As a first-time to Punta Cana vacation-goer, and with a gaggle of Nickelodeon fans, I was thrilled to be invited to visit the brand new Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Punta Cana on its grand opening week. This new property from Karisma, whose Mexican resorts I've visited and loved, is aimed at providing parents with a truly adult vacation, while still giving their kids lots of fun things to do too.
If that sounds magical and exactly what you've always wanted, then you'll want to read on about my experience.
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Related: Our review of the Azul Beach Hotel
Getting there
The resort actually shares a property with the Sensatori, another Karisma resort, and is about a 45-minute drive from the Punta Cana airport. It's pretty much a quick highway drive, and very much straight shot, which was much appreciated after a 4-hour plane ride for our family who flew out of Philadelphia. Once you arrive, there's really no reason to leave the property, but if you're interested in booking excursions, I'd recommend doing that through the hotel rather than renting your own car and heading out on your own.Accommodations
It was no surprise to me that the accommodations at the Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Punta Cana were fabulous. The basic rooms are fantastic, particularly the swim-up pads suites, which are ideal for families of four, with a pull-out couch for the kids and a king-sized bed for the adults that separates itself with sliding doors from the rest of the room. The patio, which leads right out to a pool, has safety measures, like a lower locked gate to provide extra protection if you're traveling with little ones. The upper floor suites (above) where I stayed are huge, with the bathroom almost half the size of the room, with a shower, a bathtub, and a full closet with drawers, which leaves plenty of space in the room to move around, though really, how much time are you in your room? King or two double beds are available, which also include a pull-out couch, plus a large balcony where you will find yourself sitting and enjoying the view. And of course, there are bigger, swankier suites depending on your budget or family size. The decor is very sophisticated while still hat-tipping the Nickelodeon partnership in a tasteful way. I did ask to have the plastic orange blimps that they place at the foot of the bed to be removed because my kids kept climbing on them. They did nothing but act as an awkward step stool, so my suggestion would be to ditch them; the decorations are fine without them. Also, with small tables and chairs out on the balcony, I'd say just be cautious and ask the staff to remove anything if you feel as though your kids are climbers. Like all the Karisma resorts I've visited, you can get everything from a stroller to a playpen delivered to your room, so if you've got little ones, definitely take them up on this. It's a very large property, so if anything, take a stroller if you didn't bring one so you can quickly get from the beach back to your room to the restaurants.Related: 6 essential questions to ask yourself when booking a family resort vacation
Places to eat
Karisma prides itself on being a gourmet-inclusive resort, which means the quality of the food is a super high priority. That's clearly evident in other properties I've stayed at, and while I didn't have a chance to eat at all the restaurants on the property, which include a casual burger joint, an Asian restaurant, an Italian restaurant, a fancier molecular gastronomy restaurant (above), even an adults-only restaurant, and more, you get the sense that they really are aimed at providing you with a high-end vacation experience (aka: not just a bunch of buffets). Though to be fair, their two buffet restaurants, Sugar Cane and Lighthouse, were my favorites, along with Fresco -- a small snack and pool bar near our room that offers amazing small bites (Yuca Fritters, FTW) while you hang out in or by the pool. For big Nickelodeon fans, they offer a character breakfast where kids can eat and meet their favorite Nickelodeon characters, and while it's not necessarily my cup of tea, my kids loved the high energy entertainment and the chance to mingle with Dora, Patrick, and SpongeBob. I will say that I found the service in the sit-down restaurants to be friendly but very slow, which is a little surprising to me since my past experience was always that they'd serve the kids first and then bring out the adult food. Or, at least not course out the appetizers and the main dishes. The same goes for the room service, which took over an hour (sometimes almost an hour and a half) to get to our room. Hopefully, this is just a grand opening kink, because sitting and waiting at a table in a restaurant (or even in the room) with hungry kids is the antithesis of vacation for me.Stuff to do: Nickelodeon Resorts & Hotels
You'll find no shortage of activities for the adults on the resort side of the property, with everything from yoga and water polo, to ping pong (which my son was actually obsessed with), and the spa is gorgeous, though I wasn't able to get in for a treatment myself. You won't find much in nightlife; but for me, sitting at the pool bar while my kids hang at the kids' club was nightlife enough for me. But you should know if you're hoping for dancing, or a party-type atmosphere, you won't find that here. Along with all the swim-up pools around the hotel rooms, there is a large infinity pool facing the ocean, where drinks can be delivered right to your hand while you keep an eye on your swimming kids. We had no trouble finding a cabana every morning, or even chairs with an umbrella, though I don't believe the property was at full capacity. I was surprised that the pool itself is about 4-feet deep all around, so it's not super ideal for little kids unless you've got them in life jackets or you're in with them. There is a baby pool play area near the Kids indoor Play Space (which has toys and activities to give you some respite from the heat if you've got little ones, along with nighttime drop-off activities too), but it's completely separate from the main pool. That being said, bring pool floats and life vests, or, like me, you'll be spending a pretty penny to buy these items from the gift shop. The beach is pretty sprawling and doesn't disappoint, with super blue water and lots of cabanas, chairs, and umbrellas available for the taking, as well as boogie boards and snorkeling gear that can be checked out for no extra charge. While we were visiting, the water was pretty rough, so not ideal for little kids, or even big kids who aren't good swimmers, but my guess is this is weather-based and seasonal. It is a good walk from the pool, so if your kids want to go to the beach, you'll need to relocate there to keep an eye on them.Related: 6 simple tech tips for traveling with kids
