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Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Punta Cana but all tips, opinions and experiences are my own.
I spent a couple of days at the gorgeous new Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic and came back with all kinds of info and tips to share with you if you’ve been thinking about visiting! You can skim through and save this article for the future or check out each of the tips before your trip.
First of all, right now you can take advantage of Sliming Savings!
Kids are included with Sliming Savings at Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Punta Cana! Plus you can save up to 50% on vacations booked between now and October 21, 2016 for travel until December 22, 2017. Special rates start at $190 per person, per night for adults with kids included*. Sliming Savings is not combinable with other promotions and excludes the Pineapple and Super Pool Villas. For more information and to book, please visit www.nickresortpuntacana.com/specials.
*Two children (ages 3-12) are included when sharing a room with two adults.
Accommodations – you can read more here but here’s my basic breakdown of the rooms:
- Pad Suite – basic room (nice space) in one open area. 1 King bed + 1 pull out bed, good sized balcony.
- Swim-Up Pad Suite – same as the pad suite but you have your own “private” pool just off the balcony! The pool goes the length of the buildings but only people with the swim up rooms can go in them.
- Flat Suite – the big difference here is that you can close off the main sleeping area and the “living room”. There’s more privacy but less open room if you needed a crib.
- Swim-Up Flat Suite – same as the Flat Suite but with the pool off of your balcony.
- Swank Suite – this is similar to the flat suite but you have a larger wrap-around balcony and a private plunge pool. You also get a dining table inside the room.
- Swank Swim-Up Suite – has a wrap-around terrace access to the larger swim up pool and also has the dining table inside and outside making it feel more like a home.
- Pool Super Villa – an amazing luxurious 2 story 2 bedroom, 3 bath escape with your own private pool, outdoor shower and butler service!
- The Pineapple – you get to stay in the pineapple! Spongebob’s pineapple. Similar to the Pool Super Villa’s but with a little more Spongebob flavor (very tastefully done).
If you have 3 little kids you’ll need to book a Pad Suite, Swim-Up Pad Suite or a Pool Super Villa/The Pineapple and/or get more than one room.
Food – this is a gourmet inclusive resort so most food is included (Kitchen 23 and Doppio do have a fee) there are many restaurants to choose from and you’ll want to make reservations at some of the restaurants for dinner. There are always options but some of them will require you to make reservations to ensure a seat.
No reservation restaurants:
- Sugarcane
- Zest
- BRGRS.PH
- Fresco
- Aqua Bite – this is at Aqua Nick all the others are in the main resort area
Reservations Required Restaurants (open for dinner and included in your stay):
- Verdello
- Spacewalker
- Wok Wok
They also have a swim up bar and a wine bar (that the kids can come in and hang out/play during the day with you) and have access to 24 hour in room dining that’s also included!
Activities – What’s really neat about this property is that each group of rooms has a concierge available to help you with anything you might need like a spot on the beach, water activities, spanish lessons, where to find the sports etc. Here are some of the things we think families will love and really take advantage of on the property
- Aqua Nick – this is the best kids water play area! Here you can play in the water playground, float along the lazy river, see fun interactive activities throughout the day (like getting slimed)! This area isn’t actually right next to the rooms it’s a little bit of a walk or call for a cart to come pick you up! This area also has character central where you can meet characters, a clubhouse/play area for supervised activities for the kids.
- Sports Hub – this is also near aqua nick and has different sport facilities (including archery which I thought was fun)
- Main pool – grab a shady spot early if you want to have a long pool day.
- Beach – yes you can walk right to the ocean and there are plenty of spots to relax including beds!
My Extra Tips:
- If you’re traveling with the kids get a swim-up room. Yes, they’ll be in the water your whole trip but it provides a spot for mom and dad to relax and the kids to play even first thing in the morning.
- I’d still bring a few snacks for the kids. If you don’t want to have to wait for room service or go and get a table at one of the restaurants you’ll want some easy to grab snacks just for a quick bite.
- Enjoy yourself – try new drinks, let the kids order from the swim up bars, eat dessert (especially at Spacewalker) check out the live music at the wine bar (without the kids) play in the water and just have FUN!
- This resort is made to facilitate a super relaxing “get away from it all” type vacation but, if you need to stay connected their wifi was good.
- Don’t forget the sunscreen.
- I actually never had to put on bug spray (I usually get eaten alive) but bring some just to be safe.
- Entering the Dominican Republic does require a $10USD Tourist Card. When I entered it didn’t really speed the process up if you had bought one ahead of time, but make sure you have some cash on you if you don’t.
- Try all the ceviche! They were all so good.
Have any more questions? Let me know and I’ll do my best to answer them! Stay tuned for a full tour of “The Pineapple” I felt like it needed it’s own post 😉
14 Comments
Hi there! Great review on the Nickelodeon Punta Cana! We are booked into a swim up Pad suite for Nov 4th. Was this the room you stayed in? Which block of rooms would be best for sun in the afternoon?
All inclusive right so are the alcohol drinks included? It’s just me my daughter and her mother do you recommend the swim up pad room or the regular pad room? She’s three years old and I was planning to go for her 4th bday in April, do you think a Thursday to Sunday is enough days to enjoy the resort? Thank you
Hi there! Yes, alcoholic drinks are included too! There are some premium drinks that are extra but it’s pretty clear what is and isn’t included. At dinner for example the “house” wine is always included. There is even a bar you can check out if your daughter is in the kids program. Thursday through Sunday is a perfect time span. I think the swim up pad was nice for the parents to relax a bit in the mornings if the kids were ready to go. You can swim with her right outside your door without having to leave or rush to get ready for the day. That said, as far as space in the room they are very similar so it’s just the swim up part that’s different. Some days the main pool’s lounge chairs will fill up quickly so it might be nice to have another option close to your room (she’ll love Aqua Nick but it’s a little walk or golf cart ride away).
Planning on going in April 2017. It’ll be my husband, 2 daughters (4&7) and me. Is there any “privacy” in any of the swim up rooms? I was looking at the swank swim up suite…? Just trying to figure out sleeping arrangements since our girls go to bed so early. Also how safe did the childcare seem? Thanks!
The Swank Swim up Suite DOES have some privacy (not all the rooms do) You can pull a partition to close off the bedroom and the living area! I didn’t experience the childcare myself on our trip, BUT I did watch the childcare workers a few time and all of the staff seems really great with the kids.
Hi! We are deciding between the swim up pad suite or the swim up swank suite. Trying to see if it’s worth the money difference. Do you know what buildings (using the property map) the swank swim ups are located? I’m asking because if getting the Swank swim up guarantees us to be in a location where we could possibly see the beach it would be worth the extra cost. also, are the pad suites the ones that are zig zagged in the pictures. We can’t figure out what the outside looks like. Thank you.
Hi! Thanks for the review- very helpful! I had a few questions. Is the Just Kidding/supervised childcare free or is there a charge? Also – Were you able to see characters around the resort everyday? Were they just whenever or planned meet and greets? I don’t think our travel dates will allow us to do the character breakfast, so I was just wondering if we would still see Paw Patrol, Turtles, SpongeBob, etc.. Thanks!
Hi, I’m booking a trip to nick. I just wanted to know at what time does the aqua nick waterpark close? And also the pool? Also, you had mentioned booking a swim up.. are you allowed to go
For swims whenever you like or is swimming prohibited after all the other pools close?
Can adults use the Aqua Nick area too? Like the slides and such?
Yes! I loved the lazy river and getting drenched in the bucket!
Thank you for your post. I will be taking my 3 year old in January. Is Thursday-Saturday enough time to enjoy the resort?
I think so! You won’t get to try all the restaurants and may feel like it was a “quick” trip, but you will definitely be able to enjoy the resort together!
Hello. We have two boys, ages 8 and 10. We are staying here in October and booked a swank wraparound suite. Are certain buildings better than others? We like privacy.
That’s a great question! I can’t get their map to work to remember exactly where all the wrap around suites are but the way the property is laid out they are all pretty similar. If you want more privacy the suites that are farther from the ocean might get a little less foot traffic, but they’re all fairly central if I remember correctly.