inauthentic when you know they are there to cater to your needs. If we had never left our resort, we would have had literally no idea what Tulum, Mexico was like.

Also, staying in an all-inclusive means you won’t be doing anything unique; everyone at the resort does the same activities.

Lower expectations vs Expecting everything to be perfect

Booking a $30 AirBnb means you aren’t expecting much from that particular lodging. You know it’s not going to be perfect or luxurious, and your expectations are set low. You aren’t as easily disappointed.

When you are spending $500 per night for a resort, you expect everything to be perfect. We did, at least. So when things weren’t perfect (they never are), we felt disappointment rather than just letting them slide. Our expectations were too high.

Jungle Hut with few amenities VS resort with free paddle boarding

Few amenities vs Many amenities included

Hotels or AirBnbs include your basic amenities: Linens, soaps, maybe breakfast, maybe a pool on-site, maybe a kitchen in your rental.

All Inclusive Resorts often include many amenities. The one we stayed at had shows, paddle-boarding, a spa, incredible pools, beach chairs, and more.

Safety

Depending on where you go, the All-Inclusive Resort might be safer than staying somewhere else in that country. Even if you are traveling to a safe place, it’s still hard to know the “dangerous” neighborhoods if you’re coming to that place as an outsider. Your safety is taken into account at an all-inclusive.

Speaking of safety, check out my guide to making your own first aid kit for your next trip!

Pros and Cons of Hotels or AirBnbs

Pros	Cons
Relatively Cheap	Must Plan Each Day
Better Able to Explore	Not as Nice
Try Local Food	Fewer Amenities
Immersive Experience
Lower Expectations
More Unique Experience

Pros and Cons of an All Inclusive Resort

Pros	Cons
Many Amenities	Expensive
Free Food and Drinks	Lack the Immersive Experience
Nice Accommodations	Higher Expectations
Fancy Meals and Buffets
Treat you Right
Safe

My Thoughts on All-Inclusive Resorts:

If you can, find one that tries to be eco-friendly.

Make sure they employ locals and pay them fare wages. Bonus if they help local communities in other ways.

In Tulum, an all-inclusive isn’t necessary for safety reasons. Tulum is a safe town with plenty to do. You can find beautiful (albeit busier) public beaches, and the town is awesome for wandering. You have plenty of hotel and AirBnB options too.

Would I stay in an all-inclusive resort again? Maybe, but not anytime soon. I won’t stay in all-inclusive resorts when they’re in places with violence. I know I mentioned that all-inclusive resorts are safer, and this is true. However, it doesn’t feel right to me to have a luxurious vacation while people outside of the resort are barely surviving.

And honestly, even staying in an all-inclusive resort in Tulum felt strange. The area was safe, and we explored on our own before arriving at the resort. The all-inclusive felt like an escape from the real Tulum, which is not really what I want when I’m trying to get to know a new place.

So maybe when I’m 60 and want a relaxing vacation, I’ll give an all-inclusive resort a try again. For now, I’ll stick to my jungle huts and local beach burritos.