Calli's Crossing: Atlantic City Beach Vacation

Is there anything better than a beach holiday in the summer? I love visiting Atlantic City, which is only a few hours from my house. It's got the right amount of sandy beaches, fun boardwalk, and great people-watching. Here are some of the highlights:

Beach Days
I really love this beach. It's got nice, clean, sandy beaches with lots of fun amenities. We camped out near the LandShark Bar & Grill, which was the perfect place to be. They play fun music and have a great bar. We weren't in the restaurant itself, but could still enjoy the benefits. Plus, we had a great view of the Steel Pier observation wheel.

The first day we were there was a little overcast and chilly (for June). It was perfect for the kids though! The water was too cold for me to go in, but the cloud cover meant that we could be outside without sweating to death on a mostly empty beach.

The next days were classic beach weather. Hot and sunny. This was the first beach vacation since having kids where it actually felt like a vacation. Dan and I could sit in our chairs with a drink and a book and watch the kids build sand castles, play with crabs, and run at the waves. It was awesome!

Boardwalk
I know there are differing opinions of what makes a great beach. And while we loved the Outer Banks, our family really enjoys the hustle and bustle of a beach town. I want access to boardwalk fries, greasy slices of pizza, and cold, dripping ice cream. Throw in some salt water taffy and a pina colada and I'm a happy camper.

Steel Pier
In addition to the boardwalk, Atlantic City also has a small amusement park called Steel Pier. Asher and I went one afternoon while Zahara and Dan played on the beach. You pay per ride, and it's pretty expensive (relatively), but Asher loved the small airplane ride and carousel.

Food
We were celebrating Dan's birthday on this trip, so we wanted to have a couple of nice meals. Our best meal was at Buddakan, which is a great Asian fusion spot. I've also been to Buddakan in Philly and loved it there. It's part of the Stephen Starr restaurant group, and I love almost all of his restaurants (Morimoto, el Ray, Dandelion, Continental, Le Diplomat, and more!)

We also enjoyed our meal at Mexico--a kitschy Mexican restaurant. The food was fresh and the drinks were good though.

Carmine's was another solid choice. Meals are served family style and are HUGE! I mean, absolutely massive. We ordered eggplant Parmesan (wholeheartedly recommend!) with a side of angel hair pasta. All four of us ate it that night, plus the next day for lunch. It's not really worth it if you're not planning on leftovers, or if you don't have a big group though.

Our Hotel
We found a condo on VRBO for this trip. If you're traveling with a family, I highly recommend looking on VRBO or Airbnb for a place to stay. Our hotel had two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room with a pullout couch, and a full kitchen. Being able to spread out and have breakfasts in the morning was critical to our family's happiness. We don't do very well all crammed in to one hotel room!

This place (Wyndham Skyline Towers) was perfect for us. It was walking distance to the beach (we brought our trusty wagon!), and had a fun game room and arcade for the kids. One morning when the kids were up early, we played board games and twister while Dan slept in. It also had a pool, which was great for that first day when the beach was a little cold.