Atlantic City, United States: Self-Guided Walking Tour

The best things to do in Atlantic City combine its famous Boardwalk and amusement piers with a rich history of churches, immigrant communities, entertainment venues and military memorials. The city is more than its casinos: it is also a place to discover cultural institutions, distinctive architecture and quiet green spaces. Neywo offers a free audio guide to Atlantic City with 28 narrated places.

What to See in Atlantic City

Steel Pier

Steel Pier has been a landmark of Atlantic City entertainment since it opened in 1898. Once known as the “Showplace of the Nation,” it hosted concerts, exhibits and rides for more than seven decades.

The pier now stretches about 1,000 feet over the Atlantic. Its centerpiece is The Wheel, a Ferris wheel described as the third largest in the United States, with 360-degree views of the coastline and skyline. The pier also has 24 rides, including roller coasters and a carousel, as well as midway games, an arcade, food stands and a helicopter station for aerial tours.

World War I Memorial

The World War I Memorial is a Greek temple-style rotunda built in 1922 to honor Atlantic City soldiers who served in the Great War. Inside, a nine-foot bronze statue, Liberty in Distress, stands beneath a circular frieze.

Four medallions represent the Army, Navy, Marines and Aviation. The names of the battles where Atlantic City soldiers fought are carved into the architrave, making the monument both an architectural landmark and a permanent record of wartime service.

Noyes Arts Garage

In Atlantic City’s Arts District, the Noyes Arts Garage is a working creative space rather than a conventional gallery. Artists make their work on site, giving visitors the opportunity to watch their process and ask questions.

The building also contains a satellite gallery for the Noyes Museum of Art and the African American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey. It is one of the city’s most direct ways to encounter its contemporary arts scene.

Dante Hall Theater

Dante Hall Theater of the Arts stands in Ducktown, a neighborhood once known as Atlantic City’s Little Italy. The building was constructed by St. Michael’s Catholic Church in 1926 as a church hall, school gymnasium and community theater.

Its Italianate design uses steel, stone and brick. After the parish school closed in the late 1980s, the building was renovated and reopened in October 2003 as a cultural venue. Its history reflects the Italian-American families and community institutions that shaped this part of the city.

Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church

Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church traces its parish history to 1924, when Atlantic City’s growing Greek population established its own congregation. The current Byzantine-style church opened on Atlantic Avenue in December 1999.

Inside, vibrant iconography by Dimitrios Mourlas, an iconographer from Athens, reflects the religious and cultural heritage of the Greek Orthodox community. The church is dedicated to Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of sailors and the sea—a fitting connection for a coastal city.

St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church

Built in 1905, St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2001. It is one of four churches in the Parish of Saint Monica within the Diocese of Camden.

The church’s notable features include a 1916 Moller pipe organ, Opus 2138. Restored by Peragallo in 2006, the organ remains part of the church’s musical life, accompanying Masses, choir rehearsals, weddings, funerals and concerts.

Saint Michael’s Catholic Church

Saint Michael’s Catholic Church has served Atlantic City’s community for generations. Its interior is particularly notable for three tall stained-glass windows, which fill the space with color.

The church also connects with the story of Dante Hall Theater, originally built by the parish as a multi-purpose community building.

Our Lady Star of the Sea Church

Our Lady Star of the Sea Church has been part of Atlantic City since 1894. Its first pastor, Reverend P.J. Petri, later helped establish the parish school in 1908 with the Sisters of Mercy.

The school originally served Irish-American Catholic children and remained open through two world wars and the Great Depression. Memorial Hall, built by local ironworkers in 1949 and dedicated to those who served in World War II, adds another layer to the parish’s community history.

Asbury United Methodist Church

Asbury United Methodist Church represents Atlantic City’s Methodist heritage and its tradition of community service. The congregation officially became part of The United Methodist Church in 1968, following the union of Wesleyan and United Brethren traditions.

Its story is rooted in personal devotion, evangelism, social justice and the idea of faith expressed through action. The church remains a place of spiritual growth, community engagement and service.

New Jersey Korean War Memorial

Dedicated in 2000, the New Jersey Korean War Memorial honors people from New Jersey who served in the Korean War. A black granite wall forms the center of the memorial, with an eternal flame burning in front of it.

The wall bears 822 names of soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines who died or went missing during the conflict. Bronze figures by Thomas Jay Warren, Sarah Maloney and J. Tom Carrillo surround the wall, portraying the weight and endurance of military service.

O’Donnell Memorial Park

O’Donnell Memorial Park, also called World War Two Veterans Park, is a green space in southern Atlantic City. Its World War Two Veterans Memorial occupies the park’s northwestern corner.

Mature trees and greenery give the site a quiet atmosphere. The paths and benches make it a place to pause and reflect on the sacrifices commemorated there, away from the energy of the Boardwalk.

Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City

Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City occupies the former Trump Taj Mahal site on the Boardwalk. The original resort opened in 1990 as a billion-dollar project and was, at the time, the most expensive casino ever built.

After the property closed in October 2016, Hard Rock International and the Seminole Tribe of Florida helped give it a new chapter. Its history illustrates the scale, ambition and volatility of Atlantic City’s casino era.

Tropicana Atlantic City

Known locally as The Trop, Tropicana Atlantic City is one of the Boardwalk’s largest resort and casino properties. It has nearly 2,400 guest rooms and includes The Quarter, a 200,000-square-foot shopping and entertainment complex designed with an Old Havana theme.

The property also contains shops, restaurants, bars and lounges, as well as pools, a spa, an IMAX Theatre and the Tropicana Showroom. Its size and range of facilities make it a major part of the city’s resort landscape.

Little Water Distillery

Little Water Distillery brings craft spirits to Atlantic City. Founded by brothers Mark and Eric Ganter, it combines production with educational tours and tastings.

Visitors can learn about distillation, production and aging, while special events and training opportunities offer deeper ways to explore the craft.

Explore Atlantic City with Neywo

An Atlantic City audio guide is a practical way to discover the city without joining a group or following a fixed timetable. Neywo has two walking tours and one bus route, covering 28 narrated places in total. Narration is available in 11 languages, and each story plays as you reach the place, at your own pace.

The tours include:

• Two walking tours: one is 5.19 km and takes 115 minutes, with 10 narrated stops; the other is 3.81 km and takes 97 minutes, with 9 stops.
• One bus route: 12.8 km and 55 minutes, with 5 narrated stops.

The walks explore the Boardwalk, piers, casinos and landmarks, as well as Ducktown and the churches behind the casinos. The bus route follows Atlantic Avenue from Ducktown to Ventnor. Download Neywo and explore Atlantic City with its stories unfolding around you—no group and no schedule.

Atlantic City is part of New Jersey, in the United States. Nearby destinations include Camden, Newark and Trenton.