Rest Your Weary Head At The Best Atlantic City Casino Hotel: The Borgata

Following the opening of both Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City and Ocean Resort Casino on June 28, 2018, Atlantic City now boasts a total of nine casino resorts.

Of course, they all have hotels attached, helping make Atlantic City more than just a seaside town full of places to gamble. In fact, the hotels at Atlantic City casinos feature a variety high-end rooms and suites and the kind of luxury amenities that make Atlantic City a top East Coast vacation destination.

Each has so much to offer, it can be difficult to choose between them. However, there is one Atlantic City casino resort property that has stood head and shoulders above the rest since it opened 15 years ago.

In fact, Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa is far and way the best Atlantic City casino hotel. Just ask the internet.

While the online user review site Tripadvisor lists Borgata as the number two hotel in Atlantic City behind Caesars Atlantic City Hotel & Casino, there is a bevy of sites that say it’s number one. That list includes:

• Hotel.com’s 8 best hotels in Atlantic City
• Expedia.com’s 10 Best Luxury Hotels in Atlantic City, NJ
• US News & World Report’s 7 best hotels in Atlantic City
• Time Out New York’s best Atlantic City hotels

The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa

The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa is a Las Vegas-style casino resort and hotel that opened back in 2003 and has been the market leader ever since.

Its 161,000-square-foot casino has as many as 3,500 slots, more than 250 table games, and is home to the East Coast’s premier poker room.

Dining options on the property include restaurants designed by celebrity chef’s such as Bobby Flay and Wolfgang Puck. Entertainment includes a 2,400-seat event center that hosts some of the biggest acts in show business, another 1,000-seat theater, and four of the most popular nightclubs in the area.

The 2,000-room hotel tower offers some of the most comfortable and luxurious accommodations on the East Coast. Plus, there are another 800 even more luxurious rooms overlooking the Atlantic Ocean at The Water Club Hotel at Borgata next door.

The Borgata hotel tower corridors feature warm colors, rich textures, and dramatic lighting designed to relieve stress. The journey into relaxation continues in the private rooms that feature elegantly appointed furniture and decor and premium amenities. Guests enjoy luxurious bedding, pampering toiletries, plush robes and high-end bath and shower features. Plus, all the rooms have free WiFi and coffee and tea.

Borgata hotel tower suites also feature multiple entertainment areas, plush sofas, and his and her vanities.

Borgata amenities

Those who think hotels are more about the amenities than the rooms will also enjoy what Borgata has to offer.

There are six pools on the property surrounded by lush landscaping. Each has a variety of chaise lounges, daybeds, private cabanas, underwater music, and poolside service. Borgata even has an indoor pool, while The Water Club has three.

Between the Water Club at Borgata and Borgata itself, there are also two spas, two fitness centers, and five boutique shopping experiences. Plus, there are more than 100,000 square feet of meeting and event space.

Borgata’s concierge is also on call to help with any guest request. In fact, the service and facilities at Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa are unparalleled in their excellence.

Borgata history

Steve Wynn and Mirage Resorts actually came up with the initial plan to build Borgata. In 1995, they started making plans to build a Las Vegas-style casino in AC. The plan was to build on land in Atlantic City’s marina area and call it Le Cardin hotel-casino.

The project stalled alongside a planned expansion of the Atlantic City Expressway out to the marina area.

In 2000, MGM Grand Inc. bought out Mirage Resorts and canceled plans to build Le Cardin. However, the Expressway expansion came back on track. Then, Boyd Gaming and the newly formed MGM-Mirage broke ground on a very similar $1 billion joint venture called Borgata Casino and Resort at Renaissance Pointe later that year.

The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa opened its doors on July 2, 2003. It immediately became the most successful casino in Atlantic City and remains the market leader to date.

Borgata underwent a $200 million expansion in 2006 and opened the $400 million Water Club two years later.

In 2010, MGM Mirage got in some hot water with local gaming regulators. Apparently, a Hong Kong business partner had ties to Chinese organized crime.

MGM Mirage was forced to sell its 50 percent interest in the Borgata in a settlement with the state. However, it never did it, putting the company’s interest in the property in a trust instead.

Boyd Gaming became the Borgata’s operating partner. Later that year, MGM Mirage changed its name to MGM Resorts International.

MGM takes Borgata back

Three years later, it petitioned regulators to take back its 50 percent ownership in Borgata. In 2014, the Casino Control Commission voted to allow MGM Resorts International to take back its ownership stake.

MGM later entered into an agreement to acquire Boyd Gaming’s 50 percent interest in Borgata for $900 million.

In June 2017, Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa got rid of its proprietary Borgata Rewards loyalty program in favor of MGM Resorts International Mlife Rewards loyalty program.