Press release -
Not so ‘all inclusive’ holidays cost UK tourists more than they bargained for
- Two-thirds of families spend an average of £254 extra for meals and drinks in local restaurants – adding up to 21 per cent to the price of European All Inclusive package
- Spending outside long haul All Inclusive resorts has risen 44 per cent to £288 compared with a year ago
-
At least a third also pay extra for meals and drinks at their All Inclusive hotel
Almost half of package holidaymakers will be heading abroad on All Inclusive trips this year1 but changing habits mean most of them will find their trip costs far more than they expected.
Splashing the cash on extras in their All Inclusive hotel as well as in local resorts means they could add hundreds of pounds to their holiday cost, according to the Post Office Travel Money All Inclusive Holiday Report.
Research for the report reveals that almost half (44 per cent) of holidaymakers now view All Inclusive resorts as a base from which to venture out for meals and drinks in local bars and restaurants2.
As a consequence, the Post Office Travel Money research found that around two-thirds of parents who go All Inclusive in Europe spend extra on meals and drinks away from their hotel. Those who do so spend an average of £254, which is nine per cent more than a year ago.Nearly three-quarters (72 per cent) paid for meals in local restaurants at an average cost of almost £60.Depending on their resort, this could add up to 21 per cent to the cost of their All Inclusive holiday3.
Post Office research found that families on long haul holidays are even more likely to visit local resorts away from their All Inclusive hotel for meals, drinks and snacks than is the case in Europe.Almost four-in-five paid extra for meals at an average of over £53.Up to 73 per cent splashed out more than their European counterparts on a range of drinks and snacks, which means that their extra spend overall averages around £288 – 44 per cent more than when the Post Office researched spending habits 12 months ago.
| EUROPE | LONG HAUL | |||
| % who spent something | Average spent outside hotel | % who spent something | Average spent outside hotel | |
| Eating out | 72% | £59.77 | 79% | £53.42 |
| Alcoholic drinks | 60% | £46.37 | 69% | £48.65 |
| Soft drinks | 69% | £22.98 | 72% | £28.97 |
| Snacks from a shop | 71% | £21.63 | 73% | £26.23 |
| Snacks at bar/café/restaurant | 55% | £33.37 | 64% | £40.32 |
| Ice cream | 67% | £19.17 | 68% | £25.79 |
| Bottles of wine | 42% | £32.33 | 57% | £38.73 |
| Bottled water | 63% | £18.71 | 68% | £25.52 |
| TOTAL | £254.33 | £287.63 |
At a time when tour operators are reporting a boom in long haul holiday bookings, a trend reflected in currency sales, Post Office Travel Money is advising families on All Inclusive packages to budget carefully, given the big increases in spending outside resorts revealed by the new report. EXTRA SPENDING WITHIN ALL INCLUSIVE RESORTS
Extra spending on meals and drinks within All Inclusive resorts is also on the increase. Last year 24 per cent of families paid an average of around £54 for à la carte meals in European resorts.Now a third of families are doing so and spending £59 on average for the privilege.The proportion spending money on top of their All Inclusive package has increased for drinks and snacks as well.Half of families pay for snacks (up from a third last year) at a cost of £28.
A growing number of families also pay extra for drinks within their resort on European All Inclusive holidays.Almost two-in-five (37 per cent) of those surveyed said they spent an average of £45 on international brands of alcohol on their last holiday. Over a third (37 per cent) spent £38 on bottles of wine, 44 per cent spent £23 on bottled water and over three-in-ten paid around £35 for cocktails. More than a third (36 per cent) spent £40 on drinks made with local alcohol brands – generally believed to be free on All Inclusive packages.
These figures increase for families on long haul All Inclusive holidays.Around half of them (48-59 per cent, depending on the item) pay extra for meals and drinks – spending more than families on European holidays too.Almost three-in-five (59 per cent) shelled out cash to the tune of almost £43 to buy local brand alcoholic drinks.
| EUROPE | LONG HAUL | |||
| % who spent something inhotel | Average spent in hotel | % who spent something in hotel | Average spent in hotel | |
| A la carte dining | 33% | £59.01 | 49% | £61.18 |
| Bottles of wine | 37% | £38.39 | 53% | £42.27 |
| Local brand alcoholic drinks | 36% | £40.28 | 59% | £42.53 |
| International brand alcoholic drinks | 37% | £44.99 | 53% | £45.41 |
| Snacks | 50% | £28.30 | 59% | £34.83 |
| Cocktails | 32% | £34.77 | 50% | £40.91 |
| International brand soft drinks | 38% | £27.67 | 48% | £40.38 |
| Local brand soft drinks | 34% | £28.15 | 48% | £38.10 |
| Bottled water | 44% | £23.27 | 59% | £30.28 |
| TOTAL | £324.83 | £375.89 |
When the amount spent away from (£288) and within (£376) All Inclusive resorts is combined, it means that at least 50 per cent of long haul holidaymakers could be spending an additional £664 on top of their All Inclusive package.This will add 24 per cent to the cost of a typical one week stay in Thailand and 19 per cent on a week in Mexico’s Riviera Maya4. While it is now common for All Inclusive holidaymakers to spend money away from their hotel, there is also evidence that experience has taught them what to expect from the term ‘All Inclusive’.Only one-in-12 of those surveyed by the Post Office said they were surprised to find that some items were not included in their All Inclusive package while just two-in-five (43 per cent) thought that All Inclusive holidays were good value ‘as everything is included so I don’t need to worry about taking spending money5.”
Andrew Brown of Post Office Travel Money said: “The All Inclusive holiday generation is now showing clear signs of having more realistic expectations and no longer assume everything to be included in the package.
“Most holidaymakers now prefer to get out and about, spending money in local restaurants and cafes where they will get a real flavour of their holiday resort. That is good news for local businesses but it means that holiday cash may be stretched.Be prepared and take enough foreign currency to cover the cost of items bought outside the All Inclusive hotel”.
The Post Office is the UK’s leading provider of foreign currency and accounts for one in four of all travel money transactions.Over 10,000 branches offer euros on demand whileup to 70 currencies can be pre-ordered at over 11,500 branches or online at postoffice.co.uk/travel for next day branch or home delivery.
ENDS
For more information, please contact:
Gabrielle O’GaraPost Office Press Office0207 250 2534 / 07718 977702
Gabrielle.ogara@postoffice.co.uk
Notes to Editors:
1 GfK Ascent reports All Inclusive holidays account for 49 per cent of package holidays (April 2015-March 2016)
2Source: Omnibus research conducted for Post Office Travel Money by Populus (April 2016) among 747 UK adults who had taken an All Inclusive holiday found that 44 per cent use All Inclusive resorts as a base and routinely go to local bars, restaurants and shops.
3 Post Office Travel Money researched the lowest one week All Inclusive package prices available for a family of four to eight popular European destinations on Travelsupermarket, departing between 27-29 July. The average spent by two-thirds of All Inclusive holidaymakers outside their hotel/resort was then added to the package price to find how much extra they would pay over and above their package:
| Destination | Package | Av. spent outside hotel | TOTAL | % more |
| Majorca: Palma | £1,226.00 | £254.33 | £1,480.33 | +20.7% |
| Turkey: Marmaris | £1,273.00 | £254.33 | £1,527.33 | +20.0% |
| Crete: Stalis, Heraklion | £1,475.00 | £254.33 | £1,729.33 | +17.2% |
| Algarve: Praia da Rocha | £1,556.00 | £254.33 | £1,810.33 | +16.3% |
| Costa Blanca: Benidorm | £1,691.00 | £254.33 | £1,945.33 | +15.0% |
| Costa del Sol: Torremolinos | £1,717.00 | £254.33 | £1,971.33 | +14.8% |
| Cyprus: Paphos | £1,932.00 | £254.33 | £2,186.33 | +13.2% |
| Sicily: Palermo | £2,185.00 | £254.33 | £2,439.33 | +11.6% |
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