Nonetheless, the casino offers an excellent variety of gaming options, including a poker room, and generally has reasonable slot payouts and ‘certified hot’ slots or gaming sections, which claim higher payout ratios. Soaring Eagle is a big (210,000 square feet), somewhat smoky casino, which has a large non-smoking area located in the back, farthest from the entry doors, which in itself, seems illogical. Leaving Chelsea at 7:45 a.m., we did an on-route McDonald’s breakfast stop, which was surprisingly efficient, then landed for a four-hour stay at Soaring Eagle, where we each received $20 in gambling credits and a $5 food voucher. Doing this by tour bus (via the Chelsea Senior Center and Travel Treasures and Tours) was clearly the best deal, but traveling the route by car would offer more flexibility for dining, sightseeing, shopping and the ability to add a night or two, or three, and make it a longer vacation. It was a whirlwind, but very fun, and each casino provided some level of free play or comps for the group, which made the cost negligible, other than personal gambling cash. Entrance to Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort
