GOING ALL IN
NICK LAVIGUEUR goes all-inclusive in Turkey and says it’s ideal for famililes watching their budget
THE prospect of unlimited buffet and booze is attracting more and more holidaymakers to the all-inclusive deal. But unlike many of its rivals, French-owned Club Med doesn’t stop at just filling your belly. The philosophy at the upmarket global chain is very much about getting some exercise and some sea air in your lungs before you indulge.
With the knowledge that Turkey would almost certainly provide the great weather that couldn’t be guaranteed in the western Mediterranean in late spring, my wife and I flew out for a week, hoping the luxury Palmiye resort’s staff would entertain our two tots all day long.
While we, of course, would lounge on sunbeds, sipping beers and reading our books.
About an hour west of Antalya airport, which itself is a four-and-ahalf-hour flight from the UK, the large resort has both a hotel and apartments spread across beautifully manicured grounds, befitting an entry to the Chelsea flower show.
Aside from the stunning setting, watersports are the main attraction, most of them free for guests, along with tennis and a multitude of keep fit classes both in and out of the pool.
And if children are coming along there’s no problem (in theory), as the kids’ club has its own team and facilities offering childcare from babies up to teens.
Water-based activities from sailing to wake boarding and windsurfing are all included in the price for guests... and it doesn’t stop there.
There’s paddle boarding, water polo, archery, table tennis, and a circus trapeze.
The joy of the all-inclusive is you could, as we did, spend the whole week without getting your cash or credit card out once. If you do want to splash the cash, then there are jewellery, clothes and toy shops, a spa and a host of excursions to choose from.
Escape from the kids bombing the pools in the two adults-only swimming areas, one of which dubs itself the “Zen area”.
And when lounging on a day bed or in a tepee becomes too sedate, there’s always something going on not too far away, or some food being served to soak up some of the damage done by the open bar.
Talking of the cuisine, the resort has immense buffets on offer three times a day, and two restaurants to boot. And if getting dressed to go and eat is too arduous, there’s nearly always a chef somewhere whipping
up free pancakes or a spread of pastries and canapés on offer close to one of the many pools.
The food is largely local stuff or French, but there’s always pizza, burgers, fries and barbecued meats on hand for the picky eaters.
But back to the childcare now – and why I said “in theory”.
Those who can read between the lines have probably worked out that my wife and I had a few quibbles with the care of our two pre-school youngsters: a seven-month-old and a bonafide ‘threenager’.
Whereas some close rivals of Club Med split childcare into three to five-year-olds, here the so-called Petit Club has an age range of two to four. Our very chatty three-year-old quickly decided the French staff seemed to lack a certain ‘je ne c’est quoi’.
She was less than happy to be in with the little ones and when we asked for her to go in with the kids aged four and five we were told it was impossible for insurance reasons, despite that care being free of charge for guests, compared with the chargeable care for underfours.
Unwilling to hang out with two-year-olds or do ‘boring’ baby stuff, we were forced to entertain her ourselves. So we took her to do one of the aerobics classes for adults and played pétanque instead. It seems there was no red tape preventing that!
While that brought our plans of six days of child-free living crashing down to the ground, it doesn’t stop me from highly recommending the resort.
The staff really do work their socks off and several we met told us they loved working for Club Med and had done so for years.
One waiter we spoke with had been with the firm for 20 years, while another guest relations employee extolled the benefits of the firm’s conditions that allow staff to move around the world.
The service in the bars and restaurants was never anything short of excellent and the inter-connecting rooms we called home for seven nights were comfortable, spacious and well maintained with free soft drinks in the mini-bar.
One of the highlights of the week was the so-called ‘Big Snack’ – I presume a mistranslation from ‘Big Picnic’ – which saw the main lawn transformed into a fairground with bouncy castles, a ball pool, games, candy floss, popcorn and a huge spread of food and sweets. And all for free.
Extra touches like this really won me over and helped keep the little ones’ spirits high.
And with no hidden extra costs at all, and all your meals and drinking paid for, that represents good value and takes all the uncertainty out of your holidaying budget.
Turkey is home to more than 10 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the Neolithic site of Catalhoyuk