Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott
A cancelled proposal for a family-oriented, Nickelodeon-themed resort network developed by Viacom, Miller Global Properties, and Marriott International.
Last updated August 22, 2026
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Overview
Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott was a proposed hospitality concept that sought to combine Nickelodeon's children's entertainment properties with Marriott International's resort-management capabilities. The project was announced in June 2007 as a partnership involving Viacom, then the owner of Nickelodeon; Miller Global Properties, a resort developer and owner associated with the Nickelodeon Suites Resort in Orlando; and Marriott International, which was expected to operate the resorts. The first planned property was to be built at Liberty Station in San Diego, California, on land that had been used as a long-term parking area for passengers at Lindbergh Field. The proposed resort was expected to contain approximately 650 rooms, a roughly 100,000-square-foot water park, and additional family attractions. Gensler was commissioned to develop the architectural concept, described in the project material as a "Kid Modern" design intended to provide a contemporary environment tailored to families and children. The development was presented as the first major family-friendly resort planned in San Diego in approximately five decades. The San Diego property was initially targeted for opening in 2010. The partners also described a much broader ambition: as many as 20 Nickelodeon-themed resorts were expected to be under construction by 2020. The concept formed part of Nickelodeon's effort during the late 2000s to extend its intellectual property beyond television and consumer products into destination entertainment and vacation experiences. Its development followed the earlier Nickelodeon Family Suites by Holiday Inn pilot in Orlando, which had been operating since 2005 and was also associated with Miller Global Properties. The resort proposal was not completed. The San Diego development was cancelled in 2009 during the wider economic downturn and Great Recession, and no operating Nickelodeon resort under the Marriott partnership was established. Consequently, the brand remained a development concept rather than a functioning hotel chain. Nickelodeon continued pursuing destination-hospitality partnerships through other companies. In 2016, after the Orlando collaboration with Holiday Inn had ended, Nickelodeon partnered with Karisma Hotels & Resorts to open Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Punta Cana. A second Karisma property followed in Mexico's Riviera Maya in 2021. Those later resorts represented a separate partnership and should not be treated as operating locations of Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott.
History
The concept emerged from Nickelodeon's late-2000s expansion into location-based entertainment and vacation businesses. Nickelodeon had already tested a family-hotel model through the Nickelodeon Family Suites by Holiday Inn in Orlando, a property connected with Miller Global Properties and operating from 2005. That pilot helped establish the commercial rationale for a larger resort format featuring branded rooms, children's activities, water attractions, and entertainment based on Nickelodeon programming. In June 2007, Viacom, Miller Global Properties, and Marriott International announced plans for Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott. The partnership assigned complementary roles: Viacom supplied the Nickelodeon brand and entertainment properties, Miller Global Properties brought resort-development experience, and Marriott was intended to operate the hotels. The first proposed location was Liberty Station in San Diego, California. The development site had been used as a long-term parking area for Lindbergh Field passengers and was selected for a major family-oriented hospitality project. The planned San Diego resort was designed at a substantial scale. It was expected to have approximately 650 rooms, a 100,000-square-foot water park, and other attractions aimed at children and families. The construction investment was described as approximately $300 million in the project materials. Gensler was commissioned as architect and developed a "Kid Modern" design approach for the property. The partners targeted a 2010 opening and promoted the San Diego resort as the first family-friendly resort of its type planned in the city in many years. They also expressed an ambition to have 20 resorts under construction by 2020. The proposal formed part of a wider push by Nickelodeon to extend its entertainment franchises into travel. In 2008, the company also entered a partnership with Royal Caribbean for a Nickelodeon Family Cruise. The resort and cruise initiatives illustrated a strategy of placing Nickelodeon experiences in vacation environments rather than limiting the brand to television, licensed merchandise, and conventional media. The Marriott resort plan did not survive the economic conditions of the period. The San Diego project was cancelled in 2009 during the Great Recession, before construction and opening. Because the first property never opened, the broader multi-resort network was never developed and Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott remained a cancelled hospitality proposal rather than an operating hotel chain. Nickelodeon later returned to the resort sector through a different operator. After the Nickelodeon and Holiday Inn collaboration in Orlando ended in 2016, Nickelodeon partnered with Karisma Hotels & Resorts. Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Punta Cana opened in the Dominican Republic on June 15, 2016, followed by a Riviera Maya resort in Mexico in August 2021. These later properties used similar family-oriented elements, including Nickelodeon characters, live entertainment, water attractions, and slime-themed experiences, but they were not Marriott properties and do not form part of the cancelled Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott entity.
- 2021
Second Karisma Nickelodeon resort opens in Riviera Maya
[1]A second Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts property opened in Mexico's Riviera Maya under the Karisma partnership, not under Marriott.
- 2016
Nickelodeon begins a separate Karisma resort partnership
[1]Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Punta Cana opened under a later partnership with Karisma Hotels & Resorts; this property was separate from the Marriott proposal.
- 2009
San Diego project cancelled
[1]The proposed resort was cancelled during the Great Recession, preventing the planned Marriott resort network from entering operation.
- 2008
Nickelodeon expands into branded cruise vacations
[1]Nickelodeon partnered with Royal Caribbean on a family cruise initiative, reinforcing the company's broader move into vacation experiences alongside the proposed resorts.
- 2007
San Diego resort proposal announced
[1]Viacom, Miller Global Properties, and Marriott International announced the Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott concept and a proposed first property at Liberty Station in San Diego.
- 2005
Nickelodeon Family Suites pilot begins in Orlando
[1]Nickelodeon experimented with a branded family-hotel format through the Nickelodeon Family Suites by Holiday Inn in Orlando, a project associated with Miller Global Properties.
Products and positioning
A family and children's resort concept built around Nickelodeon characters, entertainment, water attractions, and immersive vacation experiences.
Planned themed resort
Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott San Diego
The proposed flagship property was planned for Liberty Station in San Diego. The design called for approximately 650 guest rooms, a 100,000-square-foot water park, and additional attractions for families and children. Gensler developed a contemporary "Kid Modern" architectural concept. The property was intended to open in 2010, but the project was cancelled in 2009 before construction was completed.
Proposed hotel chain
Nickelodeon Resorts network
The broader concept was envisioned as a multi-resort network combining Marriott hotel operations with Nickelodeon-themed rooms, water attractions, children's programming, and immersive entertainment. The partners discussed a goal of having 20 resorts under construction by 2020, but the network never entered operation after the initial San Diego project was cancelled.
Brand decisions
2009
Cancel the San Diego developmentOtherBackground
The proposed resort was being developed during the global financial downturn and Great Recession.
Action taken
The San Diego project was cancelled before the planned property opened.
Aftermath
The planned multi-resort rollout did not proceed, leaving Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott as a discontinued development concept.
2007
Pursue a Nickelodeon-themed resort network with MarriottStrategyBackground
Nickelodeon sought to extend its entertainment properties into destination vacations after testing a family-hotel model in Orlando. Miller Global Properties supplied resort-development experience, while Marriott was positioned to operate the proposed hotels.
Action taken
The partners announced a first planned resort at San Diego's Liberty Station, with approximately 650 rooms, a large water park, family attractions, and an intended 2010 opening.
Aftermath
The proposal was cancelled in 2009 during the Great Recession, and no Marriott-operated Nickelodeon resort opened.
Sources1 sources
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