We’re having our big family vacation at Lake Tahoe in July this year. Big as in about 40 people - Grandparents, parents and kids (mostly 30’s to 20’s, but also 5 kids 18-12). We’ve got a few houses. Most of us have not been there before and we’re coming from various parts of the country. About half from the West Coast and half from the East Coast. Any suggestions for what to do in the area would be great. I’ve checked out tripadvisor so I have some general ideas but am looking for more personal suggestions if anyone has been to the area before.
What I need more help with is our one day trip. My husband and I are arriving before noon on a Saturday in Sacramento but our rental house is not available until Sunday afternoon at Lake Tahoe. Our kids and some other family members will be flying into Reno Saturday night. We can join them in Reno that night, or we can spend the day and night in Sacramento or maybe we can over to Lake Tahoe and stay there. As much as we like San Francisco, I don’t think we want to drive there and then drive to the Lake. We’ve been to San Francisco twice but never to Reno or Sacramento. I pretty much dislike gambling. My husband likes it, but is not really expressing any interest in doing that this vacation. We also talked about taking a train to San Francisco to get a train ride in, just for fun. but the cost of a car rental from Sacramento is a good deal and that’s also where we want to return it. Not ruling out San Francisco, but not really sure about what else to do. Any suggestions? Oh, and it’s our anniversary!
We like historical walking tours, some museums. Not really into aquariums or art museums. We got back from Seattle recently and I LOVED Pike place market, the Sky observatory (not so much the crowded space needle), the ferry to Brainbridge Island. Stuff like that is good.
My personal opinion is Theres not much to do in Reno itself. I’ve only flown in there to go skiing in Tahoe. Maybe there’s a hike or something you can do between Sacramento and Tahoe?
How wonderful! We spend a lot of time in Tahoe…love it there! Incline Village and Truckee are two of our favorite areas (North Lake). Floating down the Truckee River is a must-do summer activity that’s fun for all ages. Have fun!
Take the I-80 towards Lake Tahoe, and stop in Auburn. The town has a bunch of museums centered around the Gold Rush era. A walk around Old Town feels like a trip back in time.
I would definitely pass on Reno and spend the day in Sacramento. Old Sacramento and the California State Railroad Museum are worth a visit. The American River Parkway is great for a stroll or bike ride. The State Capitol Bldg. is lovely if you’re into something like that. Lots of old Gold Rush towns around if that piques your interest. Enjoy!
from Sacramento, head over to Columbia and see where the gold rush kind of started, fun little “western” town.
Unless you want to pick up people in Reno, I’d say Sacramento is just as good a place for a day or two as Reno.
Maybe drive up to Nevada City and have dinner? I second auburn as a destination, too. Also Empire gold mine tour was fun. (a long time ago, but I think it is still there).
Don’t forget that Sacramento is the state capital and it is a calm pretty place to go look at, unless there is a protest going on. Capital tours might be interesting.
Tahoe is just all about the outdoors. rent bikes, hike, You can always go to South Shore and find a show or gamble a little for an outing.
Which part of the lake are you visiting? South shore? North shore?
Tahoe is less about visiting man-made attractions, and more about outdoor adventures and kicking back. Hiking is very popular in summertime, as are boating, going to the beach, waterskiing, swimming, rafting, and fishing. If you are into historical tours, I would check out Vikingsholm at Emerald Bay, as well as taking a cruise on either the Tahoe Queen or MS Dixie II (both offer short cruises and dinner cruises). You can also arrange for private tours to see Fannette Island, which is the island right in the middle of emerald bay.
Hiking trails are everywhere around the lake, but tourists usually like Eagle Falls trail, the loop around Fallen Leaf Lake, and Mt Tallac (if you are in good shape). I can recommend more if you are specifically interested in hiking.
Best beach is either Baldwin or Kiva Beach.
Other things to do include: Visiting Squaw Valley and taking the tram up, taking the Heavenly Gondola up to the observation deck (you can even hike around at the top), driving out to Hope Valley and Kirkwood, etc.
I also recommend checking out Echo Lakes at the top of Echo Summit. There is a trail that takes you to the end of the upper lake, and you can even take a water taxi back to the beginning if you so choose. The views are spectacular.
I guess I should have separated the two trips more. We will definitely do outdoor stuff at the lake, and just about everyone likes to hike. We’re going to be up in the Northwest end. I found this place, which I realized must be Squaw Valley: http://www.skiheavenly.com/the-mountain/adventurepeaksummer.aspx which looks like it has something for everyone, but it’s an hour drive South. I love zip lines and Gondolas and I know some of the more athletic people like mountain biking and rope courses, etc.
Thanks for the specific hike recommendations, @fractalmstr. We have hikers of varying abilities. Some enjoy more of a walk and some like to go for the high peaks. I personally like a semi-challenging hike with a waterfall and wild blueberries! Would there be any places that have some wonderful fresh California produce? Around my area in July there are farm stands everywhere and that’s always the most enjoyable to purchase. We tend to take turns cooking meals.
When I mentioned the city sort of things to do, I was thinking of us two jet lagged travelers finding something to do for a day and while we meander over to the lake. I love the sound of Auburn! Just looking at a map, it’s hard to figure out where would be a place to stop for a bit. We may look at a Capital tour. We’ve done them in Pennsylvania and Vermont. Any suggestions on where to spend the night?
The kids already have a car rented so we don’t have to worry about picking anyone up in Reno. Frankly, I think they will enjoy the night in a city without Mom and Dad. They don’t get to hang out together without us very often.
We live in Southern California and go to Tahoe every summer for a family reunion. Two years ago we spent a night in Sacramento on our way home. We did the Old Sacramento Underground Tour out of the Sacramento History museum which was fun. We also went to a minor league baseball game (River Cats).
We stay on the west side of Lake Tahoe. We love to go river rafting (although there was no river rafting last year due to the drought). It is a pretty easy float and very fun. We spend a lot of time on the lake (boating, paddle boarding, kayaking, canoeing, wake boarding, etc…). We like to hike (Eagle Lake, Mt. Talac, Fallen Leaf Lake, Angora Lake, etc…). We like to roller skate at Northstar (on Tuesday nights they do a retro skate night with a DJ), I heard they have a ropes course at Granlibakken which is closer to you than Heavenly.
I’m much more of a North Tahoe guy than South Tahoe so I second Incline Village and Truckee. I think taking a day to drive around the lake is worth the time. Don’t have an agenda and just stop and take short hikes at whatever interests you. Many great views. Take the hwy from Incline Village to Reno for the scenic overlook about five miles or so from Incline. The only reason to go to Reno in my book is Cabellas.
There is a neat little museum in Tahoe City where the Truckee River flows into the lake. I’m not an art guy either but I am a photographer and many of the art shops have regional photography that is nice and different from a NYC art gallery.
Also another vote to explore some of the gold rush towns. If you really want to make a side trip the first day, I’d head to Yosemite although July is possibly the worst month to visit both from the crowds and the park is the least interesting midsummer. Maybe hit Mariposa Grove and the Sequoia’s and just dip into the valley for Tunnel View.
If second Esobay’s recommendation to head up Highway 49 to Grass Valley, Nevada City, and associated gold country locations. Empire Mine State Historic Park is very cool with guided tours of the mine operation and the lovely home and grounds of the Bourn family that owned the mine. Nevada City has a big and nice old central section which is not too touristy. Grass Valley has more “attractions” such as the home of dancer, entertainer, and consort Lola Montez. If you stray off of Route 49 you can visit Malakoff Diggins State Historic Park which includes a town, museum and the moonscape like remnants of hydraulic gold mining.
Am SO glad you started this thread. In three weeks we are headed up to the same area roughly to meet D’s fiancee’s family… we will be in a more rural area at the foothills heading up toward South Lake Tahoe and we’ve never been anywhere near that area. I know that nearby Amador County is becoming big with tourism, but we have no idea what to expect. The fiancee’s family is asking us what kinds of things we want to do when we’re there, and we have no idea what to ask. We are not drinkers, so wine-tasting, or anything to do with alcohol is out. We also have no interest whatsoever in gambling. We’ve also heard that it’s gold rush country, and that there are some old mining towns to visit, but I’m definitely leaning more toward doing a day trip to Yosemite and/or Tahoe for the views and some hiking if others agree. I was also concerned about the heat and hope we get away from it, or choose activities where it won’t be an issue. Making notes so we can sound like we know what we’re talking about!
Great suggestion, @Anxiousmom1. I’ve been rafting on the American River a couple of times and it’s so much fun. Also a great way to cool off if someone is worried about the heat! I’ll give a shout out to Folsom, too…it’s a cute town to spend a little time in, especially if someone has an interest in antiques.
My D went to Davis and lives in that area. It will be hot. Downtown Davis has a great farmers market on Saturday.not sure what time it ends. It also is a cute downtown and the University has a nice arboretum.
Auburn is cute but it is tiny and won’t take long to visit. We ate at the brewery and it was good.
Amador County has wine tasting. There are a couple of cute towns to walk through. Amador City, Sutter Creek and Jackson all are gold towns with shopping and small eating places. There is a small casino in Jackson. Volcano is also a cute town.
@teriwtt My D has spent a lot of time in Amador County. Aside from walking the small towns you can take a drive up Hwy 88 through Pioneer towards Kirkwood. It gets into National Forest fairly quick and you can find lakes, streams and places to take a hike or a walk.
One of the highlights of the entire year as far as I’m concerned is the California State Fair. If there’s even a bit of a Delta breeze, it’s not too bad. We do our outdoor stuff in the morning, and hit the air-conditioned exhibit buildings once it starts to heat up. It runs July 8-24.
Since you say you like historical walking tours, Sutter’s Mill (where gold was first discovered) is a bit off Highway 50 from Placerville. There are other historic gold mining places in the area. It’s along Highway 49, which is a really pretty drive between Auburn and Placerville.
@teriwtt - feel free to ask your own specific questions. Between want you and your group are looking for and what mine are looking for, we’ll get lots of great ideas!
I love State Fairs! Not sure about my husband, but I’ll look into that! Good to know that Auburn may be a good stopping place, but not a destination point itself.
