Television station Nickelodeon is also in the resort business, and its first resort in the Caribbean recently began construction in the Dominican Republic when SpongeBob SquarePants and President Danilo Medina got together in June for the groundbreaking ceremony. The Karisma Hotels and Resorts project will cost an estimated $92 million dollars and will open in Summer 2016. The five-star resort will of course target family travelers. As well as over 200 suites, there will be the Nick Village, the Nick Waterpark, a sports center, beachside inifinity pool, and several bars and restaurants.
Entertaining children will be at the core of the Karisma resort, which will follow a plan similar to its highly successful Nickolodeon Experience at Azul Hotels in Mexico. At the Nick Village children will get to meet and play with SpongeBob, Dora the Explorer, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and a host of other Nickelodeon characters. The village will also house Studio Nick, which will be available for private parties (read: slimings). The hotel’s signature suite is nicknamed The Pineapple Villa and will be shaped, you guessed it, like a pineapple. The restaurant Nosh will feature character-themed breakfasts. There will be plenty for grown-ups too, though. Karisma’s attention to luxury and style is evident in its Gourmet Inclusive concept: fine dining and high-quality cuisine, and there will be an abundance of swim-up suites.
