Latin Trade: Getaways

I want to take my family on an all-inclusive resort vacation. Is there anything I should know?

A lot, says Nina Meyer, director of leisure for the travel agency TraveLeaders in Coral Gables, Florida. It's up to customers to find out if all-inclusive packages match their lifestyles. Resort operators are good marketers and know which properties are best suited for a given traveler, but in the end the traveler must know what he or she wants, says Meyer. That could mean horseback riding at sunset or drinks and poker in the casino.

Quality varies. MI-inclusive may mean a three-star, four-star or five-star facility. Goodies could be left out. Ask the resort manager questions, or ask your travel agent. "Some inclusive resorts don't always include the booze, and they don't always include things to do for the kids," says Meyer. Some excursions could involve groups only, while others could give you more time with the family.

Also, some hotels offer all-inclusive packages, which let you eat and drink as much as you want while giving you the freedom to come and go in the meantime. That's not true at most all-inclusive resorts. "You're at a completely isolated resort in some cases," Meyer says.

I like the idea of cellophane wrap on my bag, but isn't that a problem for security?

Not according to Lauren Stover, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). TSA baggage screeners may cut open the cellophane if they need to check your bag, but they will then have it rewrapped. That wasn't always the case, and often people paying for the wrap found their naked luggage plopping down the chute when they arrived at their destinations.

The passenger does not have to pay for a second cellophane wrapping should TSA officials have to cut open the plastic to inspect a bag. Cellophane wrapping emerged to prevent airline or other employees with access to luggage from planting drugs or contraband inside baggage headed across borders. "My bottom line is that our commitment is to inspect every bag," says Stover. "We can provide good customer service but maintain the highest level of security."

Wrapping is making a comeback. After Sept. 11, customers avoided paying for cellophane wraps because the TSA might rip them off minutes afterwards. Companies such as Secure Wrap, a Miami, Florida company, offered to put employees with 10-year background checks alongside screeners who removed cellophane, says Barry Hough, an analyst at AvGroup, an airline industry consultancy in Miami. The wrapper would then replace the plastic. Since the wrapping employee works in a screening area, the airport assumes any liabilities from problems associated with that employee.

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