The Best Resorts in the World for Families 

From a mega hotel in the Bahamas and a Legoland in Dubai to a boutique Fiji property and a Tony Aspen mainstay, these are the resorts for a memorable family vacation.
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Baha Mar

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Baha Mar Resort in Nassau, in the Bahamas

Baha Mar


Family travel to luxury resorts are a mainstay all over the world, but ones that are truly exceptional for families can be much harder to find. 

Stacy Fischer-Rosenthal, president of the luxury travel company Fischer Travel Enterprises, says that a great family travel hotel needs to tick several boxes. “It has to be a place where parents, young kids, teenagers, and grandparents will all be entertained,” she says. “At the same time, it needs to be functional with things like connecting rooms and large rooms where you can put in two beds if needed.” 

Amenities are key too, says Fischer-Rosenthal—and we don’t just mean a kids’ club (although it certainly helps). Extras such as s’mores kits, hot chocolate in the lobby, and creative activities that evoke a sense of place all matter as does an intuitive staff. “You need people who tune into what guests want and recognize that each person has different wants,” says Fischer-Rosenthal.

It’s hard to beat the family appeal of a resort such as Baha Mar, for example.  The 1,000-acre property in Nassau, in the Bahamas, is comprised of three hotels—Grand Hyatt, SLS, and Rosewood and offers 40 restaurants, bars, and lounges (a noodle bar, candy shop and pizza spot among the bunch), an 18-hole golf course, and a destination spa. Highlights for families include a new $200 million water park with 24 water slides and a wave pool, a mini golf course, and the Explorers Kids Club, which has a theater and classes in arts and crafts and cooking. 

Baha Mar also features The Sanctuary, home to an abundance of wildlife such as sea turtles and nurse sharks, and Flamingo Cay where guests can interact with the namesake birds. 

The outside of Hotel Jerome in the heart of Aspen

Auberge Resorts Collection

Let’s travel from the Caribbean to Colorado: Aspen’s Hotel Jerome, Auberge Resorts Collection is in the heart of town and beloved by families, many of whom are regulars. The hotel offers in-room tents for kids to have their own space and has a game room with board games, cozy couches, and a television. Plus, staff go out of their way to accommodate any need, whether it’s for the pickiest child or adult, and there are activities galore: The property has a new curling court in its winter garden, for one, and arranges for horse-drawn carriage tours, nighttime snow tubing, and dogsledding excursions. And we’d be remiss not to mention Jerome’s J-Bar where the cocktails are killer, and the burgers are some of the best around. 

The grand Suvretta House in St. Moritz, Switzerland

Survetta House

Next up, in Switzerland’s chichi St. Moritz, Suvretta House has been open since 1912 and welcomed the same families for generations. It’s a ski-in, ski-out property that’s glamorous but enjoyable for kids with amenities such as a kids’ club, kids’ garden with ice sculptures, caves, and slides, a dedicated kids’ restaurant, and a kids’ ski school—yes, that means parents can go off and hit the slopes while their little ones are occupied all day. Suvretta even has a kids’ afternoon tea and options for families to bond such as fondue nights and group bike rides. 

Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort in Fiji

Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort

Looking to more far-flung locales, Fiji may be more known as a destination for honeymooners than families, but Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort changes that perception. The sustainable property is all-inclusive and comprised of 25 large freestanding rooms. Families can look forward to programming that includes exploring rock pools, glass-bottom boat trips, and hiking the local landscape. The resort also has a full-time naturalist and marine biologist who leads family excursions.

The next three resorts on our list are particularly kid-friendly.

The AcquaMarine room for kids at Acqualina Resort in Sunny Isles

Troy Campbell Photography www.troycampbellstudio.com

Acqualina Resort & Residences on the Beach in Sunny Isles, Florida, just north of Miami Beach, is tops for its marine biology-inspired educational program, AcquaMarine. It gives kids the opportunity to learn about the ocean through activities such as viewing coral under a microscope. Three swimming pools, beachfront basketball, and an oceanfront king-sized chess board add to the fun. As parents, we personally love Acqualina’s bedside reading program that includes a story hour where kids get free books.

Nickelodeon’s Resort in Riviera Maya

Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Riviera Maya

Next up, when a hotel has the name Nickelodeon in it, you can be sure that kids will beg their parents to extend their stays. Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Riviera Maya, in Mexico, features 280 suites, all of which are swim-up and have two bathrooms. Then there’s a waterpark called Aqua Nick with 2,000 square feet of slides; a clubhouse with a mega ball pit, cooking sessions, and a daily schedule of activities; and a variety of restaurants to please all palates including spots for pizza and burgers. 

A Lego friends theme room at the new Legoland Hotel in Dubai

LEGOLAND Hotel Dubai

Lastly, we’d like to call out the recently opened Legoland Hotel at Dubai Parks and Resorts. Ideal for children between the ages of two and 12, the multi-hued five-story hotel has open play areas with Legos and Lego building workshops. It also features a waterpark and regular appearances from popular Lego characters.

From St. Moritz and Sunny Isles to Aspen and the Bahamas, the top family resorts we’ve found span the globe and are meant to spark the wanderlust in you—whether you’re going with toddlers, college-aged children, or teens.