(The name “boardwalk” doesn’t come from its wooden planks but from its inventor, Alexander Boardman.) A building boom in the late 19th and early 20th century saw the creation of enormous luxury hotels with the most updated amenities. The first boardwalk was built in 1870 along a portion of the beach to keep sand out of the hotel’s lobbies.

Its first hotel was built in 1853, when the town officially got its name. Atlantic City, that perennial damsel in distress, is putting on its makeup yet again, softer and more natural this time, to attract a new kind of customer: families.įor a natural beauty, endowed with all of nature’s gifts - miles of wide, soft, camel-hued sand hugging a spectacular stretch of the Atlantic Ocean, and the 4-mile-long boardwalk with all its attractions - Atlantic City has had its share of costume changes, reinventions and facelifts. And meet me tonight in Atlantic City,” Bruce Springsteen sang. “Put your makeup on, fix your hair up pretty. Showboat’s newest attraction is set to make a splash in Atlantic City

Showboat Casino in Atlantic City