The Best Resorts to Book in New Jersey

This 43-floor New Jersey resort cost hundreds of millions of dollars to build, and it shows. Located in the Marina District of Atlantic City, this hotel is home to a two-story spa and five heated pools. Guests can also make use of all the facilities at the connected Borgata Hotel, with its casino and multiple eateries. Rooms, meanwhile, come with elegant extras like chaise longues. Opt for a Vista room and you’ll get panoramic views of the Clam Thoroughfare.

The Stay Well rooms are one of the USPs at this hotel in the Marina District of Atlantic City. They come with elements like aromatherapy diffusers, air purifiers and dawn simulators, and give guests access to the Pump Room gym. The hotel offers plenty of ways to undo the good wellness work, though: there are more than 10 places to eat and drink, for example, including a steakhouse and a bakery that sells cake pop cones and cookie stacks.

670 acres (271ha) of golfing greens and pine forests pool around this resort in New Jersey’s Galloway area, so the rooms are peaceful. The tempo is turned up a little by the two pools, in the fire pit seating area of the bar, and in the restaurant – especially during Sunday brunch. If you want even more of a buzz, you can get to Atlantic City in less than 20 minutes by car.

Of all the resorts in New Jersey, Harrah’s is one of the biggest. Its rooms are spread across five towers – one of which is the second tallest building in Atlantic City. The hotel’s haul of facilities, meanwhile, includes a 1,200-seat concert venue that puts on everything from comedy to live music. On top of that, there’s a line-up of 11 different bars and restaurants that includes a Gordon Ramsay steak eatery and a seafood place that serves king crabs by the bucket load – literally.

Caesars is another one of Atlantic City’s giga-resorts. There are more than 1,000 rooms and the endless list of facilities includes eight eateries, five bars, a rooftop pool, a theatre and one of Atlantic City’s largest casinos. The decor is something to write home about, too. The whole place is inspired by Ancient Rome, so you’ll see everything from giant chariot sculptures to murals of Julius Caesar’s head as you walk around the place.

Set amongst the Kittatinny Mountains in the northwest of New Jersey, Grand Cascades is a retreat of a resort. Days here are made up of relaxation sessions in the tropical biosphere pool complex – with its waterfalls, underground aquarium and rock features – and treatments in the spa. Evenings, meanwhile, revolve around tours of the wine cellar and regionally-inspired meals in view of the sunset in the Crystal Tavern.

This New Jersey resort is set on the beachfront of Seven Mile Island on the Jersey Shore and many of the rooms have balconies or terraces that look out over the ocean. The hotel is filled with relaxation spaces: there are loungers and parasols on the beach itself, and an outdoor pool with chaises and cabanas. Then there’s The Sandbar Village – a beach club with firepits, plump sofas and a cocktail menu that features drinks with names like Melon Mermaid.

A boardwalk is all that separates Wave Resort from the beach in the Long Branch area of Jersey Shore. You can look out over the Atlantic from the floor-to-ceiling windows of some of the rooms, from the outdoor pool and its lounger-topped sun deck, and from the patios of the 100 Ocean and Branch Cantina restaurants. The former eatery has a raw bar and serves steaks on chopping blocks and the latter lays on Mexican food and offers build-your-own margaritas.

Port-O-Call is one of the most distinctive resorts in New Jersey: it’s eight stories tall and painted baby-shower pink. The decor inside is more muted: sea greens and sandy beiges reflect the hotel’s setting, across the boardwalk from the beach in Ocean City. The hub of the hotel is the sea-view pool and its sun terrace, followed closely by the Adelene restaurant that’s open for filling breakfasts – think biscuits and gravy with home fries – and lunch.