Casino Pier is an amusement park and boardwalk fixture in Seaside Heights, New Jersey, that has drawn Jersey Shore crowds since 1932. Built by industrialist Linus R. Gilbert, the pier once stretched roughly 300 feet into the Atlantic Ocean and, together with its attractions along the boardwalk, spanned about six blocks of the town.
The park became a national symbol of resilience after Hurricane Sandy tore through the Jersey Shore on October 29, 2012, dropping the Star Jet roller coaster into the surf in images that circled the world. Rather than closing for good, the Storino family, longtime owners of Casino Pier, rebuilt in stages, culminating in a 2017 expansion anchored by the Hydrus roller coaster and a new Ferris wheel.
Stats at a Glance
- Location: Seaside Heights, New Jersey
- Operator: Storino family
- Opened: 1932
- Size: Pier extending about 300 ft into the ocean, spanning roughly six blocks
- Attractions: 31 total, including 4 roller coasters and 10 water rides
- Signature Attraction: Hydrus (Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter, opened 2017)
The Ride Experience
Casino Pier’s current lineup centers on Hydrus, a Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter that opened May 26, 2017, as the sixth of its kind in the U.S. and the first Euro-Fighter 320 model built anywhere. Riders climb a 72-foot lift before a near-vertical 97-degree drop, three inversions, and a top speed of 45 mph packed into a compact 1,050-foot layout. Other coasters and classic boardwalk rides, along with the Ferris wheel added in the same 2017 expansion, round out the pier’s attractions, while Breakwater Beach water park sits across the street.
A quieter piece of the park’s history returned in 2024, when a Dentzel/Looff carousel built in 1910 reopened to the public inside its own dedicated museum building on the boardwalk, giving visitors a direct link to Casino Pier’s earliest days alongside its modern thrill rides.
Hurricane Sandy and Rebuilding
When Hurricane Sandy’s storm surge struck on October 29, 2012, part of Casino Pier collapsed into the Atlantic, leaving the Star Jet roller coaster sitting nearly intact in the ocean waves. Photographs of the submerged coaster became one of the storm’s most enduring images, illustrating the scale of destruction along the Jersey Shore. The wreckage remained in the surf for almost seven months before crews demolished it on May 23, 2013, though a section of track was preserved as a memorial.
The park reopened with a limited set of rides later in 2013 and continued rebuilding over the following years, replacing the roughly 38 pre-storm rides with a smaller but modernized lineup. The 2017 debut of Hydrus and a new Ferris wheel marked the most visible milestone in that recovery, and Casino Pier now operates year-round under the tagline “Rebuilding Family Memories.”
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Casino Pier FAQs
What happened to Casino Pier during Hurricane Sandy?
On October 29, 2012, storm surge from Hurricane Sandy collapsed part of the pier and dropped the Star Jet roller coaster into the Atlantic Ocean, where it remained visible in the surf for nearly seven months before demolition in May 2013.
What replaced the Star Jet roller coaster?
Hydrus, a Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter coaster, opened on the rebuilt pier on May 26, 2017, alongside a new Ferris wheel as part of that year’s expansion.
How old is Casino Pier?
Casino Pier opened in 1932 under original owner Linus R. Gilbert and has been owned by the Storino family in more recent decades.
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Photo: Master Sgt. Mark C. Olsen/U.S. Air Force/New Jersey National Guard / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.