What Is Included and Not Included in Costco Vacation Packages

Costco is best known for bulk groceries and bargain gas, but its in-house agency, Costco Travel, has quietly become a major player in vacation packages. For many travelers, the big draw is value: bundled flights and hotels, all inclusive resorts, cruises with extra perks, and the promise that taxes and fees are more straightforward than on many booking sites. Yet the fine print still matters.

What is actually included in a Costco vacation package, and what will you need to budget for separately? That distinction becomes much clearer once you understand Costco Travel packages in detail, before weighing individual inclusions and exclusions.

How Costco Vacation Packages Work

Costco Travel operates as a full-service travel agency available exclusively to Costco members in the United States and certain other markets. The company negotiates with major airlines, hotel brands, cruise lines and car rental agencies to assemble bundled packages.

These typically combine at least two components such as air and hotel, hotel and car, or hotel with theme park tickets. Add ons like transfers, activities, and meal plans may be built in or offered at an extra cost.

Prices for vacation packages are generally quoted per person based on double occupancy, meaning two travelers sharing a room. The final price you see at checkout reflects live inventory and can change until you actually confirm and pay. Once booked, your confirmation and invoice list each element of the package, any promotional extras, and the terms related to changes and cancellations.

That invoice is often the only document you need to carry, since your flights and hotel reservations are held in their respective systems under your name and record locator.

Costco emphasizes member value through negotiated extras. These may include resort credits, daily breakfast, waived resort fees at select properties, or Digital Costco Shop Cards you can spend later at the warehouse or online.

However, not every offer includes these perks, and they are clearly labeled as “Included Extras” when they apply. Packages can be land only or air-inclusive; when airfare is included, the itinerary and airline are usually specified before you pay.

Although the packaging feels all in one, the service is still a collection of contracts with individual suppliers. Airlines, hotels, cruise lines and car rental partners each have their own rules for changes, no-shows, and extras such as baggage, parking or gratuities.

Costco’s role is to combine and present those in a way that generally simplifies planning, but the underlying differences remain important in determining what is and is not included in your trip price.

What Is Typically Included in Costco Vacation Packages

One of the clearest strengths of Costco Travel is that its package prices generally include all mandatory taxes and most of the required fees for the bundled components. For land-only vacation packages, hotel taxes are included in the displayed price.

In air-inclusive vacations, both hotel and airline taxes are included as well, and mandatory government-imposed surcharges are factored into the total whenever they can be prepaid as part of the booking.

Accommodation is always a core component of any vacation package. The specific room type, bedding configuration and occupancy are identified during booking, along with whether your rate includes extras such as daily breakfast or an all inclusive meal plan.

Many packages in destinations like Mexico, the Caribbean and Fiji advertise unlimited meals, snacks and beverages when they are at all inclusive properties, and that inclusiveness generally applies to standard on-site restaurants and bars rather than specialty experiences.

Costco packages frequently add value with resort credits and promotional perks. These may take the form of nightly or stay-wide resort credits that you can apply toward spa services, upgraded dining or on-property activities. In some offers, daily breakfast is bundled, or a resort fee that is mandatory for other guests is waived.

Digital Costco Shop Cards are another common inclusion on certain hotel and cruise packages, effectively rebating a portion of your trip cost back to you after travel is completed.

When packages include flights, the airfare component typically covers the base fare plus required airline taxes and fees. The routing is usually reasonably convenient, though not always nonstop, and in most cases you see the airline and schedule before you commit.

Car rental inclusive packages normally cover the base rental rate for a standard car class, applicable time and mileage allowances, and certain local taxes that can be prepaid at booking. With all these elements, Costco seeks to ensure that the price you see reflects the real out-of-pocket cost for the core components, rather than surprising you later with unavoidable add-on charges from its partners.

What Is Often Not Included: The Fine Print That Matters

Despite the impression of an everything included deal, there is a long list of items that Costco Travel specifically notes are not bundled into most vacation package prices. For many travelers these extras can significantly change the amount they ultimately spend. Understanding them before you book is essential to accurately comparing Costco’s offers with other travel options.

In its terms and conditions for United States members, Costco Travel states that, unless specifically indicated, package prices do not include gratuities, optional insurance, upgrades, telephone calls, gasoline, many resort service fees, or personal incidental spending.

On cruise bookings, transfers, port expenses, administrative fees and onboard gratuities are also excluded in most cases unless the promotion clearly adds them as an included extra. Even when taxes and fees are included on the air and hotel components, government-imposed increases after booking can still be passed through to the traveler at the time of travel.

Resort fees and similar property charges are a particularly important gray area. For hotel-only bookings outside of Las Vegas, many mandatory resort fees are either baked into the upfront price or clearly disclosed during booking. For bundled vacation packages, however, Costco notes that resort service fees are generally not included unless specifically described in the package details.

That means you may still owe a nightly resort fee at checkout, along with possible parking, internet or local environmental taxes that resorts collect directly and that are outside Costco’s control.

Transportation gaps often surprise travelers as well. While some packages in destinations like Hawaii, Europe or theme park areas include airport transfers or shuttles, many do not. If you book a flight and hotel bundle without transfers, you are responsible for arranging and paying for taxis, ride shares, rental cars or other transit between the airport and your accommodation.

Similarly, meal coverage can vary widely: an all inclusive plan might cover virtually everything you eat and drink on site, but a room with breakfast package leaves you paying out of pocket for lunch, dinner and most beverages. Those distinctions are critical when budgeting for your real day-to-day travel costs.

Inclusions and Exclusions by Package Type

Different categories of Costco Travel products come with their own typical inclusion patterns. Vacation packages to beach and resort destinations are often the most straightforward. When a resort is described as all inclusive, your package price usually covers accommodations plus a wide range of meals, snacks, drinks and on-site activities.

Some also include limited spa treatments or access to off-site attractions, such as eco-parks in the Riviera Maya, when that is part of the resort’s concept. Yet even at all inclusive properties, premium wines, top-shelf spirits, fine dining add-ons and private experiences are usually extra.

City break or Europe packages tend to focus on daily breakfast and occasional extras rather than full meal plans. A London or Paris package, for example, might include hotel accommodations, breakfast each morning, airport transfers and a tour credit to use on guided sightseeing.

Lunch and dinner are left to you, as is much of your in-city transportation outside of any included transfers or specific tours. Rail segments and private drivers are sometimes bundled on multi-city itineraries, but you should expect that spur-of-the-moment taxis and local transit are on your own dime.

Theme park packages have historically been among the most benefit rich, combining hotels with park admission and sometimes exclusive extras such as early entry, line-skipping privileges or shopping credits.

Costco has offered bundles for major brands including Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando that package park tickets with on-site or partner hotels and occasionally add Digital Costco Shop Cards or food credits. However, inclusions can shift over time as contracts evolve, and park-specific perks can differ significantly from one offer to another.

Guided vacations and specialty packages, such as multi-day escorted tours, often bundle far more: accommodations, most meals, internal transportation by coach or train, guided sightseeing and the services of a tour director.

At the same time, they commonly exclude airfare to the starting city unless sold as air-inclusive, travel insurance, tips to local guides and drivers, and optional excursions that can be purchased during the trip. Reading each itinerary’s detailed inclusions and exclusions is crucial, as two similarly priced tours can offer very different levels of on-the-ground coverage.

Car Rentals, Cruises and Add Ons: What They Cover and What They Do Not

Many Costco vacation packages pair hotels with rental cars, especially in destinations like Hawaii, Florida and the American West. The car rental portion typically includes the base rental cost for the chosen car class over the specified dates and some or all of the local surcharges and taxes that can be prepaid.

However, Costco cites several items that are usually not included: gasoline, optional insurance coverage, upgrades at the counter, underage driver surcharges, additional driver fees and infant or child seat rentals. A major credit card in the primary driver’s name is required at pickup, and any unpaid taxes or fees that must be collected locally are handled directly between you and the rental company.

Auto insurance is a particularly important exclusion. Costco Travel states that auto insurance is the responsibility of the registered driver. While some car rental packages may reflect taxes and common surcharges, they do not typically include collision damage waivers or liability insurance unless mandated in a specific country and clearly noted.

Travelers must rely on their personal auto policies, credit card coverage or separately purchased insurance, and those options may have limitations outside the United States. Fuel charges for returning a car without a full tank also fall on the renter, as do any tolls, parking tickets or damage fees.

On the cruise side, Costco Travel’s strength lies in bundling competitive cruise fares with additional benefits such as shipboard credits and Digital Costco Shop Cards, sometimes amounting to hundreds or thousands of dollars in added value for premium itineraries.

The base cruise fare usually includes your stateroom, all standard meals in included dining venues, most onboard entertainment and use of common facilities like pools and fitness centers. Government taxes, fees and port expenses are itemized separately and added to the total when you book.

What is generally not included in cruise packages are onboard gratuities, specialty dining surcharges, alcoholic beverages, shore excursions, spa treatments, internet access and transfers between the airport and cruise port unless specified in the promotion.

In some cases Costco negotiates packages where prepaid gratuities or a drink package are included as a promotional extra, but when that is the case it is explicitly described. Travelers booking cruise packages should be prepared for a substantial amount of discretionary spending once on board, even if the upfront price looks comprehensive.

Taxes, Fees and Resort Charges: What You Still Might Owe

Although Costco Travel emphasizes upfront pricing that includes taxes and many mandatory fees, several categories of charges may still arise during or after your trip. First, hotel and resort properties in some destinations charge municipal or environmental taxes per night or per person that must be paid locally and cannot be collected in advance.

These are often modest amounts but can add up over a multi-night stay, especially for families. Costco notes that such government-imposed fees are the traveler’s responsibility even when the booking is otherwise fully prepaid.

Resort fees remain a persistent source of confusion. Costco’s general guidance for packages and cruises indicates that resort and cruise line fees are excluded from package pricing unless specifically noted otherwise.

Even when a package advertises that the daily resort fee is waived, additional optional charges such as premium internet packages, cabana rentals or special activities can still apply. Parking is frequently not included either, particularly at city hotels and popular beach destinations, and nightly parking charges can rival resort fees in some markets.

On the airline side, basic taxes and airport charges are included with flights sold through Costco Travel, but not all carrier-imposed fees are covered. Checked baggage fees, seat selection charges in basic economy or preferred sections, and change fees when applicable to your fare class are typically paid directly to the airline.

Similarly, foreign departure taxes in some countries are collected at the airport at the time of departure rather than through your package, and Costco flags those cases in the itinerary’s fine print when known.

Finally, travelers should be aware of currency fluctuation and future tax increases. Costco’s terms explain that any increases in government taxes or supplier surcharges that occur after you have booked may still be passed through to you, even if you have paid in full.

While significant last-minute changes are not the norm, they do occasionally occur in the form of elevated airport fees, new environmental taxes or enhanced security charges, and they underscore the importance of leaving some room in your budget beyond the initial package price.

Member Benefits, Insurance and What Your Package Does Not Protect

Because Costco Travel is a members-only service, one of the underlying inclusions is the potential to earn or redeem member-linked value. Executive Members may receive a 2 percent annual reward on many travel purchases, calculated on the pre-tax value of eligible travel components, subject to a yearly cap.

Digital Costco Shop Cards offered with select vacation and cruise bookings add another layer of value. However, membership alone does not automatically add travel insurance, cancellation protection or elite benefits with hotels or airlines.

In fact, Costco Travel explicitly separates travel protection from its standard package pricing. Trip insurance is available for purchase as an optional add-on through a partner provider and is not included by default in any vacation package. Without it, standard supplier cancellation and change penalties apply according to the airline, hotel or tour operator’s rules.

Even when you add insurance, certain exclusions and coverage limits apply, and you must review the policy details to understand what is and is not protected, especially around pre-existing medical conditions.

Loyalty program participation is another area where inclusions diverge from what some travelers expect. While your frequent flyer numbers can often be attached to air tickets booked through Costco, hotel stays that are part of a Costco package are typically not eligible for hotel loyalty points, status earning or program benefits unless specifically permitted by the hotel.

Costco’s terms highlight that many packaged hotel stays do not qualify for hotel chain rewards, which can be a notable trade-off for frequent travelers who value elite perks like room upgrades or late checkout.

Costco Travel does not generally include concierge-level travel planning services beyond its call center and basic online tools. You will not have a dedicated travel advisor watching for price drops, rebooking opportunities or complex itinerary management unless you take those steps yourself.

Customer support is available for modifications and problems, but the service model is oriented around value-oriented packaged travel rather than bespoke trip design. For many members the low price and straightforward inclusions are worth that trade-off, but it is another example of what is not bundled into the base vacation package cost.

The Takeaway

Costco vacation packages can offer compelling value by combining competitive airfares, hotel rates, car rentals and cruises with clear upfront pricing and member-focused extras. What is genuinely included is often more generous than a casual comparison with headline prices on other sites might suggest, especially when you factor in bundled breakfasts, waived resort fees at select properties, resort credits and Digital Costco Shop Cards. For many travelers, this blend of simplicity and savings is precisely what makes Costco Travel so attractive.

At the same time, no Costco package is truly all inclusive unless the description and inclusions list make that explicit. Gratuities, optional insurance, baggage fees, certain resort charges, parking, premium dining, alcohol outside of all inclusive plans, and many local taxes or departure fees are rarely covered.

Car rentals typically exclude insurance, fuel and many surcharges at the counter, while cruises leave most onboard spending, shore excursions and transfers in your hands. Even when taxes and fees are built into the package, government-imposed increases or new local levies can still become your responsibility.

The smartest way to approach Costco Travel is to treat the displayed price as the starting point rather than the full story. Read the inclusions and exclusions section of each package closely, pay attention to notes on resort fees and transfers, and consider the day-to-day costs of meals, transportation and activities that fall outside the bundle.

When you layer those realistic expenses onto the quoted price, you can make a fair comparison with other booking channels and decide whether the negotiated extras and member-only benefits genuinely tip the scale in Costco’s favor for your particular trip.

FAQ

Q1. Do Costco vacation package prices include all taxes and fees?
Most Costco vacation packages include hotel taxes and, when flights are bundled, airline taxes and required surcharges in the displayed price. However, you may still be responsible for certain local charges such as resort fees, parking, environmental or city taxes collected at checkout, and foreign airport departure taxes when they cannot be prepaid.

Q2. Are resort fees included in Costco Travel packages?
Resort fees may or may not be included. Some packages specifically advertise that the daily resort fee is included or waived, and in those cases it is part of the value proposition. In many other packages, Costco notes that resort service fees are not included, meaning they are charged directly by the hotel at checkout. Always check the package details for how resort fees are handled at your chosen property.

Q3. What does an all inclusive Costco resort package usually cover?
An all inclusive resort package sold through Costco typically covers your accommodations plus unlimited meals, snacks and drinks at on-site restaurants and bars, along with many non-motorized activities and entertainment. It usually does not include premium wines or liquors, fine dining surcharges, spa services, motorized sports, private experiences or off-site excursions unless those are specifically listed.

Q4. Are airport transfers included with Costco vacation packages?
Airport transfers are included only when the package specifically states they are part of the offer. Many resort and city packages provide private or shared transfers as a bundled feature, while others leave airport transportation up to you. If transfers matter to your budget or convenience, confirm whether they are included before booking.

Q5. What is typically not included in a Costco Travel car rental?
The car rental portion of a package generally covers the base rental rate, time and mileage according to the contract and certain prepaid taxes or surcharges. It normally does not include gasoline, optional insurance, upgrades at the counter, tolls, parking fees, underage or additional driver fees, or charges for child safety seats. A credit card hold for incidentals is also required at pickup.

Q6. Do Costco cruise packages include gratuities and drinks?
Standard Costco cruise packages usually include your stateroom, most onboard dining in included venues and entertainment, but not gratuities or alcoholic beverages. Some promotions may bundle prepaid gratuities, drink packages or shipboard credit, and these will be clearly described in the offer. Otherwise you should plan to pay gratuities, bar charges and many onboard extras separately.

Q7. Is travel insurance automatically included with Costco vacation packages?
No. Travel insurance is offered as an optional add-on for an additional cost, and it is not built into the base package price. If you want coverage for trip cancellation, medical emergencies or baggage issues, you need to review the available protection plan and purchase it separately, either through Costco’s partner or another provider.

Q8. Can I earn hotel or airline loyalty points on Costco Travel bookings?
You can usually add your frequent flyer number to flights booked through Costco and earn airline miles according to the fare rules. Hotel stays that are part of packaged vacations, however, often do not earn points or elite night credits and may not recognize status benefits, depending on the hotel’s policy. Cruise line loyalty programs generally credit nights and points as usual when booked through Costco.

Q9. Are meals included on non all inclusive Costco vacation packages?
Outside of all inclusive resorts and some guided vacations, most Costco packages only include meals when specified, most commonly daily breakfast at the hotel. Lunch, dinner and drinks are usually not covered unless they are part of a special promotion or a tour itinerary that lists specific included meals. Always check the day-by-day or inclusions list for clarity on which meals are provided.

Q10. What extra costs should I budget for beyond the Costco package price?
Beyond the package total, you should budget for airport transfers if they are not included, checked baggage fees on flights, resort fees and parking where applicable, gratuities, most alcoholic beverages, many activities and excursions, spa treatments, optional insurance, and local taxes or departure fees collected in cash or by card at your destination. Building these anticipated expenses into your planning will give you a more accurate picture of the true cost of your Costco vacation.