Owned by the EBCI and managed by Harrah's Entertainment, the casino offered 24-hour video poker and gaming machines that was legal for those 18 years-of-age and older.

Occupying a major market niche as the closest gambling outlet for multiple large cities (chiefly Atlanta but also Charlotte and the Research Triangle), the casino was a proven success from day one and has greatly improved living standards on the Qualla Boundary, including a new school, a hospital, public housing, and upgrades to public safety services such as police, fire, and EMS.

[10] On August 21, 2012, Harrah's Cherokee began offering live table games thanks to an amendment of the compact between the state of North Carolina and the EBCI.

[11] The third renovation, from 2009-2013 at a cost of $650 million, added a 21-story third tower with approximately 532 rooms and five suites, while also nearly doubling the gaming space to more than 150,000 square feet (14,000 m2).

A 16,000 square foot (1,500 m2) full-service spa, open in 2012, and several new shops and restaurants were added, including Ruth's Chris Steak House, Paula Deen's Kitchen and a 600-seat buffet.

Designed by Cuningham Group Architecture Inc., with Turner Construction Company as lead general builders of the project.

[18] The fourth renovation, from 2018-2021 at a cost of $250 million, added a 19-story fourth tower with approximately 725 rooms and seven suites, a 83,000 square foot (7,700 m2) convention center with ballroom, a new two-story, open-air lobby, a new terrace pool and fitness center, and new dining options including Wicked Weed Brewpub and Guy Fieri's Cherokee Kitchen + Bar.

No-limit hold'em tournaments are run daily, including larger buy-in deep stack tourneys on the weekends.