Ski bums may disagree, but we think there's nothing better than the mountains in summer. The days are hot and sunny, and the nights are tent-perfect cool.
Lake Tahoe comes alive in the summer with loads of outdoor sports and special events. We've narrowed down the top 50 things to do in Tahoe during the hottest months.
1. Gaze down 50 feet into the watery depths. // Clearly Tahoe clear kayak tours (Zephyr Cove), clearlytahoe.com
2. Liked that? Check out the underwater photography from Dylan Silver. A portion of proceeds on sales benefit the League to Save Lake Tahoe.
3. Segment hike the Tahoe Rim Trail. Choose from day hikes to overnight trips from 16 to 32 miles. // tahoerimtrail.org
4. Elope with donuts and teardrop trailers with
The Hytch Pop-Up Weddings. // thehytch.com
5. Fly board over blue water with Tahoe Fly Zone. // Incline Village, tahoeflyzone.com
6. Join a pop-up dinner at Stella. // Cedar House Sport Hotel (Truckee), cedarhousesporthotel.com/stella
7. Take your sun salutations to the beach (at Mourelatos Lakeshore Resort, Tahoe Vista) or the forest (at Granlibakken Tahoe, Tahoe City).
8. Ogle sexy boats. //
Lake Tahoe Concours d'Elegance, Aug. 10-11, 2018; Obexer's Boat Company (Homewood), laketahoeconcours.com
9. Order classic surf and turf at Old Range Steakhouse(7081 N. Lake Blvd., Tahoe Vista) or Wolfdale's(640 N. Lake Blvd., Tahoe City).
10. Ride the
California Zephyr train from Emeryville to Truckee. // amtrak.com
11. Learn how to make everything from cheese to sacred smudge sticks at
Atelier. // 10128 Donner Pass Rd. (Truckee), ateliertruckee.com
12. Celebrate the 10th year of
Wanderlust Squaw Valley with mountainside meditation. // July 19-22, 2018 (North Lake Tahoe), wanderlust.com
13. Skinny dip at Heather Lake (South Lake Tahoe), Deer Lake (Sierra City), and Star Lake (Meyers).
14. Sip tropical cocktails over the water at Hyatt Regency's Pier 111 Bar (Incline Village) and the Beach Retreat & Lodge's Boathouse on the Pier (South Lake Tahoe).
15. Drink beer flights made with local water. // Tahoe Brew Tours (Lake Tahoe, Truckee), tahoebrewtours.com
16. Hike, bird watch, and conserve at Independence Lake. // nature.org
17. Experience a small town street fair, beer garden, and local food. //
Truckee Thursdays, June 14 through Aug. 28, 2018 (Truckee), truckeethursdays.com
18. Tackle a couple of Tahoe's highest peaks. //
summitpost.org
19. Picnic with a view. // Picnic Rock (Tahoe Rim Trail), blog.tahoemountainsports.com
20. Zone out with a shisha hookah. //
Xhale Bar & Lounge, 27 Hwy 50 (Stateline), hookahbarlaketahoe.com
21. Get lit at happy hour with lawn games and live music at
Ten Crows (Hotel Becket, South Lake Tahoe), Basecamp Beer Garden (Basecamp Hotel, South Lake Tahoe), and Cottonwood (Truckee).
22. Kneeboard behind a rental boat from
Tahoe Water Adventures (Tahoe City) or Tahoe Blue Boat Rentals (Incline Village).
23. Get to know Reno's artsy side at the
Artown arts and culture festival (July 1-31, 2018), the Midtown District, the Eddy, and The Generator maker space.
24. Taste wines. //
Tahoe City Food + Wine Classic, June 16, 2018 (Tahoe City), tahoecitywinewalk.com
25. Explore the buttes and lakes of
Sierra County.
26. Ride a bike. //
Tahoe-Pyramid Bikeway (Nevada), traillink.com
27. Scoop up classic ice cream flavors. // Sno-Flake Drive-in, 3059 Harrison Ave. (South Lake Tahoe), yelp.com
28. Indulge in plant-based edibles at Stony Ridge Uncommon Kitchen (Tahoe City), Simple Bliss (South Lake Tahoe), and the Crepe Hearts food truck (multiple locations).
29. Wind around the wine trails of
Placer County, Eldorado County, and Nevada City.
30. Glamp. //
Inn Town Campground, 9 Kidder Ct. (Nevada City), inntowncampground.com; and Drift Outdoors (tents can be set up anywhere with two hours of Nevada City), airbnb.com.
31. Buy out the whole place. // The Ritz-Carlton Lake Tahoe's Lake Club, ritzcarlton.com
32. Soar above the lake on a parasail (
Tahoe Sports, South Lake Tahoe), tow glider (Soar Truckee), or powered hang glider (Hang Gliding Tahoe, Carson City).
33. Get high. //
NuLeaf Lake Tahoe, 877 Tahoe Blvd. (Incline Village), nuleaftahoe.com
34. Share small plates at Bite Tahoe (Incline Village), Tahoe Mountain Tapas (South Lake Tahoe), and Jimmy's (The Landing, South Lake Tahoe).
35. Bring the pooch to dog-friendly hotels, beaches, bars and trails. //
gotahoenorth.com
36. Pretend you're a viking warrior. // Vikingsholm Castle (Emerald Bay), vikingsholm.com
37. Reach ultimate bliss with a couples massage. // The Spa at Edgewood Tahoe, 180 Lake Pkwy (Stateline), edgewoodtahoe.com
38. Get a bird's eye view. //
Ridge Rider Mountain Coaster and Epic Discovery at Heavenly Lake Tahoe, skiheavenly.com
39. Slurp oysters. //
Hard Rock Lake Tahoe, 50 Hwy 50 (Stateline), hardrockcasinolaketahoe.com
40. Check out the tiny towns of Genoa, Markleeville, and Downieville.
41. Catch a shuttle and get your mountain bike on. //
Tahoe Flume Trail, 1115 Tunnel Creek Rd., (Incline Village), flumetrailtahoe.com
42. Dance to Afro-samba, funk, and bluegrass. //
Free concerts at Commons Beach, Sundays June 17 through Sept. 2 (Tahoe City), concertsatcommonsbeach.com
43. Eat barbecue. //
Lakeside Beach House, 4081 Lakeshore Blvd. (South Lake Tahoe), facebook.com/LakesideBeachHouse
44. Ride back in time. //
V&T Railroad (Virginia City), visitvirginiacitynv.com
45. Can't choose between coffee or wine? Order both. // Revive, 3135 Harrison Ave. (South Lake Tahoe), revivecoffeewine.com
46. Shop local artisan goods. //
Bespoke, 10130 Donner Pass Rd. (Truckee), bespoketruckee.com
47. Sleep in the sky with 360-degree views. //
Calpine Lookout Tower (Sierra Valley), reserveamerica.com
48. Go global with Korean ( Tahoe Hot Pot, Stateline) Latin (Azul Latin Kitchen, Lake Tahoe), and Japanese (The Naked Fish, South Lake Tahoe) cuisine.
49. Avoid parking headaches. //
Free summer trolleys and shuttles, keeptahoeblue.org
50. Party like a VIP. //
Tahoe Club Crawl (Saturday nights, multiple venues), tahoeclubcrawl.com
*Special thanks to our partners at Lake Tahoe Resort Hotel, located within a stone's throw of everything you want to do in Tahoe. Your headquarters for fun includes a two-room suite and free breakfast with every reservation. Get your Tahoe summer goof on with rates as low as $99/night through June 30. For more information, visit tahoeresorthotel.com.
Make Lake Tahoe Resort Hotel, in South Lake Tahoe, your jumping off point for summer by the lake.
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This annual feature has been updated for 2018.
