Here's an example of the difference for hubby and me and we have only done AI at Couples. We can drink their drinks all day and feel fine. I can have one margarita for $7 and hubby a martini at The Parrot and stagger back to my beach chair at Coco. Definitely cheaper for us to do NON AI. Also we eat way too much food in the AI that just isn't necessary (can't help ourselves-no self control) .
So that was $2000 per person, correct? If you paid $1955 for both of you, that is incredibly cheap.Originally Posted by TandJ
Airfare is a big factor and your proximity to a major airport. What month did you go? September and October seem to be the cheapest months, as it's the slowest.
From Saskatchewan, I've paid just over $1000 pp for flight in Feb; $845 last Nov; $725 in April; and $593 for this coming Nov.
My upcoming Nov trip, I got a deluxe room on Booking.com at Coco for $74/night, tax in, for 6 nights and Mirage @ $80/night, tax in for 3 nights. So, including shared transfer with Clives @ $60 return and a $50/day budget for food/drinks for one, I'm paying just under $200/night for everything (flight included). It's expensive to travel from Saskatchewan. I could save sometimes a couple of hundred bucks booking the limited non AI choices of air/hotel packages on Expedia, etc., but hotel choices are very limited, and sometimes the good flight times are not available. I'd rather pay a couple of hundred dollars more per trip not have to do 3 connections with red eye flights, etc. and be able to choose from more than 3 hotels. Don't get me started on single supplement costs. As soon as you punch in that you're a solo traveler, that advertised price soars on packages, AI or not.
Sure, I could probably find an AI stay for the same cost ($200/night). But after having experienced non AI in Negril, I think I would hate being cooped up at an AI. And I just don't have the budget to pay for things twice (food and drinks, when going off AI resort), and I'd be bored sitting around at a resort everyday. I don't want to play games around a pool everyday, I want to experience some of the country I'm visiting. I don't think your RPTB price would be available from Saskatoon, I'd probably be getting Fun Holiday for that price. I'd much rather stay where I want to stay, buy my own bottle for my room, than stay somewhere just because the food and drinks are included. It also depends alot on if you use all the other activities that are included. I know people who like to scuba daily, so when they stay somewhere that includes scuba, it makes it worth it. Your average traveler who goes to relax on the beach, eat and have a few drinks, most often the AI costs more. (unless you're buying champagne, imported alcohol etc. - I buy some red stripe, rum cream and coco mania rum, $11 for 33 oz, cheap!)
We are doing a week at couples this year, our 10th time there, and you are right about the drinks. I almost never drink... If I have a beer when we go out to dinner here at home (generally Sapporo, slightly higher alc content), I am buzzed after one 16 oz draft. I tried to keep up with my brother drinking one year at couples, and felt nothing after 5 or 6 drinks with "liquor" in them. I had one drink at Ivan's last year, and felt like I'd been drinking rum all afternoon.
On topic though... For the original poster. I did AI resorts 1998 to 2011, every year, at least once a year... Got an idea for something different 2011, tried the cliffs. It will forever be at least a part of my itinerary from now on. Cost wise for us, there is not much difference. I just spend the money I would have spent at couples getting (at least this year) an entire two bedroom, two bath cottage with kitchen and living room at tensing.
When we first started traveling to international destinations we started with a cruise. Hated a cruise the short time in port to explore the location but a great way to see lots of places at once and say I would like to go back and stay there. Well we started going back and staying there and at an AI. That quickly changed to non AI. With an AI even if you get out you are insulated from the real world wherever in the world you are. Maybe the food will be good and maybe not.
We stopped staying in any AI a decade ago (+more). If you do your research you can have even a better experience with much more variety in what you eat and also stimulate the local economy by staying non AI and the price can be break even or less. In Negril most of the guys (security) we would meet as the roamed the beach through the AI's and when we explained where we were staying and why we were passing through agreed. They liked the job they had at an AI but appreciated people that would stay non AI and stimulate the local economy instead of the corporate Negril.
That all said if an AI is what you want most certainly stay there as it does create the jobs for security, maids, bartenders, etc. but so do the non AI and to in my mind to a greater extent.
Sorry if I roamed and got off topic
Just my 2 cents
Last edited by kylake; 09-12-2013 at 07:02 PM.
Money is not the key to happiness, Happiness is!
Ben Franklin
I'm in the non-AI camp-I go with a friend and we split costs
Factoring in transportation from the airport ($80 each way- cheaper if we took the bus) breakfast and lunch at the NYC (about $16 per person per day) a couple (or 4) of cases of red stripes at the store, vendor food, beach beer and 1 or 2 nice dinners for the week it works out to less than $120 per day including hotel
The biggest unanticipated expense is drunk(us not the driver) taxi rides that seems to happen with some frequency and or tips to our Jamaican friends
Those costs are more than offset by the fun we have-while AI's are fun the vibe we get from meeting folks is much more real and much more enjoyable than you can get at an AI
Last edited by rickme; 09-12-2013 at 07:06 PM. Reason: spelling
Yep, I was thinking the same thing, murph. If one is going to compare the cost per day of AI vs. the cost per day of non-AI, I think you need to remove airfare from the equation. If you take a 10 day trip, your per day cost for airfare is obviously going to be cheaper than if you take a 7 day trip.
It used to be that you could purchase a package deal and get a significant discount from the price you would pay if you booked airfare and hotel separately (e.g. Apple vacations when they had their own airline), but not so much anymore. Nowadays, the price of a round trip ticket from a particular airport is largely the same, no matter how long your trip is (except for maybe slightly different prices on certain days of the week).
For me, the real value of non-AI comes from flexibility and choice. I like to be able to eat and drink what I want, when I want. Also, one of the main reasons I go to Jamaica is to enjoy fresh, local and organic foods. Sometimes, this isn't always available at the AI's
Some AI's offer free snorkeling trips AND free SCUBA dive trips...night dives too.
I've talked to AI goers who say its a no brainer for them.
These activities can be very pricy "a la carte".
Another aspect to consider - what are you drinking? I like Goose on the rocks and not too many AI's provide that (yes, that's a big concern for me lol)
Don't waste your time with explanations, people only hear what they want to hear.
someone needs to come up with a cost model that will objectively compare AI non-AI.
Yah I like making my own bloodies with Goose...subjective.
Do both AI(Couples Swept Away) and non AI..For us the cost has always been about the same both ways. Of course we could go cheaper non ai but to have accommodations and meals close to what we have at CSA it cost about the same.
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