Top 7 Punta Cana All-Inclusive Resorts With Water Parks

The sparkling Nickelodeon Punta Cana might just take the cake when it comes to kids' resorts in Punta Cana. As expected from a property backed by one of the most popular children's networks in the world, amenities here are ridiculously fun. There are beach dance parties; character breakfasts with Dora the Explorer, PAW Patrol Pups, and -- of course -- Mr. SpongeBob himself; plus daily chances to get slimed. The kids’ club, Just Kidding, is tricked out with an enormous ball pit (kids can access it by way of a two-story slide), tons of Nickelodeon toys, and staff supervised activities like slime-making classes. The Nickelodeon Punta Cana’s centerpiece, however, is the large Aqua Nick water park. It's packed with winding waterslides, splash pads, spray tubes, fountains, a canopied jungle gym, interconnected pools, a lazy river, and -- a highlight for any Nick lover -- daily group slimings.

Home to what’s billed as the largest resort water park in the Caribbean, the Grand Memories Splash is kid heaven. The park includes multiple big slides -- including the steep Kamikaze, the spiraling Black Hole, a centrifugal-force-packed “tornado” slide, and a four-lane racer -- that deposit thoroughly drenched swashbucklers and parents into shallow pools. On the half-pipe slide, tubers swing back and forth before coming to rest at the bottom. Water lovers looking to kick back at a gentler pace can float in the sloping wave pool. There's a lagoon-shaped kiddie pool as well, which is kitted out with a daisy sprinkler, a splash bucket, and mini-slides of all shapes and sizes.

The staggeringly large Grand Sirenis Punta Cana has a water park that’s equally enormous. The 130,000-square-foot Sirenis Aquagames is free for all guests -- unlike some water parks, parents can take the plunge, too. Slides include a multi-lane speed slide (also known as the Aquaracer), wrapping water tubes, open toboggans, a plummeting free-fall twister, and a spinning bowl that spits you out into a shallow pool. Kiddos with a daredevil streak can brave the vertical Kamikaze (parents, fret not—all slides are supervised by resort staff). Smaller kids can stick to the less wild pools, including a pirate-themed pool with smaller slides, sprinklers, splash barrels and an ankle-deep lagoon pool with a palm-tree shower.

You might assume that the Hard Rock Punta Cana all-inclusive is a hard-drinking, here-for-a-wild-time kind of place. Yes, there is a nightclub and an edgy rock-and-roll vibe is found throughout, but the reality is that the Hard Rock is a vast luxury property with something for everyone. That includes families with young children. The kids’ pool (one of 13 pools at the resort) features giant looping water slides, and a weekly pool party for kids that includes a DJ, foam, and pool floats. Magic shows, water and arcade games, boogie boarding, sandcastle-building, snorkeling, treasure hunts, face-painting, balloon art, and mini-golf are all on the line-up as well.

At first glance, you'd be forgiven for thinking that Fantasia Bahia Principe Punta Cana is a Disney property. While it isn't, the castle-inspired decor here makes it every bit as kid-friendly as one. Part of the four-resort Bahia Principe mega-complex, the property has its own restaurants, a kids' club, a gigantic pool with jetted tubs, mini-golf, and go-carting. Bahia’s water park follows the whimsical castle motif with twisty slides, turrets, sprayers, bridges, and soaking buckets. When not romping in the water, kids can take part in whatever the animation staff has going on: songs, games, dancing, face-painting, balloon animals, circus performances, and magic shows. There’s also a beautiful white-sand beach, where an hour of snorkeling, kayaking, or boogie boarding is free. The huge property can be a lot for little legs to handle, but there's shuttle service for getting from point to point.

When kids need a break from the waves (and the seaweed that’s an occasional issue in the region), the beachfront Iberostar Selection Bavaro is an all-suites resort with a vast pool complex. This includes a separate area dedicated to the little ones. Anchoring the kids’ pool is a colorful pirate ship with buckets, slides, valves, portholes, platforms, and aquatic animal figurines in the shallow water. It’s not a full-blown water park like some of the other properties on this list, but guests regularly report that it's a huge hit with their kids and grandkids. Other popular activities here include the indoor mini club with foosball and video games, as well as a coral nursery, an escape room, mini-golf, and magic shows.

If the monster main pool or swim-out pools at the Grand Reserve at Paradisus Palm Real seem not quite kid-friendly, rest easy. The resort's Aqua Fun Park offers plenty of kid-pleasing fun. The Grand Reserve itself is part of the larger Reserve at Paradisus Palma Real, and provides a more exclusive experience. Its Aqua Fun Park caters to kids of all ages, with a baby pool, a play pool with smaller slides and equipment for toddlers, and a separate area for bigger kids, with giant water-dumping buckets, coiling tunnel slides, and shooting water jets.

You won’t find big slides, climbing nets, or water cannons at the beachfront Royalton Bavaro all-inclusive. However, its many great pools -- including a 1,200-foot lazy river with caves and a grotto bar -- plus a FlowRider wave machine earn it a special shoutout.

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