Bally's Atlantic City is a hotel and casino on the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey that opened in 1979. It is famous for its address of "Park Place and the Boardwalk", two locations popularized by the board game Monopoly.
Bally's is one of the largest hotels on the boardwalk with nearly 2,000 rooms. Its Dennis Tower opened in 1921.
In 1997, The Wild Wild West Casino was opened as an expansion of Bally's.
History
In 1977, Reese Palley and local attorney and businessman Martin Blatt bought the Marlborough-Blenheim Hotel and planned to preserve the Blenheim half of the hotel, along with adjacent Dennis Hotel for his Park Place Casino. Palley was successful in getting the Blenheim part of the hotel placed on the National Register of Historic Buildings, while planning to raze the Marlborough to make way for a new modern hotel. However, he stepped aside after Bally Manufacturing purchased a controlling interest in the project. After Bally took control, it announced plans to raze the Marlborough, Blenheim, and the adjacent Dennis Hotel, despite protests, to make way for the new "Bally's Park Place Casino and Hotel". However, in an effort to offset costs and open the casino as soon as possible, the Dennis Hotel was retained to serve as the temporary hotel for Bally's until a new tower could be built.
In November 1978, Bally's demolished the Marlborough-Blenheim and quickly cleared the land to begin building the Bally's Park Place Casino. On December 30, 1979, the casino opened with the newly renovated Dennis serving as its hotel. In 1989, Bally's constructed a 750-room hotel tower in a modern style, with an exterior of light pink glass. On July 2, 1997, The Wild Wild West Casino at Bally's opened as the second casino at Bally's.
In 2000, Bally's Park Place changed its name and became Bally's Atlantic City. The adjacent Claridge Hotel and Casino was purchased and incorporated into Bally's in 2003, and was renamed the Claridge Tower. The boardwalk side of Bally's was renovated in 2009. The facade of the Dennis Tower was refurbished and a row of shops between the Dennis Hotel and the boardwalk were demolished, which opened the plaza of the Dennis Tower to the boardwalk.
In 2012, Bally's entered a contract with the Legends in Concert production company to provide new entertainment options. The changes are headlined by the renovation of the former Palace Theater into the "Legends in Concert Theater", to feature new seating, booths, and cocktail tables. Other additions include “Dealer-tainer†themed gaming pit, in which dealers on the casino floor don costumes of celebrities including Elvis Presley, The Blues Brothers, Madonna and Lady Gaga. Some of the costumed dealers take turns impersonating and performing as the celebrities on a stage in the middle of the gaming pit. This usually occurs only on high volume days, mostly around the weekends. Other Bally’s personnel, including theater staff, front desk employees and food service wait staff, will periodically appear in costume.
Bally's Atlantic City participates along with other Caesars Entertainment properties in the "Total Rewards" loyalty program for their players, guests, and other customers. Rewards are based on casino play, food/beverage/retail/hotel room/entertainment purchases, and other factors. There are four tiers of membership, increasing in status: Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and Seven Star.
Gaming
The two casinos at Bally's have over 220,000 sq ft (20,000 m2). of gaming space with over 5000 slot machines, Keno, and many table games, among other features. Recent developments include games which combine the features of live table games with those of slot machines: The multi-player Rapid Roulette has live dealers spinning the ball, but the bet and payout function is mostly handle by computerized video terminals for each player. Also, in the Wild Wild West area, a video recorded "blackjack dealer" on a big TV screen "deals" as the player bet on a video terminal which shows their "cards" in a multi-player game. As provided by local and state law, there scattered areas where smoking is permitted, totaling 25% of the official gaming space. (Aside from this exception, smoking is banned by law throughout the rest of the casino and hotel). Under New Jersey law, persons under 21 years of age are not permitted to gamble. They may only pass through the main aisles of the casino when accompanied by someone over 21 years old to cross between hotel areas and exits, and may not stop or slow down to observe the games.
Bally's Casino
Bally's Casino offers slots and video poker, plus a poker room and baccarat room, called Baccarat Palace.
Wild Wild West Casino
Opened on July 2, 1997 as an expansion of Bally's Atlantic City, it is extensively themed to the American Old West, with waterfalls, faux gold mines and a running stream. It is notable for being one of the only fully themed casinos on the East Coast. The exterior features a facade made to resemble an old western town, while the inside features a large mountain and other western town facades.
The Wild Wild West Casino contains a western themed sports bar, the Mountain Bar, which features "The Vixens", a troupe of dancing "showgirls" wearing revealing cowgirl costumes. Also offered are beer pong tournaments, a mechanical bull, and a 24-hour happy hour. The Wild Wild West Casino also is home to two restaurants, Wild About Wings and Gold Tooth Gertie's.
On June 1, 2012, Caesars Entertainment announced that the Wild Wild West Casino would undergo an extensive renovation beginning with the closing of the Virginia City Buffet by the end of June. It is unclear whether or not the western theme of the casino will be removed, but Caesars has stated that the gambling area in the casino will be made smaller while nationally-known stores, restaurants, and attractions are added to transform the space into an "entertainment destination". Changes in 2012 included the removal of live table games and the majority of slot machines, leaving only Coyote Kate's Slot Parlor, and some slot machines adjacent to the Mountain Bar.
On February 21, 2014, Caesars Entertainment announced that the renovations are complete and will reopen the back area featuring table games, a new stage for live entertainment, and a World Series of Poker branded poker room. In conjunction with online gaming, poker players will be able to play poker online and on the table at the same time.
Claridge Tower
The Ridge casino, stylized as theRIDGE, was a casino in the Claridge Tower. The casino was renovated in 2008 from a standard casino floor to an upscale lounge-casino. However, in 2012, The Ridge closed its gambling and food amenities. The tower's 500 hotel rooms were used for Bally's guests until it was sold in 2013 to be reopened as an independent hotel.
Dining
- Arturo's (6th level) Formerly Prime Place. Renamed Arturo's in 1990 after then Bally Manufacturing Corporation Chairman Arthur Goldberg.
- The Corner Cafe (in the "Gateway" area, adjacent to the Claridge Tower)
- Ben & Jerry's (on the Boardwalk)
- Guy Fieri's Chophouse (6th Level) Formerly By The Sea which was closed for several years.
- Harry's Oyster Bar and Grill (Dennis Tower at Boardwalk level)
- Johnny Rockets (Boardwalk area)
- Noodle Village (main casino area)
- Pickles (on the Boardwalk)
- The Reserve (6th level)
- Wild About Wings (in the Wild Wild West area)
- The Diamond Club (6th level, "Total Rewards" members of "Diamond" tier and above only)
Taste of the Shore
Taste of the Shore is a food court in the "Gateway" area between the hotel lobby and the Claridge Tower. It consists of:
- Walt's Original Primo Pizza
- Sack O' Subs
Bally's proper does not have an all-you-can-eat buffet, but promotes the "Boardwalk Buffet" on the 3rd level of its sister property Caesars Atlantic City, with which it shares an indoor connection. Complimentary buffets issued by Bally's Atlantic City are honored at Caesars Atlantic City.
Amenities
Bally's Atlantic City contains the Spa at Bally's featuring an indoor swimming pool, and the Bellezza salon, all located on the 8th level. The 6th level contains ballroom space and several meeting rooms. On the same level is a business center with computer/office machine access, and a Starbucks vending machine.
Shopping
There are a few stores in the complex:
- Picks n' Wicks (hotel lobby)
- Studio (Gateway)
- Park Place Jewelers (hotel lobby)
- The Gift Shop (hotel lobby)
- The Spa Pro Shop (8th level)
- a credit card operated Best Buy vending machine (Gateway)
Bars, Lounges, and Nightclubs
- L-Bar (The Lobby Bar)
- The Blue Martini (main casino area)
- Billy's (6th level in room with live poker and horse racing simulcast)
- Harry's Oyster Bar (Dennis Tower at Boardwalk level)
- Preview (at The Reserve restaurant)
- The bar at the Diamond Club (6th level, "Total Rewards" members of "Diamond" tier and above only)
Hotel Towers
Bally's has three hotel towers:
Bally's Tower is the largest and is the main tower. It was opened in 1990 after a long construction phase. The foundation for this tower, as well as a 2nd tower (yet to be constructed) was built in the initial construction phase of the Casino, executive offices and restaurant building on the site of the demolished Marlboro-Blenheim Hotels.
Dennis Tower was built in 1921 and was the original hotel at Bally's.
Garden Tower was built in the mid 1980s and is located on top of the bus center/Valet parking garage. Originally built as the "Garden Rooms". They were the first totally new hotel rooms in the complex. This is technically a low-rise building built atop the parking structure.
See also
- Bally's Las Vegas
- Caesars Entertainment
- Gambling in New Jersey
- List of tallest buildings in Atlantic City
References
External links
- Main Website
- Casino Connections - Castle in the Sand by David G. Schwartz
- Stephen Piccolo's Gaming in Atlantic City.... A History of Legalized Gambling in New Jersey
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