This product has one big negative and three big pluses. First the negative. It's just not a natural color. No matter what is says, it makes your skin look orange. I suppose it looks different on different skin tones, so it may work for some people. My skin color is on the light side - and this made it look orange. However, on my legs which had a small bit of color from the sun, it helped deepen that color and looked less orange. That is how I've used tanners in the past, over skin that already had some color from the sun. I DID NOT PURPOSELY SET OUT TO GET SUNTANNED, but even with sunscreen, when you're at the beach, your skin picks up color and that is when this and other tanners I've used work well. It really should not be used on your skin without you already having some sort of light tan from the sun. Now the positives. It's fast! After a couple applications you can already start to see the color, I used other tanners that took longer. Another big positive is that it does not smell as strongly as the other tanner I was using did. The scent is very light and you hardly notice it, and what you do notice isn't bad. Third big plus is that it makes your skin SO SOFT. So if you only wanted it just for that, it'd be good. But I wouldn't recommend it as a tanner, the color is simply too unnatural on skin that has no color to begin with.

BruinFan

Southern Cal

I do really like this lotion/tanner. Just the lotion by itself was enough for me to buy, and honestly the tanner probably made it less enjoyable. It was a little bit streaky, so you have to make sure that you rub it in completely and evenly, or you're going to end up with streaks. It's not the best tanning lotion in the world, but it worked great for my sensitive skin and it didn't smell bad, like most tanning lotions. It was gradual, but it could have been a little more gradual. Honestly, I probably won't buy this again, and will keep looking for other tanning lotions, but I do think that it's great if you have sensitive skin. Ease of Application The spray really helps with the application, but you still have to rub it in evenly to make the final results look good. Scent It didn't smell like regular tanning lotions, which I'm not a fan of, and the smell wasn't too obvious and it didn't last for very long. Longevity The tan stayed for a good amount of time, but you have to keep reapplying every day or every other day for it to really look fresh.

kristinamz

USA

On a recent vacation to Hawaii I discovered that I did not have sun tan lotion and made a quick stop at a local drug store where I started reading labels. A sales clerk suggested that I might want to try Nivea Sun-Kissed Radiance Gradual Tanner and Body Lotion. She said it was very popular as it did not totally block the suns rays but would gradually tan. I have to admit that I was not totally convinced but decided that I would give it a try and I am so glad that I did. Effectiveness What a great product. The end results was: I had a great vacation, I spent lots of time in the sun, I did not burn and I went home with the best tan that I have ever had. Ease of Application This lotion is so light and creamy. It goes on smooth and I loved the light feel of the lotion. Scent One of the things that I always hated about other lotions that I used was the smell that they all seemed to have. I was so pleased that this lotion had a light fragrance that didn't seem to take over. Longevity I put the lotion on each morning before we would leave for the day. It stayed on while shopping at a outdoor market as well as a morning at the beach. I was impressed and recommend giving this lotion a try.

sammylane

Peoria, AZ

I bought this because i liked the idea that it said it was a gradual tanner and that it was also a lotion that would give me a sun kissed look. Everything about that sounds wonderful and like something that I want. I put this on the first time and it absorbed really fast into my skin and I was glad that it felt like a regular lotion and did not leave my skin looking funny or feeling like it was all oily. I kept using this product for the next week everyday hoping to see some kind of results. After a week the only result that I had realized is that I was turning into a golden color. I thought that it would be okay so I kept using it, and within another week I realized that the color of my skin was now more orange than anything. This product is really easy to use and it actually smells very good and leaves you feel moisturized, but it did not give me the results I wanted. I do not mind being a bronze color but orange was not my thing and did not make me happy.

jbrown458

USA

Over the years I have tried almost every single self tanner on the market. I have very pale skin (think Anne Hathaway) so it is very difficult to find a self tanner that does not make me look like an Oompa Loompa. I had even tried other buildable lotions before without much success. Thankfully I came across NIVEA's Sun-Kissed Radiance Gradual Tanner & Body Lotion. This offers just what it says - a sun kissed look which is perfect for very pale skin. It provides just the right hint of color, which you can build upon by using the lotion daily. I've found that every other day is really the best schedule for me to maintain just a hint of color without looking orange and weird. The lotion is easy to apply, although I would have preferred a pump bottle over the flip top. It also has as very pleasant smell. I've found that you really have to be very generous with this lotion in order to get it to apply evenly. So a bottle does not last very long, even using it every other day. Overall, this has given me a very light, natural looking hint of color and I definitely recommend it.

capers01

Vernon Rockville, CT

I am still on the fence about this stuff. I have used quite a bit of self-tanners in my lifetime and have tried out some pretty bad ones. This is formula from the Nivea line of products is actually one of the few that are not all that bad, but still far from perfect. No matter what the brand of self-tanner or price, I have not yet smelled one that does not have that icky self tanning smell that I associate with a fake tan. While this one is heavily fragranced in what I believe is an attempt to mask that signature smell, it still does come through and linger a little bit after applying it. I find it to be very moisturizing, more moisturizing in fact than any other self tanning lotion that I have used in the past. The bottle is very well designed and the product comes out very easily and not runny. The consistency is just thin enough to make application very easy as well. I like the color that it gives me, not too orange and pretty natural looking.

Gredro73

USA

I have used a few gradual skin tanning lotions and I decided to try this one after I used a regular Nivea lotion. Normally, I really like Nivea products, but this is one that I can definitely say that I did not like at all. I used it over the course of three weeks. It succeeded in darkening my skin, but it really make it look orange more so than tan. Also, the lotion made my skin feel sticky. It did not absorb as well as I would have expected from a Nivea product and that was very upsetting. It kind of sat on the surface of my skin and made it feel greasy. I would use it in the morning and the feeling stayed with my skin throughout the day. I stuck with it because I wanted to see how the tanning quality of the lotion would work. Unfortunately, as I mentioned before, I was disappointed in that too. My skin took on an orange-y quality instead of the tan/brown quality that I look for in "sun-kissed" skin. I would not recommend this product. I do not think it is even closely comparable to other lotion tanners out there.

Fairyrhi

USA

After a full winter season of not going outside my skin basically glows in the dark. I've found that because I'm SO pale, using most self tanners just looks crazy and orange and I hate them. However, I don't want to blind anybody if I decide to wear shorts one day so I started using this lotion. I love that it gradually adds color, it gives me a much more natural shade of tan. Absorption This basically feels like rubbing a really creamy lotion into your skin. You feel moisturized but not greasy! Longevity I like the moisturizing feeling this lotion gives my skin and the color actually builds up over time so that lasts quite a while as well as long as you use it regularly. Effectiveness This gives my skin a really wonderful glow without streaking or making me look like an Oompa Loompa. It's a perfect product to use when you're first making your way into the sun after a long time covering up your body. It builds slowly over time and leaves your skin feeling and looking awesome.

okaykayla88

USA

I have tried a lot of these lotions that promise to give you a natural looking tan gradually over a period of time. A lot of them are no better than sunless tanners when it comes to the orange shade they turn your skin, they just work slower. I didn't find that to be the case with Nivea Sun-Kissed Radiant Gradual Tanner and Daily Lotion. Scent I liked the scent of this lotion. It was not too strong or overpowering but it reminds me of summer. Absorption This lotion absorbs pretty well. It doesn't just sit on top of your skin like some gradual tanning lotions I've tried. Longevity You really have to apply this daily to keep your color. Especially if you're using it on your legs like I was. Shaving exfoliates your skin and isn't very good for keeping a sunless tan. Effectiveness This is definitely one of the best lotions of its kind. I think the color it leaves your skin is much more natural looking than a lot of other lotions like it. Ease of Application It's as easy to apply as any lotion but you want to make sure that you get a nice even coat all over to avoid any splotchiness. With the gradual tanners like this it's less important than regular self tanners, but still a good idea to try for even coats.

jcaitlin221

Southfield, MI

I love this product. I have very pale skin, so when using gradual tan lotions, I generally choose the 'fair-medium' variety. However, this time I chose the 'medium-dark' bottle (because I found it on clearance and that's the kind that was available). When using the fair-medium kind, the product leaves me streaky, or the barely-there color washes off my skin before it even has time to build. This product did not leave me streaky at all, gave a natural look, smelled amazing and left a noticeable change in skin tone in just a few hours. The tan also stayed on the skin very well. Pale people--don't be scared to try the darker variety of this lotion, as I am as pale as they come. This is by far the best gradual tan lotion I have ever used. I do have to warn about the smell though-my husband and I think it smells great, but that's because it smells faintly of maple. If you don't mind smelling like waffles for a few hours, this is for you!

marianne504

USA