Atlantic City: Hard Rock Hotel (July 2018)



My spouse and I stayed at the Atlantic City Hard Rock Hotel and Casino for two nights over a weekend in mid-July 2018. We first made our reservation online when the announcement of the opening date was made (two months prior), but after we signed up for their emails, we received an offer for a status match that allowed us to book a really fancy suite for the same rate that we had booked our original basic classic king guestroom. (Had we kept our original room category, we could have paid half the rate of the original booking, but we felt that we deserved the splurge!)

The Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Atlantic City opened in late June 2018, about 3 weeks prior to our stay. It occupies the space of the formal Trump Taj Mahal, although renovations ran about $375 million. The resort occupies 17 acres adjacent to the famous boardwalk and steps from the Atlantic Ocean. It employs about 3,000 permanent workers. Globally, the Hard Rock company offers 175 restaurants in domestic cities including Chicago, Las Vegas, New York, San Diego, and San Francisco, and internationally in cities including Bali, Cancun, Dubai, Ibiza, London, Macao, and Sydney (with anticipated openings in Chengdu, Innsbruck, Valencia, and Yangon). The New Jersey property offers an indoor pool, outdoor sundeck, fitness club, and spa. Seasonally, you can also relax at the hotel’s beach club located off the boardwalk.

Hotel restaurants include Kuro (Japanese, see our separate review), Council Oak Fish (seafood), Robert’s Steakhouse (meat), Il Mulino (Italian), Song (Chinese), Hard Rock Café (but in a new location from where it was at the Taj; see our separate review), YOUYU Noodle Bar, Sugar Factory, and the Harvest Buffet. Several counter-service outlets are located in a sort of food court atmosphere, including outlets that sell burgers, smoothies, coffee, desserts, and the popular White House Sub Shop. The hotel offers a few shops that sell Hard Rock merchandise, art, music memorabilia, and sundry items.

Bars/lounges/entertainment venues include the Lobby Bar (see our separate review), Council Oak Fish Bar (see our separate review), Hard Rock Café (see our separate review), DAER nightclub, and Howie Mandel’s Comedy Club. The hotel also offers the Etess Arena, an entertainment/concert venue that can accommodate 7,000 patrons. You can even make a little music of your own by borrowing a Fender guitar to try out in your room. Of course the casino offers nearly 2,200 slot machines and about 120 table games. Music memorabilia graces many of the public areas of the property, including items from Bruce Springsteen, John Bon Jovi, John Lennon, Michael Jackson, Prince, and Lady Gaga. Both valet and self-parking is available. 

Our 1,200-square foot South Tower Apollo Ocean Suite was enormous! A half-bath was located off the lobby/foyer area (with a narrow rectangular hall table), which led into the main living room space, the best part of the accommodations. With a corner location, from our long wall of windows and our large sliding glass door, we could see down the boardwalk as well out to the ocean across the Steel Pier (see our separate review). (Regrettably, the sliding doors of this hotel are no longer functional; we pined to step out onto the small balcony to enjoy an unimpeded view.) The living room offered a large L-shaped sofa, side chair, coffee table, wall-mounted TV (with a long but narrow table below it, an armoire/bureau/shelving unit that held an empty mini-refrigerator/bar area, and a round dining table with four chairs. Although the bedroom area had two windows, they were not quite enough to brighten the large space, which held a king-size bed with a nightstand on each side, a large desk and chair, a free-standing open closet unit, and a second wall-mounted TV with a padded bench below. The luxurious and spacious master bathroom contained a large glass-enclosed shower, separate soaking tub, and vanity with twin sinks. A toilet cubicle (separated by a door) was located opposite the shower. The hotel offers robes (but not slippers), and quality toiletries (soaps, lotion, shampoo, conditioner). The decor of the room was classic and tasteful, although we expected more trendy/unusual/eclectic touches (as we have experienced at the Kimpton and Gansevoort brands). FYI, check-in time if 4:00 pm, and check-out time is 11:00 am, and although the hotel will charge you for the first night’s stay as a deposit, they offer a generous 24-hour cancellation policy.

We loved our South Tower Apollo Ocean Suite at the Hard Rock, and we enjoyed the property’s restaurants and entertainment.










































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