Overview

The casino was inaugurated in 1990 by its owner, Donald Trump, and was built at a total cost of nearly US$1 billion. Original restaurants at the Taj Mahal included Hard Rock Cafe, Sultan’s Feast, Dynasty, Il Mulino New York, Moon at Dynasty, and Robert’s Steakhouse. 

The Taj Mahal came to the brink of closure in 2014 as its parent company went through bankruptcy, but ultimately remained open under the new ownership of Icahn Enterprises. In 2015, the Taj Mahal admitted to having “willfully violated” anti-money-laundering regulations for years and was fined $10 million. It was the highest penalty ever levied by the U.S. federal government against a casino. On August 3, 2016, it was announced that the Trump Taj Mahal would close after Labor Day because it was losing millions of dollars each month. It was closed on October 10, 2016. On March 1, 2017, the Seminole Tribe of Florida through its Hard Rock International brand, and the Morris and Jingoli families, announced its purchase of the facility and conversion to the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino brand. It reopened on June 27, 2018, a day earlier than planned.

Construction of what was originally known as the Taj Mahal commenced in 1983 by Resorts International, owner of the neighboring Resorts Casino Hotel, with an estimated budget of $250 million. Resorts head James Crosby said it might be named the United States Hotel, in reference to the city’s first major hotel. After Crosby’s death in April 1986, Resorts International became a takeover target. The Taj Mahal had encountered construction problems, and Crosby’s heirs, lacking experience in large development projects, doubted their ability to complete it successfully.[9] Donald Trump, who owned two other Atlantic City casinos, beat out several other bidders to purchase a controlling stake in the company for $79 million in July 1987. Trump was appointed chairman of Resorts International, and said he would complete the Taj Mahal in about a year. Because New Jersey law prohibited anyone from owning more than three casinos, Trump planned to close the original Resorts casino and operate it as a hotel annex to the Taj Mahal.