Two hotels in North Cyprus that both say "all inclusive" are not selling the same contract. Merit Park operates on an ultra all-inclusive concept, yet its a la carte restaurant is still reservation-only and charged extra. Kaya Palazzo's name comes up in all-inclusive searches, whereas the concepts the property actually sells are “Full Board Plus” and bed and breakfast. The industry standard for a Cyprus all-inclusive package is fairly well defined: three meals a day are added to the stay, along with “alcoholic” and “non-alcoholic drinks” served during set hours. Every item beyond that standard varies by property — and even, within the same property, by the room type you book. The category heading on the agency page is the guide you absolutely must check before you go. But at North Cyprus all-inclusive hotels, what's binding for you is the concept name written on your booking confirmation.
In Kyrenia, One Hotel in Seven Is All-Inclusive
Pick a hotel at random in Kyrenia (Girne) and the odds of it being all-inclusive are roughly one in seven… According to one agency's filter count dated 28 August 2026, of 73 properties, 7 sell ultra all-inclusive and 4 sell all-inclusive. There are 32 properties selling bed and breakfast and 19 selling half board. Because the restaurant scene around the harbour and the center is lively, guests plan on eating out anyway, so most hotels settle for bed and breakfast. For a guest staying all-inclusive, that same restaurant strip means extra cost. As of June 2026, the set menu at a meyhane runs 1,700-2,800 TL per person, and a fish restaurant at the harbour 1,000-1,700 TL. That money comes out on top of meals already paid for in the package.
According to June 2026 data, a city hotel in Famagusta (Gazimağusa) selling bed and breakfast starts at 3,838 TL per night, while the same region's all-inclusive-focused casino resort opens at 14,818 TL; at Long Beach the comparison is 6,332 TL versus 19,250 TL. An all-inclusive package is roughly three to four times the price of bed and breakfast. Acapulco's own blog page writes that a TRNC (North Cyprus) hotel in the same class still comes out cheaper than Antalya, with the gap widening on early booking. That is a hotel operator's own comparison, not an independent measurement.
In Bafra, the Package Is a Product of Geography
Why are all four big properties in Bafra ultra all-inclusive? Kaya Artemis, Concorde Luxury, Nuh'un Gemisi Deluxe and Limak Cyprus Deluxe aren't following a marketing fashion — there is simply no other option around them. Bafra is a state-planned tourism zone, 55-72 kilometers from Ercan Airport depending on the route, with no nearby town offering independent restaurants or shops. Since guests can't eat dinner out, the hotel has to put both the meals and the evening program into the package. On the price lists, Kaya Artemis quotes per person. Put it next to a site showing per-room nightly rates and the same hotel appears to have two different prices — before comparing, check which unit the figure is written in.
Properties Selling Ultra All-Inclusive (2026)
| Property | Region | Concept (2026) | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Merit Park Hotel | Karaoğlanoğlu, Kyrenia | Ultra all-inclusive | Open on the same concept in winter too |
| Merit Crystal Cove | Alsancak, Kyrenia | Ultra all-inclusive | First property to run the ultra concept in the TRNC |
| Kaya Artemis Resort & Casino | Bafra | Ultra all-inclusive | Prices quoted per person |
| Concorde Luxury Resort | Bafra | Ultra all-inclusive | Also operates through the winter season |
| Nuh'un Gemisi Deluxe | Bafra | Ultra all-inclusive | On agencies' 2026 ultra lists |
| Limak Cyprus Deluxe | Bafra | Ultra all-inclusive | Open only 19 March-31 October 2026 |
| Salamis Bay Conti | Famagusta | Ultra all-inclusive | The only ultra property outside the Kyrenia-Bafra line |
| Elexus Hotel Resort | Çatalköy, Kyrenia | Full all-inclusive | Entire property on this concept since 15 May 2026 |
| Kaya Palazzo Resort & Casino | Karaoğlanoğlu, Kyrenia | NOT all-inclusive | Sells Full Board Plus and bed and breakfast |
Search for Cyprus all-inclusive and no two agencies' lists line up: one agency's all-inclusive page counts only six hotels, all in Kyrenia, while the other's ultra list shows seven properties weighted toward Bafra. Do the two lists contradict each other? No — each agency writes up its own inventory, and the table above merges the two. For Elexus, complaint sites hold two entries titled "breach of the ultra all-inclusive promise" and "surprise extra charges in the package", the second dated 28 August 2025. In other words, written months before the property moved all of its rooms to full all-inclusive. There is no complaint dated after mid-2026, and a complaint from the mixed period doesn't describe today's concept. Every property on the list operates a casino, with free entry for hotel guests.
Four Separate Contracts at Acapulco
Acapulco sells four concepts under one roof: Full Board Plus, All-Inclusive, Half Board and 24-Hour Ultra All-Inclusive. Which one you get isn't determined by the hotel's name but by the room or package type entered on the booking. A guest who spots Acapulco under an agency's "all-inclusive hotels" heading and books a half-board room assumes everything is paid for. In fact, half board consists of breakfast and dinner only — lunch and daytime drinks are paid separately. The confusion is hardly new: a user review from 2015 describes the same surprise, that time over Full Board Plus — the pattern has held for eleven years.
At Cratos the picture is murkier. Search snippets use all-inclusive, ultra all-inclusive and full board plus for the property all at once. Cratos doesn't appear on the agencies' ultra lists; a structure that varies by room type is likely. Without phoning to ask which concept name will appear on the booking confirmation, nothing definite can be said about Cratos.
What Comes Out of Pocket Even on an Ultra Label
The word ultra doesn't make the a la carte restaurant free. Merit Park's detail page on enuygun, updated 2 September 2026, states that the a la carte restaurants are reservation-only and charged extra. The same page lists the main restaurant's hours: breakfast 07.00-11.00, lunch 13.00-15.00, dinner 18.30-21.00. In between, the bars, lobby cafe and shisha area serve local and imported drinks with snacks. The a la carte allowance is up to each hotel — some grant one free visit per week, others charge every time. Local alcoholic drinks are generally free by the glass in the 10.00-23.30 band; whether imported brands are in the package varies from property to property. No TRNC-specific rule is written for the minibar; in general Turkish practice, water and soft drinks are restocked free once a day, while chocolate and alcoholic items are paid separately.
The spa is presented in brochures as if included in the package. In the honeymoon packages at Elexus and Acapulco, the first massage is free and subsequent ones are discounted by 15-30%. Whether the aquapark and the casino fall within the package isn't stated on the general description pages — you have to ask the property. Gaming money at the casino is not included in any package type, and complimentary drinks at the tables vary by venue and game, with no guarantee. In a Cyprus all-inclusive package, the items you can count on are the meal and drink hours; the rest depends on each property's own list.
Child Age Bands and the Winter Season
The free age band for children isn't governed by a single rule across the TRNC; it shifts between properties with each hotel's own campaign. Writing the child's date of birth on the booking form and pinning down the charge before confirmation comes out cheaper than discovering an extra invoice at reception. What drops out of the package in winter? In Bafra, Limak is closed off-season anyway. Kaya Artemis is open twelve months, but the winter package loses the beach and the Mini Club, a few restaurants and bars shorten their hours, and anyone who wants to swim heads down to the heated pool in the spa. The casino resorts on the Kyrenia side sell the same package in winter; with the beach and outdoor areas closed, evenings shift to the stage and the spa. At the coastal resorts, the winter nightly rate is 20-30 percent below the summer figure; the price cut buys you a closed beach and a kids' club that isn't running.
