Why your next vacation should be to a family friendly all-inclusive resort…
Dear parent, you of all people, deserve a vacation. You really, really deserve a vacation without your kids, but that’s probably not going to happen. So how best to combine your need to get out of your groundhog day with the fact that you’ll have your kids in tow? Dear parent, I present to you, the family-friendly ALL INCLUSIVE. With your preconceived notions about all-inclusives, the argument I’m about to make might feel equivalent to “Yes, it IS a strip club, but here, the girls dance naked with dignity.”
I too was skeptical that an all-inclusive could be anything other than a gigantic, booze-fueled, young professional version of a frat party, where there’s inexplicably lots of Canadians, but my eyes have been opened to other possibilities. These are the types of possibilities that allowed for my wife and I to have a truly magical 3.5 day vacation in Mexico with a 2 and 5 year old, during which my cognitive dissonance was so strong it was disorienting. I simply could not believe things were going as smoothly as they were, because on American soil I have a hard time getting my kids through an afternoon without bloodshed.
For anyone who’s reading this and saying “there’s no way you could give me 10 reasons why an all-inclusive resort is great for a family,” you’re about to be incredibly surprised and for the rest of you saying “listen idiot, everyone is just scrolling down to the beginning of the top 10 list,” here you are:
Note: We stayed at the Hyatt Ziva resort in Cancun (this is not a sponsored post because only like 9 people read this blog, but one day it will be). I absolutely loved it and would recommended to anyone who is swayed by my all-inclusive argument below. All of the points below are based on the level of service we saw at the Ziva. I’m certain that not all resorts reach this standard, which is why it’s important to chose wisely.
Activities, so much room for activities – In the span of 3 days, we saw acrobats, participated in a rousing karaoke night and then saw a Disney Movie Night where actors and dancers performed popular Disney songs. After the first night where oiled-up gymnasts performed amazing flips and jumps and seemingly dangerous human pyramids, my daughter was super excited to see the next night’s show. The were also a ton of activities in the Kids Club (more into on that below), including arts and crafts overseen by an attentive staff who really did seem to care about my daughter’s below-grade-level drawing.
Food – Food is always a concern at an all-inclusive. When you’re serving the drunk “I’m in Mexico so I’m legally obligated to act like an ugly American” crowd, slop will do. But since I’ve graduated to parenthood (where you at least consider whether a 11:45 am tequila shot is a good idea), I’m looking for some finer fare. The Ziva delivered at each and every one of their restaurants. They had a room that I’m reluctantly calling a buffet, because it was much more like a restaurant with “stations.” Each night, there was a different theme and while I’m no gourmand, I thought there was a ton of thought (and skill) put behind each theme. There were also several other restaurants that I really enjoyed. But most importantly, every place we ate at the resort had kid friendly options that made dining much more pleasant that it typically is with a 2 and 5 year old. There were also a ton of food trucks and stands scattered around, which not only helped satisfy a hangry child, but also allows for a quick snack when kids preclude a full sitdown meal. And after dinner there were also “dessert stands” where I ate a crepe that was 5% crepe wrapping and 95% melted chocolate and peanut butter. The pleasure I showed eating it was probably obscene to most observers.
My biggest piece of advice for the parent looking at an all-inclusive vacation with family is to do your research on the food scene. It can really make or break your experience.
This is an approximation of my all-inclusive resort food experience from my single days:
Kid-Specific Pools – In addition to an indoor area in the Kids Club, they had a very cool kids pool and playscape. My daughter found a friend and played in the pool for a couple hours. My weird two year old found the outdoor play-cooking area and for a few hours he pretended to serve pizza to passers-by. The Ziva is just generally kid friendly, so the other pools were great for kids as well.
Room Size – The rooms were generously sized, which is good for us because have 4 people, one of which is in a crib. Most important for us was the huge bathroom, because we rolled the crib in there each night to ensure that our son could actually get to sleep. Even with the crib in the room, night time bathroom visits were a go, because it was large enough that the tinkle noise didn’t wake him up. Maybe the best thing about all-inclusives is the in room alcohol and completely free room service. I went back to the room early to put my son down and then hung out with a few beers and a room service quesadilla delivered right to my king bed. Was it glamorous? No (but maybe a little). However it was relaxing, which was the reason I braved a flight with a two year old in the first place.
The Beach – You’d expect your all-inclusive resort to have a beach, but is that beach high-quality? I’ll give another plug for the Ziva here. Because of the way the property is situated geographically, the Ziva has two beaches. One is more traditional, while the other is unique in my all-inclusive experience as it comprises a small peninsula. This was unexpected and effective as a change-up for antsy children. Do your beach research when choosing your resort.
Parents Get to Have Some Fun Too – Remember when you used to go on vacation and there was fun and sex-stuff? Yeah that was cool right? The nice part about this enclosed, all-inclusive experience is that at least fun is on the table. You can have a couple drinks, get them delivered to you poolside while you play with the kids, walk around with said drinks as you explore the resort to find entertainment for your kids, have a drink or two a dinner, and lo-and-behold you feel like you’re actually on a vacation.It all feels very easy and at this point in my vacationing life, that’s what I’m looking for.
Easy to pack – In Cancun, it’s 85 every day and you’re unlikely to need anything other than a collared shirt and pants for a nicer dinner. I thought I underpacked and still didn’t use 25% of the things I brought. Trying to figure out day / night attire by looking at weather.com hourly forecasts until your eyes bleed is NOT a great way to kick off your supposed relaxation. A resort, particularly one in a warm climate, saved some of this headache.
Staff experienced in taking care of families – Especially if you’re at a family friendly all-inclusive resort like the Ziva, you’ll find a group of people that are quick to help out with your kids. At points during the trip, we were given:
- Suckers
- Hats
- Balloon animals
- Play doh
- Aloe vera spray-downs
- Strongly-worded advice that I should reconsider “just having one more drink.” (Just kidding ((mostly)))
In general, this staff was incredibly attentive to the needs of guests, but in particular they had things on hand for children, which was a huge help.
Once you’re there, you don’t have to go anywhere – File this under “things you wouldn’t have given a shit about before kids but do now.” Having a fully-featured all-inclusive resort as your base camp eliminates transportation worries. That’s not to say you can’t go anywhere, but the fact that you don’t NEED to go anywhere is key. Underrated that I didn’t think about before this vacation: There’s no need to schedule activities and travel around naps, because all of the essentials are included and at your fingertips.
Are you sold? Do you think I’ve become a shill for “Big All-Inclusive?” Let me know in the comments.
Chris Jordan