7 great all-inclusive hotels in the Caribbean

This is the Caribbean in a new grown-up guise, where the hotels eschew tropical bedspreads and cane furniture, buffet suppers and weak cocktails for a much smarter proposition. The term all-inclusive now means chic bedrooms, sophisticated restaurants, mixologists behind the bar and even a spa where treatments don't always cost extra. Wind down and tuck in, all without the worry of a bill piling up. These winter-sun hideaways are the best of the islands.

BEST ALL-INCLUSIVE FOR... FAMILIES

Coconut Bay Beach Resort & Spa, St Lucia

Just a five-minute transfer from the airport, Coconut Bay could not be easier to get to. And once here you can just stay put: the hotel is spread across 85 acres of land so there's plenty to explore. The beach is a mile-long stretch, there are five pools to splash about in, a huge kids' club and St Lucia's biggest water park. At the Surf Shack, children can try watersports without adding to the final bill, while the pool bar has a kid-only side for free-rein ordering of mocktails. Parents, meanwhile, can tuck into the rum punches, and with nine restaurants to choose from you can feast on jerk chicken wings at Capri, Asian food at Silk or head to Calabash for a refined take on Creole cuisine. The considered layout means that couples desiring peace and quiet can check in to the Harmony wing, and anyone travelling with the whole circus in tow can have the run of the rest.

Prices from £1,039 per adult and £825 per child, based on two adults and two kids sharing. Seven nights all-inclusive. Save up to £2,500 on your stay. Free return airport transfers and $500 resort coupons towards in-house services. View all St.Lucia offers at kenwoodtravel.co.uk

BEST ALL-INCLUSIVE FOR... FOODIES

Moon Palace Jamaica

Floors of gleaming marble and a wall of Apple Macs at reception are not what you might expect in Jamaica. But the contemporary design gives this beach hotel a cosmopolitan vibe, and the food follows suit. It's not just a selection of buffets. Instead you can work your way around the five restaurants and six bars, trying seared rib eye at the steakhouse, risotto at Gondola, California rolls at the sushi bar, teppanyaki action at Momo and grilled seafood at Pier 8. The baristas know their frappuccinos from their flat whites so caffeine junkies are well looked after. And for those with a sweet tooth there's every sticky patisserie treat imaginable at La Boulangerie. Plus there's 24-hour room service, all part of the deal. If you can tear yourself away, the water treatments in the spa get rave reviews, and you're moments from the nightlife of downtown Ocho Rios.

Prices from £1,649 per adult, based on two sharing, for seven nights all-inclusive. Save up to 30 per cent on your stay. $1,500 resort credit when you travel between 1 Oct-20 Dec 2017 and 4 Jan-30 June 2018. View all Jamaica offers at kenwoodtravel.co.uk

BEST ALL-INCLUSIVE FOR... WATER BABIES

Now Onyx Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

This is the perfect hotel for anyone serious about swimming. Some of the junior suites sit next to the shared swim-up pools, which means you can roll straight out of bed into the blue. Suites in the Preferred Club area have their own plunge pools. And all rooms throughout have an outdoor whirlpool bathtub on their balconies. Beyond are five larger pools to dive into, not to mention the properly soft sandy beach and private driftwood style cabanas with waiter service. The design throughout is funky and contemporary (the hotel has only been open for a year). Rooms are clean-lined and sharp, with bamboo details and sliding wooden panels. Help yourself to the minibar and when you've exhausted eating at the seven restaurants, the burger bar and the ice-cream sundae stand, you can head next door to sister hotel Breathless to try its menus too, at no extra cost.

Prices from £1,069 per adult, based on two sharing, for seven nights all-inclusive. Save up to 30 per cent. View all Dominican Republic offers at kenwoodtravel.co.uk

BEST ALL-INCLUSIVE FOR... HIGH ROLLERS

Sandals Royal Barbados

The shiniest, next-level all-inclusive hotel in the Caribbean. The Sandals Royal Barbados is shaking things up. The all-suite resort (adults only) will open its doors just before Christmas next door to its sister Sandals Barbados, which means guests will have access to all the fun and games at both properties. But many won't want to leave the Royal. It'll be full of firsts for the island - the first cantilevered rooftop pool, the first rooftop bar, the first hotel bowling alley (just four lanes so you can take it all for yourselves), even the first men's barbershop. This is a grown-up playground, where the four bars (stiff cocktails and well-chosen wines) and five sophisticated restaurants (Chinese-Japanese fusion, white-gloved French dining, relaxed American) are complimented by a vast 15,000 square foot spa and the option of butler service and a chauffeured Rolls-Royce airport transfer. Also on tap are catamaran trips, deep-sea fishing excursions and scuba diving - all included in the price of your holiday. And the best bit? You don't have to reach for your wallet once.

Prices from £1,825 per adult, based on two sharing, for seven nights Luxury Included®. Save up to 60 per cent and free return airport transfers. View all Barbados offers at kenwoodtravel.co.uk

BEST ALL-INCLUSIVE FOR... STYLISH COUPLES

UNICO 20 87, Cancun

Cool modern touches such as the Acapulco chairs on each terrace and mid-century-modern styling in the rooms set UNICO 20 87 apart as one of the most exciting openings on the Riviera Maya. With its polished concrete floors, basket weave lampshades and dramatic teak four-poster beds, the rooms wouldn't be out of place in a design magazine. Relevant local nods such as the ornate carved Aztec-style mirrors in the bathrooms and the home-grown Mexican brand Botanicus bath products help the hotel feel rooted in its location. And everything in this sophisticated adults-only spot is part of the package. The three restaurants feel urban and trendy, the mixologists at the bar shake up a mean Margarita and the Mayan coffee is not to be missed. There's even a cigar bar in the Cuban-style lounge. The spa is a destination in its own right and when booking treatments, all you pay is the gratuity fee, which means a massage a day, if you can fit it in between watching films under the stars, excursions to Chichen Itza or Tulum or sunbathing by your private swim-up pool.

Prices from £1,599 per adult, based on two sharing. Seven nights all-inclusive. Save up to 25 per cent, plus unlimited selected spa treatments, excursions and services at the hotel (subject to the 20 per cent service fee).
View all Cancun offers at kenwoodtravel.co.uk

BEST ALL-INCLUSIVE FOR... A LAID-BACK VIBEhttps://www.kenwoodtravel.co.uk/caribbean/aruba/amsterdam-manor-hotel/?utm_source=conde_nast&utm_medium=native&utm_campaign=caribbean_escapes

Amsterdam Manor, Aruba

Low-key and chilled out, this is a family-run hotel that encapsulates that mellow ambience people flock to the Caribbean for. Set just over the road from Eagle Beach (the best on the island) with its icing sugar sand, clear turquoise waters and palapa umbrellas rustling in the breeze, it's a great location. The hotel has plenty of dedicated sun beds and beach towels laid out along the shore. And there are more lined up around the pool too. The building itself is painted a sunny yellow with nods to Dutch colonial architecture. Rooms come with kitchenettes but no one goes on holiday to cook, so sign up for the all-inclusive option and then cruise from the substantial help-yourself breakfast, to lunch at Passions Beach Bar, and supper at Tulip Caribbean Brasserie or the excellent Mango's Restaurant, stopping along the way at the Horizon's Bar for a sundowner or two, or a cocktail at the manager's weekly drinks party.

Prices from £2,039 per adult, based on two sharing, for seven nights all-inclusive. View all Aruba offers at kenwoodtravel.co.uk

BEST ALL-INCLUSIVE FOR... TOTAL RELAXATION

Blue Waters, Antigua

It's no wonder that elegant, old-school Blue Waters is chock-full of repeat visitors. After all, it has a great setting on one of the island's 365 each-better-than-the-last beaches, a warm and loyal staff, amazing sea views, immaculate bougainvillaea-filled tropical gardens and very good food. A recent revamp has seen a smartening up of already lovely rooms, where you can sleep with the windows open to hear the crash of waves on the sand. Here is somewhere to wind down and switch off - a peaceful, restorative resort. Everything is taken care of and included - the minibar restocked daily, afternoon tea served just when you start to feel peckish. Slow down to Caribbean time, pop the children in to the crèche, snooze on a sunbed, head to the beauty salon for a facial and pedicure. Anyone feeling particularly energetic can sign up for a sailing lesson or cooking programme. It doesn't get much busier than that.

Prices from £1,719 per adult, based on two sharing, for seven nights all-inclusive. Save up to 35 per cent. View all Antigua offers at kenwoodtravel.co.uk

All are based on return economy flights, excluding transfers unless otherwise stated. Prices correct as of 1st November 2017.

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