More All-Inclusive Deals

Apple Vacations is offering a handful of deals at the all-inclusive Riu Resorts in the Caribbean. Packages – including airfare – start at $699 per person for a four-night stay, and $899 per person for a seven-night stay. Destinations include Cabo San Lucas, Jamaica, Aruba, and Punta Cana.

All-inclusives sometimes get a bad rap – which is sometimes warranted – but I’ve had some of my best beach experiences at all-inclusives. (I count the Riu Santa Fe in Cabo San Lucas among those “best beach vacations”.) If you go with low expectations for the food especially, you can’t be disappointed. And in my experience, all-inclusives almost always constitute a better deal.

The fine print on the Riu deals… book today for travel through February 2009. (Sorry I didn't get the notice out sooner!)

Visit Mexico this fall on the cheap

Shermans Travel reports a handful of package deals at adult-only beach resorts in Mexico. Travel before October 31 and you can visit Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta, or Playa del Carmen for what appear to be fairly good rates.

I love to travel to the beach in the fall – it’s much less crowded and temperatures are generally more tolerable. Certainly, you have to risk hurricanes, but Cabo and Puerto Vallarta are fairly hurricane-proof.

I checked the rates from Charlotte for a four-night late-September trip to Cabo and the rates were just below $900 per person. Comparable trips to Puerto Vallarta and Playa del Carmen were $777 and $800 per person, respectively, with a direct flight on the way to Playa del Carmen. Hola Mexico!