Atlantic City is adding a new kind of attraction to its familiar mix of casinos, beaches, and boardwalk bars: legal cannabis consumption lounges.
In July 2025, the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) approved the state’s first four cannabis consumption area endorsements, including two attached to dispensaries in Atlantic City—High Rollers Dispensary and SunnyTien Dispensary. Regulators described the move as a major milestone for the state’s recreational market. Both Atlantic City lounges opened later in the summer, giving tourists and local residents a sanctioned place to consume products purchased on site.
Located inside the historic Claridge Hotel just off the Boardwalk, High Rollers’ speakeasy-style lounge spans roughly 3,300 square feet and features plush seating, entertainment, and on-site staff to help visitors navigate the menu and devices. Across town, SunnyTien’s lounge on Atlantic Avenue extends the footprint of the existing dispensary, allowing customers to consume flower, vapes, and edibles immediately after purchase rather than retreating to hotel rooms, cars, or the street.
State regulations tightly define how these new spaces operate. Lounges are limited to adults 21 and older, must be physically connected to a licensed Class 5 dispensary, and cannot sell alcohol, tobacco, or prepared food, though patrons may bring in takeout or order delivery. Only regulated cannabis products sold by the host dispensary may be consumed on site, and staff may refuse service to anyone who appears already impaired. Each lounge also requires both CRC approval and municipal sign-off, giving local officials leverage over how many locations open and where they are clustered.
For Atlantic City, the lounges are part of a broader “Green Zone” redevelopment strategy aimed at attracting private investment and diversifying tourism beyond casino gaming. A city redevelopment plan created a designated cannabis business district and encourages pairing retail sales with on-site consumption areas to boost foot traffic in targeted corridors. Local ordinances require operators to clear a city cannabis review board and the planning board before final approvals, adding another layer of oversight.
The timing is significant. Atlantic City prohibits smoking marijuana or cannabis items in most indoor public places and in many public spaces, including much of the Boardwalk, with civil fines for violators. That has left some visitors unsure where they can legally light up despite statewide legalization in 2021. City and state officials say lounges are designed to channel use into supervised venues with ventilation plans, security, and trained staff rather than sidewalks, hotel balconies, and beach entrances.
More projects are already in the pipeline. The Casino Reinvestment Development Authority has approved site plans for additional dispensaries with proposed consumption lounges on Pacific Avenue, including a project at 1217 Pacific Avenue that pairs a retail store with a lounge. Separately, an operator plans to open one of the city’s largest dispensaries and a consumption lounge in a converted church by 2026, even as Atlantic City has moved to cap the total number of retail cannabis shops.
For now, the first two lounges serve as an early test of whether regulated spaces can balance visitor demand, neighborhood concerns, and the resort’s hopes for a more diversified, year-round economy. Industry observers will be watching sales figures, tourism trends, and enforcement data closely over the coming seasons.