Atlantic City: Hotels & Evening Entertainment

Things to do during the day

• The Atlantic City Boardwalk was first constructed in 1870, built to keep sand out of hotel lobbies and train cars. Visit Atlantic City describes it as wooden and five miles (about 8 km) long, lined with shops, restaurants and entertainment.^{1, 2}
• The beach lies steps from the Boardwalk and is, in the tourism office's words, one of the only free beaches along the Jersey Shore.¹
• Steel Pier opened in 1898 as an entertainment pier. Today it has amusement rides, games and The Wheel, an observation wheel with views of the shore.^{2, 5}
• Absecon Lighthouse is New Jersey's tallest lighthouse. Visitors can climb its 228 steps and visit the museum in the keeper's cottage.⁶
• Rolling chairs, pushed along the Boardwalk since the late 1800s, still carry visitors up and down the walkway.²

Evening ideas

• Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City has two concert venues, Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena with 5,500 seats and Sound Waves with 1,300, and free live music every day at its Lobby Bar.^{7, 8}
• At Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, The Music Box is a small theatre that hosts the Borgata Comedy Club and concerts, and the Event Center is the resort's second venue.¹¹

Restaurants and bars

• Council Oak Steaks & Seafood at Hard Rock is a classic American steakhouse with a business casual dress code and live music in its lounge.⁹
• Old Homestead Steak House at Borgata is the Atlantic City branch of a New York steakhouse; the operator's fact sheet of July 2024 lists 14 dining options at the resort.¹¹
• Salt water taffy, funnel cake and boardwalk fries are the classic foods of the Boardwalk. The taffy got its name in 1883.²

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