Sometimes you just need to get away. It doesn’t matter if it is the kids being too much, your job that is stressing you out or even your parents being annoying, you just need to get away! One of the options to solve that problem is a beach break. Sipping cocktails, tanning on warm white sands, going for swims in the ocean,… All your worries disappear in the blink of an eye.

Okay, so you have decided that you are in desperate need of charging your batteries again. How do you about arranging your beach getaway? The biggest decision you are going to have to make is whether to go for an all-inclusive vacation or organize everything yourself. Either of them has its own pros and cons.

First let us discuss the pros and cons of an all-inclusive beach holiday. And just to be clear, we’re talking about the classy kind, although all inclusives can still be fun if you’re a budget traveler. What is definitely a pro is the fact that lots of things – not everything, mind you – are in fact included in an all-inclusive package. Accommodation, food, drinks, access to the pool and/or beach and probably some activities can all be enjoyed as much as you want. Food usually comes in all-you-can-eat buffets. Do keep in mind, though, that there still may be additional charges for alcoholic beverages and tips or for renting sports equipment. Make sure to double check what is included before booking and read the small print as well. Another pro is that when you book your all-inclusive holiday, you know exactly what you are paying for your holiday. If you choose well, you may not even need to pay for anything else during your entire holiday, as flights and transportation may be included as well. A con is that most all-inclusive resorts lie in remote locations, only accessible by car or by the resort’s own transport service. This, if not taken care of beforehand, could cost you quite some money. This also means that there usually is nothing else to do than to stay at the resort and make use of their facilities and activities. The biggest pro about the all-inclusive formulas is that you normally don’t have to worry about anything. Everything you need for a relaxing beach holidays will be readily available to you. If you’re going to do an all inclusive it makes sense to do it when relaxation rather than exploring is your priority e.g a Caribbean all inclusive or South Pacific all inclusive.

A whole other way to organize your beach break is by doing everything yourself. This includes looking up plane tickets, resorts or hotels, transportation, places to eat,… The big con here is obvious; all this takes up a lot of time and work and could get you even more stressed. Don’t worry though, because the pros are worth it. When you have the possibility of organizing everything yourself, you are the one who decides what you want to do and when, where and how you want to do it. While the planning can be stressful, the amount of freedom a self-organized beach holiday can give you is priceless. Talking about price, this particular way of travelling allows you to research and compare every single detail of your holiday; thus allowing you to create a luxury vacation or a low-budget holiday.

All-inclusive and self-organized beach holidays are of course complete opposites and as you can see there are pros and cons to both of them.