10 best family resorts with teen clubs and activities
Resort stays are among the most popular family vacation ideas because they make traveling with kids easy and enjoyable. One feature that makes resorts particularly popular with parents is the availability of a kids club. Being able to drop off your younger children for a few hours gives parents a much-needed break while the kids have the time of their lives with other little guests. But once kids hit their tween or teen ⬤ years, they often age out of kids clubs − right around the time they start craving more time away from their parents. This in-between age is hard on teens who don’t want to spend every minute together on vacation, and it’s equally hard on parents who’d prefer their teens be in a good mood when the whole family is together. The solution? Family resorts with teen clubs. Even once your kid becomes a teen, many family resorts ⬤ still have plenty to offer. And although teen clubs aren’t as common as clubs for babies and big kids, the family resorts that do cater to teens go all-in on the idea with everything from video game lounges and speakeasies to activities including horseback riding and spa treatments. Here are my picks for the best family resorts with teen clubs all around the world.
1. Beaches Turks and Caicos Providenciales, Turks and Caicos
All-inclusive Beaches Resorts go above and beyond to make sure families with teens have a great time, including hard-to-please teenagers themselves. At Beaches Turks and Caicos, the resort’s teen club features just-for-teens activities like group water sports, boat cruises, pool Olympics, tennis clinics, karaoke, discos, dance parties, pizza and soda bars, and talent shows. Teenagers can also drop in at the resort’s Xbox lounge or stop by the teen hangout space to play pool or shoot hoops.
At night they can head to Liquid Nightclub, where no one over 21 is admitted while the teens get their chance to take over. Beaches also offers teens a unique opportunity to volunteer through its Island Impact program, reading to local children or helping them with their tech skills while earning service credit hours. In Jamaica, Beaches Ocho Rios and Beaches Negril have similar programming for teens.
2. Hilton La Romana, an All-Inclusive Family Resort
La Romana, Dominican Republic
The beachfront Hilton La Romana resort has swimming pools and a fun water park that families with teenagers will enjoy. And when it’s time for teens to ditch the rest of the family, the resort offers a first-class teen club. Teenagers at this all-inclusive resort can kick back at the club’s snack bar and grab a non-alcoholic drink. Then they can practice their skills in the teen club’s batting cage or go to the video games area, where they can choose from Xbox 360, Wii and PlayStation 2.
After the sun sets, teenage guests can enjoy the resort’s nightly social events, which include bonfires, foam parties and discos. While teens are enjoying their independence from the rest of the family, the resort’s entertainment team keeps a close eye on what they’re up to. When it’s time to reunite with parents or siblings, the whole family can enjoy water sports such as kayaking, snorkeling and windsurfing, all of which are included with every stay.
3. Wyndham Alltra Cancun Resort
Cancun, Mexico
Wyndham Alltra has put a lot of thought into what teenage guests need to have a good time, even when they’re forced to go on vacation with the family. That’s why this Cancun family resort’s #Hashtag lounge is an on-site refuge just for teens.
With arcade games, video game consoles, air hockey, billiards, virtual reality and more, teens can connect with others their own age and engage in activities designed just for them. This all-inclusive resort includes plenty of other activities that are teen-approved, including pool parties, beach soccer and water slides.
4. Atlantis, The Palm
Palm Jumeirah, Dubai
Atlantis, The Palm, is a family resort whose teen club will impress even the pickiest teenagers. The resort itself has jaw-dropping underwater suites to go along with marine and water park attractions designed to thrill all ages. And its no-adults-allowed club, The Zone, is geared specifically for teens with video games, a chill lounge, an internet cafe and more.
The Palm also is home to the Wavehouse, where teens can go for a high score at the arcade, hit a lucky strike at the bowling alley or catch some live music. If that’s not enough, teens staying at the resort can go cliff jumping, take surf lessons, head out on a shark safari and more.
5. Hilton Cancun, an All-Inclusive Resort
Cancun, Mexico
When hanging out at the beachfront pool gets boring, teens can head to the Hilton Cancun’s teen space. There, they can participate in supervised sports tournaments, quizzes, video games and age-appropriate arts and crafts. And outside the teen space, they can join pool and beach games, volleyball and watersports.
When teens get hungry (which is often), the all-inclusive resort’s dedicated churros and ice cream shop is ready and waiting. Every night, teens can enjoy the resort’s shows such as Bollywood or Circus, or hit up a resort party (themes include “Sabor a México” and glow parties). For families who prefer to vacation closer to the ruins of Tulum, Hilton Tulum has a similar program for teens.
6. Grand Velas Los Cabos
Los Cabos, Mexico
Many Grand Velas resorts have state-of-the-art supervised teens clubs where teenagers can take a minivacation from their families, and Grand Velas Los Cabos has a stunning beachside location to go along with it.
The contemporary space includes a game room complete with a pool table, air hockey, pingpong, foosball and board games. No teen club would complete without video games, and Grand Velas delivers with Xbox and PlayStation systems with special seats and built-in speakers.
At night, teens can dance on the club’s illuminated dance floor. Teens at this all-inclusive family resort can grab mocktails, soft drinks and snacks in the lounge, too. Grand Velas also offers daily activities for teens including cooking classes, water balloon wars, foam parties and drive-in movies.
7. Royal Caribbean
Various Ships
OK, sure, a cruise ship is not technically a resort. But cruise ships are essentially floating resorts, and that’s especially true of the newest Royal Caribbean ships to hit the seas in recent years, like Icon of the Seas and Wonder of the Seas. In fact, most Royal Caribbean ships have hangout spots dedicated to teens that are more than a few notches above your standard teen club.
Inside these speakeasy-like “secret” hideouts, teens can play board games and video games, watch movies or just hang out with other teens who are too embarrassed to be seen with their parents. These teen clubs also have an outdoor patio where teens can soak up the sun or stars, and they typically arrange for teen-only takeovers of popular areas of the ships (think midnight ice skating or laser tag, just for starters).
8. Hyatt Ziva Cap Cana
Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
In the Dominican Republic, the teen club at Hyatt Ziva Cap Cana sets itself apart by offering virtual reality simulators and Formula 1 racing, among other activities.
Throughout the day, teens can join in a pool party, head to a beach bash or zoom down one of the resort’s tall, twisty slides built with thrill-seeking teens in mind. Hyatt Ziva has other locations with similar teen clubs.
9. Royalton Bavaro Resort and Spa
Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
With PlayStation lounges, billiards and pingpong tables, The Hangout Teens Club is a highlight of many teens’ visits to the all-inclusive Royalton Bavaro resort. Still, Royalton encourages teens to get out and enjoy the entire resort with other guests their age by organizing beach volleyball games, cooking classes, Olympic aquatic competitions and more justfor-teens activities. At night, teens are encouraged to meet up and enjoy live performances at the resort’s open-air theater. Other Royalton locations have similar teen clubs.
10. Club Med Da Balaia
Algarve, Portugal
Club Med is the OG all-inclusive resort. The brand operates many of the top all-inclusive resorts found outside the Caribbean, and for teens I particularly like Club Med Da Balaia in Portugal.
The resort’s Junior Club Med is especially for teens, and instead of lumping all teens together, Club Med curates activities for groups of older and younger teens on land and sea. Club Med also takes things up another notch by offering unique experiences for teens, including flying trapeze and archery lessons.
Of course, Club Med has resorts throughout the Caribbean as well, and these also have teen clubs. One of the best is the Club Med Passworld at Club Med Michés Playa Esmeralda in the Dominican Republic. At this club, teenagers can try their hand at the flying trapeze, windsurfing, hiking and sailing.
Or, they can ditch their parents to attend teen-only dinners, beach parties and movie screenings under the stars.
The views and opinions expressed in this column are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect those of USA TODAY.
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