Best Atlantic City Hotels

Pool partiers, rejoice! The Water Club has not one, but three crystalline pools to dive into, and two of them are heated and indoors, guaranteeing a comfortable dip regardless of the weather. The Water Club is all about its wet and wild lounge spaces—the breezy, fun-filled outer deck with huge white awnings, and the interior infinity pool that looks like a rainforest (lots of mossy green plants and teak wood). The Water Club works hard to maintain its aura of exclusivity—there’s no casino onsite, and its lounges are guests only. When you want to roll the dice, you can head next door to the Borgata. At 43 stories high, every room has a marina view, but you won’t be hanging out upstairs for long. If the pool lounges don’t tempt you, the nighttime parties will: Samantha Ronson DJs there, while the likes of Ke$ha, Selita Ebanks and Steven Aoki show up frequently to perform.

The older, wiser sister of The Water Club, this grand hotel was for years the ultimate luxury destination in Atlantic City and is still the destination of choice for high-rollers. Now it’s slightly eclipsed by its glossy sibling, but is still an elegant option in its own right. Its rooms are more spacious than you’ll find elsewhere, for starters. Many come with a mini-sitting space, and the showers in the marble bathrooms are built for two (with a place to sit, as well, similar to the fancy Water Club showers). You can take a dip in its elegant indoor pool and swim beneath steel sculptures and under illumination by Chihuly glass chandeliers. And don’t forget the casino, where you’ll find row upon row of slot games (including a 'Star Wars' game and a 'Sex in the City' game), plus high-stakes tables of blackjack, roulette, baccarat and poker. If you win enough, the hotel will give you a room for free.

Looking for the best Atlantic City hotels? How over the top do you want to go? The Taj Mahal is glitzy to the extreme, starting with dozens of blue and gold minarets lining the entrance outside. The lobby is bigger than most train stations, and studded with blinged-out chandeliers and faux-gold elevators. The water-facing rooms look down over the boardwalk and piers, and inside the room you’re likely to find about an acre of space between the bathroom and bedroom. And that’s the standard room—suites are even bigger, some with private Jacuzzis in them. The Taj is dripping in over-the-top garish glamour, down to the blood-red carpet in its somewhat dated, slow-moving casino.

It’s a bit of a haul from this Atlantic City standby to the boardwalk and the beach, so take some points off for an unfortunate location. The good news is that the party often comes to Harrah’s, thanks to its ultraclub Pool, a favorite Atlantic City day and night spot. Who doesn’t like partying in a pool underneath a huge glass dome? The hotel’s pool and spa are accessed through the Ocean Tower, which is the more attractive of the hotel's two guest areas (the Rendezvous Tower is due for an update).

It’s not quite Vegas, baby, but this Caesars ain’t bad and remains one of the best places to stay in Atlantic City, if for location alone. It’s got all the tacky décor one expects from a Sin City chain hotel—including the iconic marble white ponies that are a Caesars hallmark. The entrance, aka the “Temple Lobby,” is about four stories high and designed to look like a Roman atrium. Four towers contain the guest rooms, with the Ocean Tower as the most recently renovated (try to book a room in that one). And, not to be ignored—Caesars’ Atlantic City location is prime: right on the liveliest strip of the boardwalk. You can walk out the door and hit the arcades, shops, the Steel Pier rides and the beach.

A breath of South Beach has blown into Atlantic City, courtesy of this art deco-style hotel that would look right at home in Miami. The Chelsea used to be two classic properties actually: the former Holiday Inn Atlantic City-Boardwalk and the adjacent Howard Johnson Hotel Atlantic City, which was originally a kosher hotel owned by the Teplitzky family. The hotel received a comprehensive makeover in 2007, giving it a youthful, modern glow. Guests get two choices: a room in The Annex, famous for its “social room,” the fifth-floor nightclub and lounge, or Chelsea Luxe. Those who book Luxe get package deals, such as the “Rock Star,” which basically gives you VIP access to every room in the hotel and a little alone time in the Chelsea Spa (don’t miss the saltwater pool).