All-Inclusives

With the growing popularity of all-inclusive resorts a-mong both leisure travelers and groups, especially in the Caribbean and along Mexico's coasts, hotel and resort chains have been moving to meet demand. Sandals Resorts and Sol Melia Hotels & Resorts, for instance, recently introduced new all-inclusive properties.

Keeping meeting groups in mind, such all-inclusive chains as Riu Hotels and Resorts, Palace Resorts, AMResorts, and Viva Wyndham Resorts have been acquiring, upgrading and transforming properties into all-inclusive products.

As part of an accelerating upscale shift, Sandals launched butler service, and Palace and AMResorts introduced new luxury brands. And a trend to more properties instituting a European plan (EP)—a room rate that does not include meals—in an attempt to cash in with all-inclusive options continues.

For one group price, all-inclusive resorts generally include rooms, food, drinks, scheduled entertainment, transfers, taxes, gratuities, and activities such as non-motorized water sports.

Pricing simplification that eliminates the surprise of extra charges fits nicely with the trend toward corporate procurement departments making decisions based on cost control, resorts point out.

New Upscale Resorts

Ron Roy, Sol Melia's Miami-based vice president of marketing, says that demand for all-inclusives is growing.

"They're convenient," he says. "After the first conversation, a meeting planner can get a handle on the budget."

In March last year Sol Melia opened Paradisus Puerto Rico, the island's first all-inclusive resort. It offers 500 suites in low-rise bungalows, two golf courses and 13 meeting rooms.

Later this year, the Paradise Palma Real will open with 350 suites and a conference center in Punta Cana, the Dominican Republic. The resort will be next to the all-inclusive Melia Caribe Tropical, which added 144 one-bedroom suites in March, bringing its room count to 1,400.

Sandals opened the new 360-room Sandals Whitehouse European Village and Spa in February on Jamaica's south coast. Designed to include Dutch, Italian and French villages, it features 12,000 square feet of meeting and prefunction space.

In December, it unveiled Jamaica's 529-room Sandals Grande Ocho Rios Beach and Villa Resort, a $14 million transformation of two properties—Sandals Ocho Rios and Beaches Grand Sport Villa—into its largest resort, with three meeting rooms and a ballroom and pavilion with banquet capacities.

Launched in January, butler service featuring butlers trained and certified under a partnership with the Guild of Professional English Butlers became available at 12 Sandals and Beaches resorts as an ultra-all-inclusive package, with the number of butler suites at each resort ranging from five to 50.

David Ross, group sales manager with Sandals, mentions that for one recent financial group booking, butler service cinched the deal and the planner is looking forward to surprising top executives with the service.

"Last year was our best year for incentive groups, and bookings for this year are strong," he says.

But still, the old beads-and-buffet image of the all-inclusive resort lingers.

Earlier this year, Sandals began a consumer rebranding campaign, stating that at best, the term all-inclusive had become a catch-all category for resorts with a meal plan. But the campaign points out that with its dining in a la carte restaurants, activities such as golf and suites with dramatic views, the term no longer described Sandals.

Club Med, the all-inclusive vacation originator, began a rebranding campaign early last year to correct an outdated all-inclusive image.

The move followed a $150 million investment to upgrade resorts and amenities, including the introduction of all-day open bars.

At the same time, Club Med launched a North America website for groups featuring virtual tours of eight properties, including the Sandpiper in Florida.

SuperClubs added group sales staff earlier this year to promote its two top properties—the 210-suite Grand Lido Negril and the 230-room Grand Lido Braco in Jamaica—as well as the eight Breezes properties throughout the Caribbean and Latin America.

No Turning Back

Andjela Kessler, president of Atlanta-based Incentive Travel &  Meetings, says all-inclusives are great for incentives, especially for those with small budgets.

"They make it easier for corporations," she says. "If they're flexible enough, they're a good value. If you added up all the pieces, prices would be much higher."

Kelli Fedewa, director of incentive services at VIKTOR Incentive & Meetings in Traverse City, Mich., says that once a client takes the all-inclusive route it's difficult to switch back.

"If they wanted an identical program at a traditional resort they'd be adding on expense," she says.

Budget-conscious clients that use all-inclusive resorts favor Jamaica, and some, every few years, may book a cruise, she says.

"You can add a beverage package costing $40 to $50 per person per day to a cruise and you have an all-inclusive," she explains.

According to the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), 2004 capped a record setting, five-year building boom that introduced 62 ships to the North American market. Last year, 12 ships were added to the CLIA-member fleet, bringing the total number of vessels to 150.

Expansion and upgrading has brought larger ships with more meeting and event space and improved high-speed Internet and cell phone connectivity. And with a growth in homeports, ships are now sailing from more than 30 North American and U.S. territory ports.

"It was difficult to find amenities at sea for groups 10 years ago, but now the service is wonderful," says Joyce Landry, president and CEO of Miami-based Landry & Kling.

"You don't have to pay for meeting breaks," she says. "Cruise lines generally don't charge extra for equipment such as LCDs and, unlike hotel ballrooms, rooms are already set up so you can save on set-up fees.

All-Inclusive Packaging

All-inclusive packages at EP resorts run the gamut from low-end properties that throw in a few extras to options at opulent resorts.

The Ritz-Carlton Golf Spa Resort, Rose Hall in Jamaica, for example, launched a meetings package in 2003 that includes accommodations, all meals, alcoholic beverages at dinner, gratuity, tax, hotel service charge, and standard decor for private events.

Miami-based Group & Incentive Resort Marketing, representing more than 100 hotels and resorts, specializes in all-inclusive groups. Most are in the Caribbean, the Bahamas and Mexico, and are either all-inclusive or have all-inclusive packages. Around 80 percent of its groups are incentives.

Judy Myers, president of the company, sees resistance to all-inclusives declining.

"Many are high-end, and those on tight budgets don't have to worry about extra costs," she says.

She also sees the number of domestic EP resorts offering all-inclusive packaging beginning to grow. Some Wyndham properties, such as the Wyndham Casa Marina Resort in Key West, Fla., now offer all-inclusive group options.

Myers points to other properties with all-inclusive op-tions, including two in the Blue Ridge Mountains: the 134-room Brasstown Valley Resort in Young Harris, Ga., with 14,000 square feet of conference space, and Greystone Inn, a Lake Toxaway, N.C. retreat that has conference space for 30 guests.

The 700-room Radisson Cable Beach & Golf Resort in Nassau, with 25,000 square feet of meeting and function space, is the only Bahamas resort offering both EP and all-inclusive options for groups. Around 90 percent of business booked by those planning meetings and incentives is all-inclusive.

Peter Furzer, president of resort marketing, adds that large groups of 100 rooms or more generally don't take the EP option.

"It's smaller ones, such as fishing groups that go off-property, that take the EP," he says.