i think ai is the better option. we went to majorca last year hb,and spent £2000 for 2 weeks.this year we have spent £600 more for ai,and i know its going to cost me a lot less than £2000 this year. as long as the food is ok at the hotel,thats the gamble but i have read a lot of reviews before i booked.
p.s there is 5 of us 2 adults 2 teenagers and one 9 year old.
hope this helps

Hi, do you mean you spent £2000 while you were there, or thats what you paid for the holiday? Where are you going on holiday? I think if you were constantly buying drinks at hotel prices it would take alot of your spending money. Yeah, think we'll go for the all inc option, especially when I'm taking someone elses teenager with me.

One of the advantages of going A/I is that you don't need to budget for food. The amount you spend can soon add up.

Pippy

Hi Jools

We have booked for full board this summer, end of June for 3 adults as my son is 17 total cost £1.600. All we need is money for beverages. What do you think I mean you certainly would not spent £1.900 on beverages would you would you
I am aware that another young person will be coming with you.......
It really is up to you what you prefer.
I am going to the hotel Orange, have you had a price for that Or PM me and I will give you the travel agent who we went through.

kind regards

kazee

hi joolz.... what two hotels have you been considering in benidorm..regards...johndoe

Is the AI hotel a higher star than the HB hotel and presumably you are in the main six weeks holidays?

800pounds would probably buy enough lunches and drinks for the 4 of you over two weeks.

It's a hard one to call, there is alot to be said for the flexibility of AI, not always wondering where on earth you have put your purse etc

Also with two sixteen year old boys, they will probably want quite alot of drinks & snacks possibly at different times from yourselves & AI will give them greater independance.

I would opt for AI any time.
We are not big drinkers but like one or two each night.
Mostly for the kids they can have ice cream or juice whenever they want.
We never stay by the pool as we find it boring and would rather get a car and tour about but each to their own.

Thanks for all your replies. The two hotels we are torn between are Flamingo Benidorm 3* and Flamingo Oasis 4*, both Benidorm in July. Both get great reviews, most seem to prefer the Oasis when I have asked for opinions. The 2 16yr olds are classed as adult fares. According to First Choice, based on current prices, the difference between full board at Hotel Orange and AI at Flamingo Benidorm is approx £500. I love the idea of flexibility and not having to dip into my pocket for drinks (basically because I'll have paid upfront I suppose).

hi to you joolz.... never been to the oasis but my son did was not overly impressed ,i spent four weeks at the flamingo at christmas 2004,really enjoyed it there ,have you thought of looking at the magic (amigos) chain of hotels for more flexibility,different bar each night ,nothing extra to pay....regards ...johndoe ...p.s. the hard parts making your mind up where to stay....

hi joolz
we paid £1650 for our holiday hb,and then spent £2000 while we were there on lunches,drinks,money for the kids so they could have a bit of money in there pockets each day.also the odd trip,and some fags.this year my holiday cost £2175 for ai going to tunisia in the summer holidays.i think i got a bargain on the price as last year we went sept/oct.after laying out for the ai option,i don't expect to spend anywhere near what i spent last year.

If anyone would like to post a review for the Flamingo Benidorm, please do so HERE, or for the Flamingo Oasis HERE.

Thanks.

Pippy

Joolz

If you're thinking of booking with FC, do check the prices at http://www.eclipsedirect.co.uk as they're sometimes cheaper

I think with two 16 year olds your better off going AI. Although we went AI for the first time last year (we normally go HB) we spent more than what we had done previously and we also ate more just because it was there!

as some one has said before look at the amigos we stopped at the villa de benidorm and the food was fantastic also im sure the kids ages go to 16 so you would pay 2 kids and 2 adults they are in first choice

All inclusive holidays are the worst thing that ever happened to holidays. They contribute nothing to the local economy, they isolate you from the real world, you might as well have gone to centre parks, the staff who work at these places have a terrible time with being run off their feet and then taking care of drunks trying to make the most of their prepaid booze, the entertainment is dire as they have a captive audience, the food is ordinary and you always end up spending a sum almost as much as you would have spent going B & B only the money goes to satisfy corporate greed.
As an example I we had a really excellent holiday at a hotel in Turkey in 1998. The hotel enetrainment was dire but the nearby bars were really lively. We visited the same resort last year and half the local bars had closed because the hotels were now all inclusive. Those that were left were struggling. We spoke to some people who were at the hotel we stayed at in 1998 and they said the entertainment was still dire and the food ordinary. If you want to give your money to greedy corparate hotel groups and not care about the place you visit, if you want to spend your time in what is a glorified holiday camp by all means go. You won't save money but yoiu will miss out on actaully visiting somewhere. Oh and the locals will hate you for staying there as well.

Hi Sallymk1

I've stayed in A/I hotels many times. Only once have I not enjoyed this type of holiday and that was only because I didn't like the resort (Corralejo, Fuerteventura).

taking care of drunks trying to make the most of their prepaid booze

No doubt some guests do binge drink, but I can honestly say I've never seen drunks causing problems for staff. Personally I don't drink much alcohol while on holiday (or at home for that matter).

f you want to give your money to greedy corparate hotel groups and not care about the place you visit, if you want to spend your time in what is a glorified holiday camp by all means go. You won't save money but yoiu will miss out on actaully visiting somewhere.

I do care about the places I visit and have great respect for the staff and resident population.

None of the hotels I've stayed in have resembled holiday camps! I've had the pleasure of a weekend at a Butlins holiday camp so I know how grim they can be.

I always do plenty of research prior to booking my holidays. I've never yet booked one via a travel agent which would've been less expensive had I taken the DIY route.

There's no reason why anyone should miss out visiting somewhere just because they've travelled on an A/I basis. You aren't padlocked inside the hotel grounds.

Oh and the locals will hate you for staying there as well.

Really? Not in my experience.

the food is ordinary

Agreed. You're unlikely to be served local dishes.

the entertainment is dire

Agreed again.


Pippy

Totally agree pippi - we have done many A/Is and i reseach thoroughly before i book , infact i go out of my way to find an A/I that isnt in the middle of nowhere . Mostly we manage to find that balance , 2 of these being in turkey (olu deniz and icmeler) in the centre of the resort and yes we still spend plenty of money outside of the hotel.

at our stage of life it works well for our family - we have 3 boys of 15, 13 and 10. the older 2 regretably dont want to spend too much time with us oldens . They like to make friends their own age and take many of their meals with them . although we do insist they have their evening meal with us . A/Is give them the oportunity to do this, and be independant . It would be lovely if we could all go out in the evening to a local resturant and catch the entertainment there but we would have 2 teenagers with us with grumpy faces prefering to be with their mates. we on the other hand can have our evening meal and take our youngest son out to enjoy a drink or mooch around the shops on our own to spend some money with the locals

whilst i agree yes the entertainment is usually dire and audience participation stuff for us the positives outway the negatives. In a few years when our childen no longer want to holiday with us maybe we will rethink again but while they look forward to their holiday with their parents everything is rosy . afterall its their holiday as well and they would always prefer A/I.

so yes i would take the A/I options especially with 2 16 year olds for the same reasons.

lyn

ps. have you ever been on an A/I Sally - we have been on quite a few and have only ever seen decent people , i like to think like ourselves and have not once witnessed drunks and our food has always been excellent. once again back to the research

Hi We have had 2 AI holidays. The 1st in Lloret de Mar and the second in Mexico, and these hotels were worlds apart. I personally would not go AI to a hotel with less than a 4 star rating. If you like to spend most of your holiday in the hotel and are forever buying pop, crisps etc then you will probably benefit. However you'll still need some spending money. We spent 2 weeks at the superb Rui Tequila in Mexico last year but still managed to spend around £300. Even in a hotel of this standard you can still start to feel confined by the end of the second week.

Yes I have been on two A/Is in the belief that I could control the money better. I found out I had spent almost as much at an AI as I would have done B & B. The entertainment was dire. There were a few drunks but they did not trouble me. I did spend almost all my time in teh hotels. I was told by someone who worked at an AI hotel that they had to deal with the drunks to stop them offeding other holiday makers. Thats why you dont see them.
I see none of you mention the issue about destroying the local economy. Don't any of you care about people in other countries trying to earn their keep. I suppose it does not matter while your on one side of the fence and they are on the other.
Anyway
How canan AI be cheaper. If I buy a flight I have all the mark ups and the agents commission. If I book a hotel I have all their markups and the agents commission. However if I go AI I have to pay the agents commission on my food and drink as well. Not only that I have to subsidise the greedy and the drunks who want to take more than is good for them.