Hotels in AC NJ

DW and I are going to see Gaffigan at the Borgata in Atlantic City on Saturday, 15 July. We want to at least stay Saturday night, but after the talk about Brigantine, etc, I'm thinking it may be nice to get away for Friday night as well. We rarely take vacations and this could be a pleasant little get-away.

So I started looking at rooms in the Borgata and instantly remembered why we rarely take vacations. $459 / night for the cheap rooms at the Borgata for that weekend. So much for the $209 specials on the various booking sites.

Anybody have suggestions on how to get better rates at the Borgata? Or suggestions on reasonably-priced rooms in a nice place nearby? Thanks!

[edit] BTW we're not gamblers or show people, other than the comedy show. So we're not too concerned about that. Good food and a nice place to relax would be the primary criteria.

you could try harrahs next door.

If your expectations are low, there are a number of cheap hotels in Absecon, just across the bay on route 30. Some of them are pretty nice, some the bedbugs won't stay at

I've heard the Revel is cheap but getting past security is the toughest part.

sadly, my discount would not help the $400+ bill very much

Unfortunately, I do not really have any good resources to share on this subject. I'm just not very knowledgeable about these things.

I would definitely advise against the cheap motels in Absecon; they range from barely acceptable to astonishingly bad. This presumes you are not looking for dirty meth and dirtier hookers...

I would check around further downbeach in Ventnor or Margate or even across the bridge in Brigantine. Maybe a smaller motel or even AirBnB could have something more reasonably priced? Cheap Valets, plentiful cabs/uber and a decent transit system (Jitney) means short trips around the area are really not too large of an obstacle.

I happily, of course, extend any help or hospitality that I might be able to provide. Beach tours, food recommendations and general knowledge of the area are my strong points and I have a fairly flexible schedule.

inspirational snapshot from earlier today:

I had to stay in AC and also balked at the crazy prices of stuff on the strip. We ended up at the Sheraton next to the convention center and our expectations were greatly exceeded. Much nicer than the Trop, half the price, and only a 10 minute walk through the nice outdoor shopping area to get to the boardwalk. If you have to stay in AC, I would recommend it.

I forgot about the Sheraton. It is a very nice place, the outlets are across the streets, and the tun tavern is downstairs

Thanks for all the info, guys. Specially big thanks to tb for your kind offer - I just may take you up on it.

I'll have to discuss it with DW but airbnb has a couple near-boardwalk locations for reasonable prices. The Sheraton definitely looks solid, but isn't enough cheaper that I wouldn't just stay at the Borgota anyway.

Thanks again!

In reply to Duke:

You're welcome; it would be fun if you have the time. Keep us all updated and we can always figure out details pretty easily.

Looking at an all-suites place called the FantaSea (?) right by the inlet just north of Steel Pier, or an airbnb studio right off the Boardwalk just south of Steel Pier.

Brigantine was awesome. Great little beach town, had an excellent smoothie and iced coffee while there. If I had traveled by car I likely would've loaded up at a beach shop and gone speckled trout or flounder fishing. It made me miss living at the beach and is a town I could settle into. TUN was pretty solid as well. I was disappointed that I wasn't able to find a decent pork roll bagel sandwich anywhere in AC, I had to venture into Absecon to get one, spotted a terrapin on the ride and noted that more than 50% of the motels en route look to have not reopened after Sandy. Either that or 45 owned motels off of the main drag as well.

captdownshift wrote: Brigantine was awesome. Great little beach town, had an excellent smoothie and iced coffee while there. If I had traveled by car I likely would've loaded up at a beach shop and gone speckled trout or flounder fishing. It made me miss living at the beach and is a town I could settle into. TUN was pretty solid as well. I was disappointed that I wasn't able to find a decent pork roll bagel sandwich anywhere in AC, I had to venture into Absecon to get one, spotted a terrapin on the ride and noted that more than 50% of the motels en route look to have not reopened after Sandy. Either that or 45 owned motels off of the main drag as well.

if you were on the White Horse Pike (route 30) some of those hotels have not been open in more than a decade. The rest have slowly closed over time. If you are talking the Blake Horse Pike (322/40) those hotels were recently bought out by the township and are being demoed as they were eyesores and used only by the Hookers and their johns to spread disease.

As far as AirBnBs go. The inlet area can be pretty shady, there is not much left of it north of the now closed Taj. South of the Steel Pier should be ok. I personally would be looking towards Margate and Ventnor, you can ride the local buses into town for not a lot of money if you do not feel like driving. Same with Brigantine.

In reply to captdownshift:

Glad to hear that some of my advice about Brig (as often we abbreviate it) worked out for you. This tiny Island isn't terribly remarkable but it does have quite a lot of little charms here and there.

I have had a place here longer than I can remember precisely and since becoming a father have lived here almost full time for the past couple of years. Having lived all over the country and traveled the world, I somehow managed to return to a small beach community.

As usual MM has a going point to remember about the neighborhoods in AC! The northern and western edges of the island are really not the kind of areas that anybody wants to visit. I tend to overlook this as they are nowhere nearly as dangerous and ugly as when I was growing up, but they are still not terribly pleasant...

I agree that South of the Casinos is a much better direction to look, if possible. Lots of nice neighborhoods and easy travel options.

One note: Bus service to Brig is limited but Uber & Taxis are plentiful enough.

would like to note. If you have a day to spend. Jump in the car and head down to the end of the Garden State Parkway and keep going. Cape May is a wonderful seaside town with a metric tonne of charm. The entire town is on the list of historic places due to the sheer number of Victorian homes there. Plenty of restaurants and bars to keep anybody fed and inebriated and plenty to look at. Just do not make the drive on a Friday night or a Saturday during the summer.