Christmas in Atlantic City
Needed to get away for Christmas so planned a last minute trip to Atlantic City. With a low expectation, we were pleasantly surprised by how much we enjoyed AC as a family with a small kid (thanks to the large hotel indoor pool) and the food quality in restaurants.
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itinerary
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Day 1 Itinerary
Places visited: Hard Rock Hotel Casino Atlantic City - Hard Rock Hotel Casino Atlantic City - Hard Rock Hotel Casino Atlantic City - The Flavor Tour - Kuro
Hard Rock Atlantic City
Newly renovated in 2017 (previously the bankrupted Taj Mahal run by Trump).
Pros: 1) everything feels pretty new, 2) very convenient dining options from food court to fine dining ... food quality is excellent too.
Cons: 1) horrible sound insulation ... you hear everything in the hallway. Since it’s Hard Rock, the party crowd could get obnoxiously loud. 2) we got an ocean view room but it is not true ocean view, more like a side ocean view. The casino towers are perpendicular to the coastline so most of the rooms get a side view of the ocean.
Stay in the south tower if you want to be close to the hotel amenities (such as pool and restaurants)
Hard Rock Indoor Pool
We enjoyed this pool every day during our stay. It’s not fancy but very spacious and has good lighting from the skylights above. They keep both the room and the water very warm so very kid-friendly.
Hard Rock Casino Floor
A peak into the VIP room
The Flavor Tour
Kuro @ Hard Rock
Amazing atmosphere and food (and at a very reasonable price). Drinks were delicious too. Wish we had a bigger appetite to try more items on the menu!
Day 2 Itinerary
Places visited: Hard Rock Hotel Casino Atlantic City - Hard Rock Hotel Casino Atlantic City - YOUYU Noodle Bar - Atlantic City Boardwalk - Ocean Casino Resort - Top Golf - Amada
Hard Rock Hotel Casino Atlantic City
Elvis’ car
Pool Time Again
YOUYU Noodle Bar
Atlantic City Boardwalk
Ocean Casino Resort
This is the other hotel we thought about staying (Hard Rock and Ocean are the two newest properties in AC). We wanted to check it out for our future visits. Ocean Casino Resort definitely has a nicer view and rooms seem more modern. It has a Miami Beach vibe overall. We think both Hard Rock and Ocean are nice but we have a slight preference for Hard Rock over Ocean.
Top Golf
Had an hour to kill before our dinner reservation and Top Golf was a perfect spot for that. You rent a room with a huge screen simulator for a number of games (golf, soccer, baseball, hockey, etc.). The rate is $25 per half hour. They also serve drinks and bar food.
Amada
A nicely decorated tapas restaurant on the casino floor of Ocean Resort. They gave us a nice table with the view of the big Ferris wheel (lights up at night). The tapas was decent but a bit on the salty side.
Day 3 Itinerary
Places visited: The Flavor Tour - Rainforest Cafe - Atlantic City Boardwalk - Caesars Atlantic City Hotel & Casino - Bally's Atlantic City Hotel & Casino - Dock's Oyster House
The Flavor Tour
A good breakfast spot in the Flavor Tour section of the hotel. It even opens 24/7!
Rainforest Cafe
A good dining spot for kids ... the cafe is literally set up like a rainforest with motor-controlled animals such as elephants and gorillas. Our little one was scared of the fake animals and wouldn’t sit in her own chair 😂.
Atlantic City Boardwalk
Caesars Atlantic City Hotel & Casino
Caesars has an interesting lobby but lacked activities or entertainment options for families. We also couldn’t find any sofas or seating options to rest in the common areas. (In comparison, we found plenty of those in Hard Rock or Ocean). We walked around a bit and even ran into another family who failed to find something for their little ones in Caesars. So we decided to head next door to Bally’s.
Bally's Atlantic City Hotel & Casino
Bally’s is one of the older hotels in town. The hotel itself may not be impressive but it’s casino has one of most unique settings in AC modeled after the Wild West.
Dock's Oyster House
We were surprised by how nice this restaurant was. The streets outside seemed seedy and we even felt a bit unsafe. But once we entered inside, it was like a different world - very lively bar with live piano playing. Food was impressive too. The chilled seafood tower and crab meat sauté were memorable! The price was relatively cheap too ... it would probably cost twice as much where we live.
Day 4 Itinerary
Places visited: The Flavor Tour - Hard Rock Hotel Casino Atlantic City - Atlantic City Boardwalk - Central Pier Arcade - Com Ga Ninh Kieu - Hard Rock Hotel Casino Atlantic City
Breakfast @ Burgers & Hops
This has become our favorite breakfast spot. Hearty food with free entertainment from surrounding screens playing clips from Hard Rock Calling summer concerts.
Hard Rock Pool Time
Boardwalk At Night
Central Pier Arcade
Found this arcade center on boardwalk less than 10 mins walking from the hotel. Tons of games and pretty cheap to play. The little one is still too young for those games but she had lots of fun collecting the winning tickets after we play.
Com Ga Ninh Kieu
The only restaurant near the hotel we could find that were open for Christmas Eve (other than the casino buffet). Food was great but atmosphere and decor lacking (typical for this kind of Vietnamese restaurants).
Christmas Eve Live Music @ Hard Rock
Day 5 Itinerary
Places visited: Steel Pier - Hard Rock Cafe
Steel Pier
Steel pier was closed for winter season. But we had a nice walk on the beach next to the pier and took some photos with the seagulls.
Hard Rock Cafe
great Cobb salad