When you are thinking of planning a family vacation experience, one of the best options to help our budget is looking at an all-inclusive resort in the Caribbean or Mexico.   All-inclusive resorts include your accommodations, meals, beverages, and most non-motorized water sports.  In addition, those catering to families offer child programs, baby sitting and other daily activities which means the kids can be entertained while mom and dad play. It is great whether you are traveling with just your own family, considering a family reunion, or traveling with your favorite friends.  To this day, our group of families trip to Beaches Negril in Jamaica was by far one of the best, if not they best vacations I’ve ever had.  There was a little bit of everything for everyone.

To help you in planning, we’ve compiled a short list of our favorite brands for family all-inclusive resorts. Within each brand are different options. The brands have a variety of partners for their kid’s programs.  Below is the list highlighting each brand and examples of what you will get, along with resort options.

Beaches Resorts-Located in Turks and Caicos and Jamaica this well known brand is tops in family vacation experiences.  Resorts have a variety of room accommodations, water parks, and are partnered with Sesame Street. They cater from the very young through the teens even including a teen night club called Liquid as well as their partnership with Xbox. These resorts are also recognized as and certified Autism Centers. The largest of all the Beaches resorts is the Turks and Caicos and does require booking early for best pricing and accommodation availability.

Karisma Resorts-Karisma offers 3 brands of family friendly options, Azul, Nickelodeon, and Generations. The various brands are located in Mexico, Dominican Republic, and Jamaica. These resorts as well offer a variety of room accommodations to suit larger families. The Azul resorts have Azulitos experience including beach, cooking, and cultural fun for all. Azul’s also have the My Gym experience for ages 4-12 and a Vassa spa kid’s service. The Generations resort offers the kids Eko program for 4-12 and a separate kid’s menu.  And as the name would suggest the Nickelodeon resort is a partnership with Nickelodeon. They have a fun slim smoothie for kids, kid’s club and of course Nickelodeon character fun and entertainment.  I am a fan of the Fives Azul Beach Resort due it’s neat layout and design.

Barcelo Resorts-Located in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic this whole complex offers a variety of stays for couples through families. Their new Family Club section has great accommodation offerings including suites with 2 bedrooms. There is access to the water park as well as access to all the other property’s activities within the complex.  Of course like the others there are baby sitting services and supervised activities with qualified leaders.  Truly a resort you’ll want to visit again and again.  I have many repeat client’s to this resort.

Iberostar Resorts-Located in Mexico, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic these resorts are similar to Barcelo in that they are a large complex with different resort levels catering from the family to the adult-only and share different facilities throughout based on which resort you are at. They have their children’s Star Camp, kid’s menu, baby sitting services and family rooms. The Iberostar Paraiso Maya and Paraiso Lindo are favorites with clients.

Melia Resorts-Located in Dominican Republic, Mexico, and Jamaica these resorts. Within Melia there is the Melia brand and also the Paradisus brand that are suited for families.  The Melia has onsite Splash Island Park suited for the younger children, kid’s club, babysitting and again a variety of room accommodations to suite larger families. They are also partnered with the Flintsone’s Brand. The Paradisus has all day assistance from a Family Concierge, an activity packed Kid’s Club and a complimentary walkie-talkie or cell phone for instant communication.  Programming includes kids from newborn to age 12, with separate facilities for teens. We’ve had great feedback from the Melia Caribe in Punta Cana.

No matter your budget, the size of your family, or the age of your kids, there is an all-inclusive brand to match your needs for your next family vacation. The best way to match your budget and family to a resort is to consult with a travel professional who can go over the different resort amenities, room categories, and children’s services with you to ensure you enjoy the most out of your vacation. Contact one of us today!