Last week, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina celebrated the completion of phase I of its $650 million casino expansion.

The Harrah's Cherokee Casino & Hotel features new hotel rooms, which will hopefully turn day-trip guests into overnight visitors, and a 3,035-seat event center. By the end of 2012, the size of the casino floor will be doubled and include more gaming machines. The tribe also added a 8,000-square-foot spa, David Bracken writes in a blog for newsobserver.com. Bracken calls the expansion one of the largest hospitality expansions under way in the country.