When taking tweens and teens on family vacations, you want them to have fun and not roll their eyes at you for every suggested activity. It can be challenging to strike the right balance of beachy location and entertainment options beyond screens that aren’t deemed lame.
My teen daughter and I have visited two Club Med resorts and I can tell you that Club Med Punta Cana is the quirky, cool family vacation that tweens and teens will get excited about. From the warm, sugar sand beaches to opportunities to make international friends, Club Med Punta Cana is a mix of tropical escape and active fun, with its own lingo to boot.
What Club Med is all about
Club Med started in 1950 and now operates almost 70 beach and mountain resorts around the globe from Cancun to the French Alps. The clubs are all-inclusive with impressive food and drink options and a broad array of activities. As a France-based company, no matter which Club Med you visit you’ll likely hear some bonjours and mercis along the way. The international vibes, from the global cuisine to guests from all over the world and multiple languages spoken, all appealed to both my daughter and me.
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Club Med also has its own kitschy lingo, like G.O.s (find out what that means below), and unique activities (read: flying trapeze and film design) that contribute to the quirky vibe. It’s like a funky sports vacation club for active families.
Why go to Club Med Punta Cana
The exquisitely warm turquoise waters beckon beach goers. You can lounge on a half-mile stretch of beach and drink pina coladas under palapas. I could only lure my teen daughter out of the clear waters to eat. She said it was the best ocean swimming she’s ever experienced, and she’s been many places, as I’ve been writing about family travel for over a decade. With just a pair of goggles on, she was able to spy colorful fish and stingrays.
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The large main swimming pool is surrounded by umbrellas, and a children’s outdoor swimming pool features kiddy slides. Children’s clubs are a huge draw for families, as there are fun activities to keep kids engaged with their peers. There’s also a beautiful spa, golf, tennis lessons, sunrise yoga and other activities parents will appreciate. Food and drink is included as is evening entertainment like Cirque du Soleil-inspired shows and live music.
Tween and teen activities
Club Med is famous for its trapeze offerings, and as part of its Circus School, the Punta Cana resort features additional acrobatic activities including high bungee, double flying trapeze, aerial silk, tightrope, and trampoline along with more artistic activities like mask painting, juggling, percussion, and dance. My daughter tried the trapeze and said it was an incredible rush to swing and flip on with a net to catch her below, of course.
Kids ages 11-17 can take advantage of the Chill Pass, which offers them access to lounges where they can relax, connect with other tweens and teens, and participate in games or creative activities.
They can play an escape game or volleyball with a group, go sailing or waterskiing, or see if they hit a bullseye in archery. Artistic activities like film design, painting, and DJ music mixing can introduce them to passions they didn’t even know they had. Teens can participate in talent shows, evening laser tag, beachside movie nights, and ping pong under the stars.
There are also activities you can enjoy together as a family. My daughter and I participated in a Zumba class and were both surprised by the sick dance moves our instructor led us through. Download the Club Med app to get a taste of the sports and experiences offered.
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When to go to Club Med Punta Cana
Punta Cana is located on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola and features incredible weather year-round. Highs average around 80-degrees Fahrenheit all year long, but December through April, when it’s cold in the United States and dry in Punta Cana, is the ideal time to go. September and October are known as the rainy season. My daughter and I visited during Labor Day weekend. It was sticky-hot during the day and rain showers could appear suddenly in the evening, but it was definitely still worth a visit.
Family accommodations
Choose from Family Superior Rooms or Family Deluxe Rooms. Both have separate rooms for the children, which is fantastic so that parents don’t have to keep the same sleep schedules as the kids. Deluxe rooms include lounge areas and furnished balconies for more room to spread out. My daughter and I enjoyed a Family Deluxe Room, which gave us each privacy for sleep and relaxation but also room to come together and hang out. Book a family suite in the Exclusive Collection Space for sea views and amenities like room service breakfast and champagne in the private lounge.
All-inclusive food and drinks
On an international vacation with picky tweens and teens, it’s important to find food that will satisfy everyone. Club Med Punta Cana features three restaurants serving a variety of global cuisine, including familiar favorites and local specialties. Two of the restaurants, Hispaniola and Samana, serve buffets. The third, Indigo, can be booked for dinner or you can sit by the ocean and enjoy a snack or plated breakfast.
The buffets are brimming with beautiful tropical fruit. My daughter devoured colorful mangoes so juicy they dripped down her chin. The large, refrigerated cheese section was an incredible charcuterie experience. Theres also a Dominican Breakfast with smashed plantains and fried cheese and salami or Sancocho meat and vegetable stew. Play it safe with crepes and Nutella or satay skewers as plain as kids like. No one can resist the dessert stations with cool ice creams, buttery cakes and crunchy cookies. Book a sit-down dinner at Indigo for seafood meals like octopus and shrimp encircled by truffle mashed potatoes.
Club Med lingo
Here’s a quick cheat sheet on the Club Med lingo:
- G.O.s are the resort team members. They’ll help you participate in activities like Zumba, serve you beverages and perform in some of the shows.
- G.M.s are Gracious Members, which is you, no membership required.
- The Village is the resort.
- C.D.V. is the Chief of Village, or the resort’s general manager.
- You’ll probably notice people walking around wearing 45 shirts. Those shirts originated in 1995 as a way to celebrate Club Med’s 45th anniversary but have gotten so popular that new designs are sold at the gift shops. Club Med has suggested dress codes each evening, which aren’t mandatory but fun to participate in if you choose. Often, there’s a 45 shirt night on each week’s agenda.
Excursions from Club Med Punta Cana
You really don’t need to leave the 100-acre resort with 32 included activities if you don’t want to. But if you care to take an excursion, I highly recommend the Zip Line Eco Splash Tour. It involves a visit to nearby Scape Park at Cap Cana, where you can let your adrenaline soar on the longest zip line in the Dominican Republic.
Many of the zip lines splash you through water. Some include hammocks that dip you in the warm water or handle bars off which you drop into a cool cenote below. Cenotes are natural swimming holes and Hoyo Azul (Blue Hole) is a famous one you won’t want to miss. You can also charter a boat, kite surf, and horseback ride on the beach. There’s so much fun to be had that tweens and teens almost forget about complaining. Almost.
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