Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, Atlantic City's first new casino hotel in more than a decade, touts such suggestive amenities as shower stalls big enough for two and doorknob signs that read "tied up" instead of "do not disturb."
But the 2,002-room, $1.1 billion property, which opened last week, is raising eyebrows for what it doesn't offer: a Gideon Bible in the drawer. Bucking a ubiquitous hotel industry tradition that dates back to 1908, the Borgata has nixed in-room Bibles in favor of stocking its lobby library with loaner editions of the Gideon Bible and 12 other religious texts, from Jehovah the First Godfather to the Bhagavad-Gita.
And as the beleaguered hotel industry struggles to lure loyal guests,, the Borgata's ecumenical move could signal a trend, says Chekitan Dev, professor at Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration. The Gideon Bible has become "an unwitting brand...