All-inclusive vacation and cruises – I do not get it?

I have never been a fan of all-inclusive vacations, and it is not only the extraordinary costs involved.

Let me see if I can frame it properly with my bad attitude on the topic:

1. You head to the airport and have a few drinks at the airport lounge.
2. Land in Puerto Vallarta and someone picks you up and shuffles you to an amazing resort.
3. You mingle with other people from your own country and overeat buffet food.
4. If you’re lucky, you can get a reservation for a steakhouse.
5. You have to pay hundreds of dollars to do anything fun outside of the resort.
6. Seven days later, you get back in the van and go back to the airport to go home.

I want to stress the amazing resort part as that is what people want to do on vacation, relax. I get that part 100%, you get pampered and get to lay around while gorging on amazing drinks and food.

What if you did things a little bit different so you actually experienced the country you are visiting:

1. You head to the airport and have a few drinks at the airport lounge.
2. You land in Puerto Vallarta and grab local transportation or a taxi to your Airbnb.
3. I take the bus (50 cents) located outside the airport or Uber ($10) to get to the PV Malecon area.
4. Unpack your bags at one of hundreds of Airbnb choices under $1000 a month.
5. Head to my favorite local restaurant or food carts and grab a $2 taco and OXXO for $2 drinks.
6. Wake-up each day with a plan to visit the local museums, points of interest, etc.
7. One or two days, you buy a wristband to go sit at different resorts. (PV example in link).

Advantages:

1. Amerce yourself in the local culture and live like a local.
2. Try different restaurants including family food carts which are normally the best experience.
3. Hit the local points of interest in PV including free things to do too.
4. Take location transportation to the many surrounding towns to explore. (Bucerias/Neuvo Vallarta).
5. Live like a local, they can do it for a few hundred dollars a month.
6. Doing something crazy, grab a $50 6-hour redeye bus ride and head to Mazatlán for the day.

Sounds exhausting, I know but sitting around shuffling yourself from pool to food for seven days and seeing nothing? It just seems like a waste to me but again, each their own and I am here to share ideas.

My monthly travel budget for a month is about $2000 USD and it can be done for less around the world.

Approximate PV costs: $800 monthly rent, $300 groceries and alcohol (dirt cheap), $500 eating out, and another $400 miscellaneous. Rent would probably be the same for two weeks as there is normally a monthly discount at most Airbnb’s. If you have two people, the cost would be about $3000 total, again it is an estimate as everyone lives differently. I am just here to show that there are options out there.

Here is an example of the all-inclusive in PV, Mexico for example purposes only:

MARCH 3 – 10 – $3256 PER ADULT

MARCH 11 – 18 – direct $2898 PER ADULT

MARCH 19 – 26 – $2856 PER ADUT

MARCH 20 – 27 $2779 PER ADULT

I realize that you can find a seat sale for a lot less but made it extreme to prove my point.

If you had the time, you could stay in Mexico two two-plus months for a lot less money. Find a deal on a two-month condo lease for $500-$700 and use the $2500+ difference to live like a king and save a ton of money. Send me a WhatsApp or email from the homepage if you want more examples!