My stay at an all-inclusive in Crete
No judgement
From the outset, I want to make it clear I am sharing my view to explain my preferences when travelling. I am not judging other people’s preferences. I should also make it clear this is my view and doesn’t represent the views of my travel companions.
I liked the location of the resort; a two-minute walk to a sandy beach with warm, clear water. We were in a fairly quiet location, around thirty minutes’ walk from the town of Chania. It was late September and the beach was never seemed overly busy. The rooms were comfortable, the food was varied, with plenty of Greek and Cretan options, and of good quality. To their credit, the staff remained very friendly when looking after a number of guests.
I can certainly see positives of these types of stays for people that want to take a break from a demanding routine. Especially those with young children; these resorts offer effortless mealtimes and entertainment in a safe environment. I can also understand people want to relax and not exert themselves on holiday. These resorts offer that with luxury and convenience.
Discovering new foods
However, these resorts don’t appeal to me. I don’t want everything under one roof. I felt, at every mealtime, an opportunity was missed to seek out a new eatery and try something different. I’m aware in many popular tourist destinations, even outside of resorts, many restaurants are designed to cater for visitors, with generic menus.
But beyond the main square of a city, it is possible to find local offerings, and taste food the city’s residents enjoy – the real local delicacies. I find these are more memorable because they are individualistic and distinct. I find sampling new cuisines both fun and enriching, discovering new tastes while inspiring ideas for cooking at home.
Limitations
A secondary point is that, in being served food in the same location for breakfast, lunch and dinner, it limits time spent away from the accommodation. If food is included in the price, it is natural to want the money’s worth by eating there. I found being in the resort for every mealtime was stifling, restricting, and limited my experience.
As a counter example, in the two nights before Chania, we stayed in two different seaside destinations. Between the two, we took a ferry ride and hiked along a beautiful coastal trail. On both days, we were able to lie on the beach, swim in the sea and enjoy good food. Exploring and relaxing can be combined. In fact, relaxing after exertion may enhance the former. A holiday focused primarily on convenience isn’t the only way to relax or feel refreshed.
Wanting to explore
From my perspective, I only have limited time to explore the destination I’m in; I want to see as much of it as possible. If that means extra walking, additional time spent looking for food, more bus or train journeys, unpacking and repacking my bags several times, I will happily sacrifice inconvenience to maximise exploration.
Ironically, I found the resort less quiet than our previous accommodation and, as a consequence, less relaxing. All the rooms were centred around the pool, without much protection from the noise of other guests throughout the day. I believe these types of resort are catered towards families. I don’t think they are designed for people who want to ‘travel’. They aren’t really for me.
Sustainability
As these types of places aren’t designed for me, then, you may ask why I even have an opinion on them. The last point I will make, then, is something that affects all of us – the environment. Travelling itself is almost contradictory to being environmentally friendly. Unless you walk or swim everywhere. It might seem hypocritical of me, a seasoned traveller, to bring this subject up.
I think travel can exist alongside sustainability. The impact of travel for leisure on the overall carbon output is low compared to travel for business. Still, reducing the amount of travel we do, particularly long-haul flights, would be an obvious benefit. There are other less drastic steps we can take to reduce our footprint.
Wasted energy
All-inclusive resorts serving buffets with unlimited food are, unfortunately, prioritising availability over waste. There is bound to be significant amounts of food leftover; I highly doubt every resort is able to prevent a significant amount of waste. All-inclusive resorts factor in this waste in their pricing.
Granted, all eateries are going to experience some waste. But a café or restaurant that cooks to order will likely reduce waste significantly. This is particularly true of smaller businesses that can’t afford to provide a surplus that may not be sold.
There are other subtler factors that make resorts less environmentally friendly. For example, heating multiple pools for their own guests, changing of towels and bedding regularly, plus large air-conditioned spaces.
My final thoughts
I am not calling for a boycott of all-inclusive resorts. I am privileged, largely responsible-free, and restless. These resorts aren’t designed for me. And my opinion isn’t a judgement on those people who appreciate them. My aim is to explain why I won’t choose to stay in an all-inclusive resort and why I prefer other ways to travel.
In conclusion, after spending a week in Crete, I much preferred the first part when hiking and exploring. I daresay I was almost bored at the resort. I kept myself busy exploring Chania, which is nice by day and fun by night. I also enjoyed swimming in the warm sea and passed time by building sand castles (I was 34 at the time of this trip, if you are wondering). But I wouldn’t come back to this style of accommodation in a hurry. I will stick to exploring new places, trying to see and experience as much as possible, to get the most out of my trips as I can.
