COMO Hotels: City Hotels vs Island Resorts, All-Inclusive Packages and Booking Direct

COMO Hotels and Resorts is a small group of luxury properties known for wellness, clean design and remote locations: island resorts in the Maldives and the Turks and Caicos, retreats in Bali, Bhutan and Phuket, a castle estate in Tuscany, and city hotels in places such as London, Singapore and Miami Beach. The COMO website books them all.

A COMO stay is expensive, and the difference between a good and a disappointing booking usually comes down to picking the right property type, the right package and the right rate.

City hotels versus resorts

COMO city hotels are bases for a trip: rooms, a restaurant, often a spa, and a good location. You pay for the room and eat out much of the time.

COMO resorts are the destination. On an island in the Maldives or at a mountain lodge in Bhutan, meals, transfers and activities are bought from the resort because there is nowhere else to go. The nightly rate is only part of the bill, so budget for everything you will spend on site.

Before booking a COMO resort, read what the property's rates include. Some bundle breakfast only; others offer half-board, full-board or all-inclusive options.

Room categories at COMO

COMO room names differ by property, so compare floor size, view and outdoor space rather than the category label. In the Maldives the jump from a beach villa to a water villa or a villa with a pool is significant in price and in experience.

At the Bhutan and Bali properties, the location of the room within the estate matters: valley views, river sound, distance from the restaurant. Ask when booking if a quiet or close room matters to you.

For families, check which COMO rooms connect or take extra beds, and whether children's clubs or family activities run at that property.

All-inclusive and wellness packages

COMO Shambhala is the group's wellness brand, covering spa treatments, yoga, healthy menus and retreat programmes. Many COMO properties sell packages that bundle nights with meals, treatments or activities.

A package pays off when you would have bought most of what is in it anyway. On a remote island, an all-inclusive or full-board COMO package often beats paying à la carte, because food and drink prices at an isolated resort are high. In a city, a room-only rate is usually better value.

Read the package terms closely: which drinks are included, how many treatments, whether excursions or transfers are part of it.

Transfers and extra costs

The Maldives COMO resorts are reached by speedboat or seaplane, and transfers are a real cost per person, not a small fee. Parrot Cay in the Turks and Caicos needs a boat from Providenciales. Bhutan requires the travel arrangements that country sets for visitors.

Check whether the rate includes transfers, service charge and local taxes. The difference between the headline nightly rate and the true total at a COMO resort can be large.

Rates, flexibility and timing

COMO offers flexible rates and advance purchase rates. Advance purchase rates are cheaper but usually non-refundable. For a long-haul resort trip booked months out, a flexible rate protects you if flights or plans change.

Prices follow each destination's seasons. The Maldives and Caribbean are busiest in the northern winter; Bhutan's peak months are spring and autumn. Shoulder months often have the best COMO offers, including stay-longer deals where a night comes free.

Booking directly with COMO keeps the relationship with the hotel, which helps with changes, room requests and special occasions.

Multi-centre trips are common with COMO, such as Bali and a Maldives island, or two Bhutan lodges. Book them together and ask whether COMO offers a combined rate or transfer arrangement between the properties, since planning each leg separately can cost more and leave gaps between flights.

Where the COMO Hotels savings are

The 25% COMO code looks tied to summer travel. Try it first on stays in those months; it is the largest percentage here, and on a resort stay 25% is a serious sum.

The all-inclusive code is the one for island resorts. It suits a booking that already makes sense as an all-inclusive package, and adds a discount on top of the value the package brings.

The 15% code is the general option. Use it on a city hotel booking or where the other two do not apply to your dates.

COMO codes usually apply to specific rates and dates and do not stack. Enter each and compare the final total, including taxes, against the best flexible and advance purchase rates.

Common questions

Are COMO resort transfers included?

Sometimes. Check the rate details, since Maldives seaplane and speedboat transfers are costly.

Is an all-inclusive COMO package worth it?

At a remote resort, often yes. In a city hotel, a room-only rate is usually better.

What is COMO Shambhala?

The COMO wellness brand: spa, yoga, healthy menus and retreat programmes at many properties.

When are COMO Hotels cheapest?

Shoulder seasons for each destination, when stay-longer and package offers tend to appear.