Atlantic City Romance

Despite its reputation as a gambling haven, Atlantic City, New Jersey, invites families of all sorts to enjoy its spas, dining and proximity to the ocean. Casinos sprung up in the 1970s, but the city still retains much of its beach-resort character from before that time.

After World War II, the city began rebuilding and refashioning itself as a tourist destination, nodding to its rich history with sites that commemorate the country’s first Miss America Pageant as well as organizations such as the South Jersey Cultural Alliance that hosts plays and cultural events in the area. The city became a bit run-down after gaming became a main industry, but the arrival of the decidedly upscale Borgata Hotel a few years ago helped usher in an era of improvements. 

Stroll between the beach and the rest of town on the Boardwalk, which has been renovated thanks to hurricanes, and cuts a line between amusement piers and hotels, restaurants and shops—you can also opt to be pushed around in a rolling chair, a popular way to travel. Delight the kids with a trip to Lucy the Elephant, a 65-foot tall landmark shop shaped like an elephant, where visitors can shop for funky gifts.

Classic Italian style meets modern sophistication at Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa in Atlantic City. The first new casino hotel in the East Coast entertainment capital in more than 13 years, the 43-story tower stands as both the largest hotel and the tallest building in the entire state of New Jersey. Located at Renaissance Pointe overlooking the marina, Borgata brings an all-encompassing, Las Vegas-style travel destination to Atlantic City. The 1.1-billion seaside resort-a joint venture of Boyd Gaming and MGM Mirage-offers a broad range of activities, a brand of hospitality, and a level of service designed to please business and leisure travelers alike. Few hotels can rival the impressive scale and breadth of amenities. The 125,000-square-foot casino, for instance, holds 145 gaming tables and more than 3,600 slots. Headline acts from around the globe appear at the 1,000-seat Music Box Theater, while the 2,400-seat events center can stage anything from major events to top-flight meetings and conventions. Even the parking lot elicits awe with its space for up to 7,100 vehicles. All 2,002 guest rooms and suites offer Sealey beds, 300-thread-count custom Egyptian cotton linens, armoires with refrigerators, high-speed Web access, and floor-to-ceiling windows with views of the city, marina, and Atlantic Ocean. Lavish bath- rooms come with oversized glass-enclosed showers, marble walls and floors, granite countertops, Egyptian cotton bath sheets, and all-natural, essence-based grooming products by Lather. The six categories of accommodation range from Classic Rooms to the twin Residence Suites, which manage to pack marble fireplaces, grand pianos, 12-seat dining rooms, 60-inch plasma-screen TVs, private exercise rooms and spas, and butlers pantries into 5,000 square feet of domed ceilings and fresco-painted walls. Equally expansive-and impressive-the resorts dining selection includes 11 destination restaurants. They range from the modern Italian of Specchio and the prime beef selections of the Old Homestead Steakhouse to the bold French-Chinese cuisine of Suilan by Susanna Foo and the Pacific Rim-influenced delicacies of Mixx. All of the restaurants use fresh seasonal ingredients -like candy-stripe beets, English peas, and Sicilian oregano grown for the hotel at Borgata Farms in Buena, New Jersey. The restaurants also draw collectively from the hotels 14,000-bottle wine cellar. Eclectic describes the casual dining options as well-contemporary American at The Metropolitan, hearty and healthy at the Gypsy Bar, savory Asian at Noodles of the World, home-style Italian at Risi Bisi, and grand Las Vegas style for breakfast, lunch, or dinner at Borgata Buffet. The hotels European-style Spa Toccare sprawls over 50,000 square feet, encompassing 22 treatment rooms, a full-service barber shop -Shaving Grace-, a hair salon -Pierre and Carlo-, a state-of-the-art fitness center -The Pump Room-, and a massive indoor garden pool complex where guests can work up a sweat or simply relax. Just a two-minute drive from the Atlantic City Convention Center, Borgatas meeting and conference facilities provide everything an organization needs to produce an outstanding event. The meeting complex offers 70,000 square feet of event space, including a column-free ballroom accommodating up to 3,700 guests for receptions, 2,400 for seated presentations, and 1,500 for banquets. All 20 meeting rooms feature the latest in lighting, projection, video, and sound systems. Ten boardrooms with diverse configurations come with wet bars, marble floors, plasma-screen TVs, and spectacular ocean views. Executive groups seeking an even more intimate rendezvous can gather in private rooms, Ommagio or Champenois, tucked into Borgatas wine cellar.

Sit back and relax as chef Luke Palladino takes your taste buds on a tantalizing trip. Located inside Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, this restaurant offers the best in contemporary cuisine. Cozy booths, wooden decor and beautiful portraits set the mood right for a perfect dining experience. Try the truffle cheese ravioli, chopped summer insalata or cold antipasti platter. And satisfy your sweet tooth with the cara mia. Specchio has private spaces which you can reserve for business meetings and special events.

This is the priciest real estate in town! Long the stuff of board-game-related legend, Atlantic City's Boardwalk is a miles-long stretch of deck lined with dining, gambling, nightlife and all manner of family-friendly (and not-so-family-friendly) attractions. Some of the poshest hotel/casinos in the world can be found here (such as Caesars), as well as some of the kitschiest tourist draws (see the Boardwalk Rolling Chairs). The Boardwalk runs from Absecon Channel on the the northern edge of town all the way into Ventnor City to the south.

Atlantic City's Art Center features galleries and exhibitions that display the artistic creations of New Jersey's homegrown artists, and of those around the world. Located at the radiant Garden Pier, the center is also home to a gift shop and to a good many events, including concerts, lectures, readings and more. Be sure to check the website to catch a glimpse of what exciting, new, up-and-coming artist will be or is currently being exhibited. Admission is free.

Learn all about the rich history of Atlantic City at this museum that is free to the public. Take a look at the array of artifacts on display, from postcards to photographs to costumes and the like. There's even a section devoted to that timeless of American institutions, the Miss America Pageant. Be sure to get your free Heinz pickle and a copy of the museum's historical video in the gift shop.

There's just something ineffably thrilling about visiting lighthouses. And as far as they go, Absecon's one of the largest in the US, 3rd largest, to be exact. Completed in 1857, the lighthouse towers 171 feet high, harbors a museum, a gift shop and treats visitors who brave its 240 steps to some truly amazing views.