All-Inclusive or Self-Catering: Which Is Really Better Value?

There's a familiar dilemma when you're searching for a holiday.

You've found a lovely hotel offering all-inclusive, but just down the road there's an apartment for several hundred pounds less.

So which one do you book?

The apartment looks cheaper, but then you've got to pay for food and drinks. The all-inclusive hotel costs more upfront, but most of your meals are taken care of.

The answer depends on how you actually spend your holidays.

And that's where I'd start, rather than simply comparing the advertised prices.

What does your ideal holiday look like?

Imagine a typical day away.

Are you happiest spending the morning beside the pool, having lunch at the hotel and enjoying the evening entertainment without needing to go anywhere?

Or do you prefer getting out, exploring the local area, finding a nice restaurant and deciding what to do as the day unfolds?

Neither approach is better than the other.

But if you're rarely at the hotel during the day, paying extra for all-inclusive might not make much sense.

Equally, if you're travelling with children who seem permanently hungry, the convenience of included meals, snacks and drinks can be worth its weight in gold.

The trick is choosing the arrangement that suits your holiday, rather than changing your holiday to suit the arrangement.

Make sure you're comparing similar holidays

Before we get into food costs, there's something worth remembering.

Two holidays at different prices aren't necessarily offering the same experience.

An all-inclusive resort might include several swimming pools, children's entertainment and restaurants, while a self-catering apartment could have fewer facilities but offer much more living space.

Perhaps the apartment has two bedrooms, giving everyone a little privacy, while the hotel offers one family room.

Or maybe the hotel is right beside the beach, whereas the apartment requires a taxi to reach the places you want to visit.

Those differences all matter.

I wouldn't dismiss a more expensive holiday simply because there's a cheaper property nearby. Equally, I wouldn't assume that paying more automatically makes something better.

The aim is to compare holidays you'd genuinely be happy taking.

What does all-inclusive actually include?

You might think the clue is in the name.

Unfortunately, all-inclusive doesn't always mean absolutely everything!

Most all-inclusive hotels provide meals, selected drinks and snacks as part of the holiday price. Depending on the property, you may also have access to certain activities and entertainment.

But the details can vary.

Some hotels include speciality restaurants, while others charge extra or require reservations. Premium drinks may not be covered, and food or drinks might only be available during certain hours.

It's also worth understanding what happens on your arrival and departure days, particularly if you have an evening flight home.

I've seen plenty of holiday descriptions that sound wonderfully generous until you start looking at the smaller details.

That doesn't make all-inclusive poor value. It simply means we need to understand what you're paying for.

If there's a particular restaurant, activity or facility you're excited about, I'd want to establish whether it's genuinely included.

Self-catering doesn't mean cooking every night

I think this is where self-catering sometimes gets an unfair reputation.

Booking an apartment doesn't mean you're signing up to spend seven evenings standing over a cooker.

You might have breakfast on the balcony, make the occasional sandwich for lunch and eat out most evenings.

Or perhaps you enjoy visiting local supermarkets, buying fresh ingredients and preparing a few simple meals.

For some people, that's part of the holiday.

For others, the thought of shopping, cooking and washing up while they're supposed to be relaxing is enough to make them reach for the all-inclusive brochure!

There's no right answer.

Just check what the accommodation actually provides. A kitchenette with a microwave and a couple of rings isn't necessarily equipped for preparing a family dinner.

And a room-only hotel booking isn't the same thing as a self-catering apartment with cooking facilities.

Let's look at the actual money

Here's a simple example of why the cheaper advertised price doesn't always mean the cheaper holiday.

Imagine a family of four, two adults and two children, going away for seven nights.

They've found two reasonably comparable holidays, with similar flights, locations and accommodation standards.

One is self-catering and the other is all-inclusive.

These figures are completely hypothetical, purely to demonstrate how the costs might work.

At first glance, the self-catering holiday saves £600.

But after allowing for food and drinks, the difference in this example is just £50.

Now, that doesn't prove all-inclusive is the winner.

Perhaps the family staying in the apartment spends less on restaurants. Maybe they have more expensive meals out. Perhaps the all-inclusive family decides to eat away from the hotel more often than expected.

Change those habits and the totals change too.

The example also leaves out costs such as excursions, insurance and other expenses, which should be included in a real comparison where relevant.

The important lesson is that the booking price is only part of the cost.

A useful way to compare your options

Here's a little trick I like.

Take the price difference between the two holidays and work out how much you'd realistically spend on food and drinks if you chose self-catering.

In our example, the all-inclusive holiday costs £600 more.

The family expects to spend another £150 on food and drinks even with all-inclusive, bringing the difference in their food-and-drink budgets to £750.

Over seven nights, that means the self-catering family could spend roughly £107 a day on food and drinks for everyone before reaching the same overall total.

That's not an estimate of restaurant prices in Spain, Greece or anywhere else. It's simply a comparison based on our imaginary family.

But you can do exactly the same exercise with real holiday prices and your own likely spending.

And don't forget the smaller purchases.

A couple of coffees, ice creams for the children, lunch while you're out and drinks in the evening can all add up rather quickly.

When I'd recommend all-inclusive

I'd lean towards all-inclusive if you're planning to spend a good portion of your holiday enjoying the hotel.

For families with younger children, having meals and drinks readily available can be particularly convenient.

It's also useful if you prefer to know roughly what your holiday will cost before you leave home.

You can enjoy the swimming pools, entertainment and restaurants without continually thinking about the next bill.

And let's not underestimate the appeal of someone else cooking and clearing the table for a week.

There are limitations, of course.

If you enjoy exploring local restaurants or spending whole days away from the hotel, you might find yourself paying for meals you've already included in the booking.

That's not necessarily a problem if you love the hotel and don't mind the extra spending.

But it should be a choice, rather than an expensive surprise.

When I'd recommend self-catering

Self-catering would be high on my list for people who enjoy getting out and exploring.

Perhaps you like having breakfast at your own pace, choosing a different restaurant each evening or occasionally preparing something simple at the apartment.

It can also work particularly well when accommodation offers extra living space, especially for families or groups travelling together.

And having cooking facilities can be useful when you've got children who prefer familiar food or eat at unusual times.

That said, if somebody has specific dietary or allergy requirements, we should establish that the facilities and food arrangements are actually suitable rather than assuming an apartment solves everything.

The other consideration is location.

Being able to walk to restaurants and supermarkets makes self-catering much easier than staying somewhere remote where every outing requires transport.

Don't forget the options in between

It's easy to get caught up comparing all-inclusive with self-catering and forget there are other choices.

Bed and breakfast can be a lovely compromise.

You can enjoy breakfast at the hotel, then spend the rest of the day exploring without feeling you've paid for meals you're missing.

Half board might work well if you enjoy going out during the day but prefer returning to the hotel for dinner.

Just remember that the exact meals and drinks included vary by property.

For some holidays, one of these options will make far more sense than either all-inclusive or self-catering.

So, which offers better value?

I'd say the better value holiday is the one that matches how you want to spend your time.

If you're looking forward to seven days of relaxation, hotel entertainment and not worrying about paying for every drink, all-inclusive could be ideal.

If you're dreaming of discovering local restaurants, exploring different towns and enjoying a little more independence, self-catering might be the better fit.

And sometimes the answer is somewhere in the middle.

I wouldn't want you paying for facilities you won't use, but I wouldn't want you saving £200 on the booking only to spend £500 more once you arrive.

That's why I prefer looking at the whole holiday rather than simply choosing the lowest headline price.

If you're weighing up a couple of options, tell me where you'd like to go, who's travelling and what sort of days you enjoy.

I'll help you research suitable holidays and compare what you're actually getting for your money.

Because the best value isn't always the cheapest price. It's getting the holiday you really wanted.