The Least Profitable Casinos in Atlantic City

New Jersey Casinos Reopen After Budget-Related Shutdown

At the beginning of 2014, 12 Atlantic City casinos were open and in business. By the end of the year, only eight will remain. The Atlantic Club Casino Hotel closed in January while Showboat Atlantic City, Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, and Atlantic City’s newest casino, the Revel, all have plans to close after the summer tourist season comes to an end. Ever since Pennsylvania opened its first competing casino to the public in 2006, Atlantic City has seen a steady decline in revenue every year since–a 45 percent decline since the 2006 peak. With only eight struggling casinos left to pick from, here are five of Atlantic City’s least profitable casinos based on amounts earned in the first half of 2014.

5. Tropicana Casino & Resort Atlantic City – $131 million

One of only three casinos on this list that increased its revenue (Tropicana’s gaming revenue is up 12.2 percent), the Tropicana Casino & Resort Atlantic City was opened in November of 1981 and has over 100,000 sq ft of gaming space. Located on Brighton Avenue and the Boardwalk, the Tropicana contains one of the largest hotels in the state with over 2,000 rooms.

4. Trump Taj Mahal – $109 million

At one point, the Trump Taj Mahal was the highest-grossing casino in Atlantic City until The Borgata opened in 2003. Even though the casino is under Donald Trump’s name, the famous investor lost the majority of his equity in bankruptcy. Even with the second largest poker room in Atlantic City and numerous restaurants, the Trump Taj Mahal is still down 15.1 percent.

3. Bally’s Atlantic City – $105 million

One of Caesar Entertainment’s four Atlantic City properties, Bally’s Atlantic City opened in December 1979 at Park Place and the Boardwalk. The two casinos at Bally’s Atlantic City have over 220,000 sq ft of gaming space, 5,000 slot machines, and numerous other table games. The resort’s gaming revenue is down 14.3 percent, making it one of the biggest losers this year.

2. Golden Nugget Atlantic City – $80 million

Originally opened in the summer of 1985 as Trump’s Castle, and later renamed the Trump Marina, the Golden Nugget Atlantic City is now owned by Landry’s Inc. and managed to increase its gaming revenue by an impressive 33 percent. With just over 74,000 sq ft of gaming space and more than 700 hotel rooms, the Golden Nugget is one of Atlantic City’s smallest casinos.

1. Resorts Casino Hotel – $63 million

The first casino hotel in Atlantic City and the first legal casino outside of Nevada, Resorts Casino Hotel opened in May of 1978. Lately, the casino has struggled to remain afloat even after an expansion in 2004 that added a 27-story hotel tower and a 2011 renovation that converted the resort into a Roaring Twenties theme. Resorts revenue is up only 4.5 percent compared to 2013.

Photo by William Thomas Cain/Getty Images

Written by Derrick Krom

Derrick is a recent graduate of Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia where he received a B.A. in English and Communication Studies. Throughout his life, Derrick has traveled the country and even got to study abroad in London, England for four amazing months. He's a guitar player, avid music fan and lover of literature, film, and all things entertainment.