Every cruise line says it is all inclusive now. Most of them are lying by a little. A drink package and prepaid tips do not make a cruise all inclusive. They make it a cruise with a bar tab you paid up front.
Real all inclusive means the bill stops at the fare. On Regent Seven Seas, the fare includes unlimited shore excursions in port, specialty dining, premium drinks, unlimited Wi-Fi, prepaid gratuities, and valet laundry. International sailings even fold in business class flights and a pre cruise hotel night. You get off the ship in a new country and you are not doing math before breakfast.
Explora Journeys plays the same game a little differently. Its fares include meals across all its restaurants, unlimited beverages, Wi-Fi throughout the ship, all onboard gratuities, and access to the thermal spa. It is not quite excursion inclusive the way Regent is, but you are not signing for coffee or a spa afternoon either. Explora III just joined the fleet this summer, so the line is fresh and still finding its rhythm.
Here is why the distinction matters to your wallet. A premium line will sell you a beverage package, a Wi-Fi package, specialty dining, excursions, and daily gratuities as separate line items. Add those up and a truly inclusive fare can land closer to a loaded premium fare than the sticker shock suggests. The number on the front looks bigger because it already ate all the numbers on the back.
All inclusive is not automatically the right call. If you barely drink, skip excursions, and never touch the spa, you are paying for a buffet of things you will not eat. The value shows up when you are the kind of traveler who wants the good wine at dinner, the tour in every port, and zero envelopes at the end. If that is you, the inclusive fare buys something better than money. It buys not thinking about it.
The trick is knowing which lines actually mean it and which ones just printed the words on a brochure. That is a comparison worth doing before you book, not after. If you want help sorting out what a fare really includes, that is literally what we do.
Fair winds and following seas,
Captain Steve
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