Where to stay/what to do in Lake Tahoe? (1 Viewer)

[Senor Schmutzig]

I was just talking to my college roommate who goes out there every year. Apparently, his best friend from grade school has a house in Tahoe that we might stay at. I'll take that.

It's a no-go on the house, so I'm looking for other options.

I am trying to work an angle to get an affordable rate at either the Edgewood or the Ritz Carlton. Thoughts on either?

I haven’t been to Edgewood.

Ritz is a nice experience

This might be long, sorry. Ritz v Edgewood is such different experiences. Ritz has a Truckee address in a luxury ski village (Northwood) far north and several miles from the lake. Awesome for skiing in winter. Not much there but some overpriced dining, shopping and hiking in summer though. Edgewood is in the heart of the action at Southlake 40 miles away on the water with a legendary golf course and all the fun at Stateline.

My recommendation for north shore is still the Hyatt in Incline. Larry Ellison purchased and renovated it which comes with higher prices, but still a deal and such a serene chill location with all the fun options of Stateline yet isolated from the crowds.

We've booked a group of 30+ for a hs friends reunion in late September. The new Margaritaville resort won our business by costing 1/3 of Edgewood. I took the tour. I'd rather be on the water but it is brand new and quite nice. Short walk to everything right next to Harrah's. I recommend it if you don't want to pony up for Edgewood.

Under protest I also scouted the Dixie Belle dinner cruise. 140 bucks for a three hour sunset cruise from Zephyr Cove through Emerald Bay and back with mediocre live music. So touristy I din't wanna, but it was a good time. We booked it for the reunion. 100 sober fops board the boat and three hours later wobble off in need of an uber. The day cruise is $100, so the dinner cruise for 40 more gets you the sunset, the meal (ribeye, salmon, or chicken), live music and endless happy drunk people.

I've beat the desert heat by spending 23 days in Incline this summer. I've now done 9 more restaurants (including the cruise) and still find the food in Tahoe absurdly bad. I'll spare the reviews but they would include food poisoning for two poor gals who ordered the $50 lobster pasta special and the worst $14 breakfast burrito in history and the most uncomfortable seating possible in a higher end place. And and and... smh. If in Incline I do recommend Glasses. It doesn't have a view to attract tourists but it's a fun locals' wine bar with automated push button wine selections, and on our visit a very good jazz trio. The albarino was the big winner for us wine nerds. So good I took a couple bottles home. Thankfully they don't serve food. They even encourage you to bring your own or have a pizza delivered, which we did. But it was mostly meeting some interesting and fun locals that made it a good spot if you like that kinda thing.

Thanks for the info @Chaos34 . That's helpful. I'll drop the idea of the Ritz and see if I can get Edgewood for under $300. And Glasses sounds like something we could appreciate.

After reading through the info you provided, are you a TA?

 

[Senor Schmutzig]

Better time to visit Tahoe/Yosemite; may or september? Mostly going to be doing hiking, biking and usual touristy stuff. Would prefer to stick to the shoulder seasons unless dealing with the extra cost and crowds is truly worth it.

I'm wedging this in between a couple of business trips to help break things up so the timing isn't negotiable.

I would LOVE to get out there for some hiking in the spring or fall but since I'm going to be flying my wife out for this trip, that's not in the cards this time.

 

[Chaos34]

Better time to visit Tahoe/Yosemite; may or september? Mostly going to be doing hiking, biking and usual touristy stuff. Would prefer to stick to the shoulder seasons unless dealing with the extra cost and crowds is truly worth it.

Two very different experiences again. May if you want to see the remnants the winter wonderland in Spring air and do some skiing. September if you want to see/feel the remnants of the summer weather/paradise. Both are good times but the streets in May can be a little sloppy from either rains or the snow melt. Nice days and chilly nights either way. It's a tough call. No wrong decision. Blue and white? May. Blue and green? September. I've done Thanksgiving there many times and it's always been beautiful.

 

[Chaos34]

I was just talking to my college roommate who goes out there every year. Apparently, his best friend from grade school has a house in Tahoe that we might stay at. I'll take that.

It's a no-go on the house, so I'm looking for other options.

I am trying to work an angle to get an affordable rate at either the Edgewood or the Ritz Carlton. Thoughts on either?

I haven’t been to Edgewood.

Ritz is a nice experience

This might be long, sorry. Ritz v Edgewood is such different experiences. Ritz has a Truckee address in a luxury ski village (Northwood) far north and several miles from the lake. Awesome for skiing in winter. Not much there but some overpriced dining, shopping and hiking in summer though. Edgewood is in the heart of the action at Southlake 40 miles away on the water with a legendary golf course and all the fun at Stateline.

My recommendation for north shore is still the Hyatt in Incline. Larry Ellison purchased and renovated it which comes with higher prices, but still a deal and such a serene chill location with all the fun options of Stateline yet isolated from the crowds.

We've booked a group of 30+ for a hs friends reunion in late September. The new Margaritaville resort won our business by costing 1/3 of Edgewood. I took the tour. I'd rather be on the water but it is brand new and quite nice. Short walk to everything right next to Harrah's. I recommend it if you don't want to pony up for Edgewood.

Under protest I also scouted the Dixie Belle dinner cruise. 140 bucks for a three hour sunset cruise from Zephyr Cove through Emerald Bay and back with mediocre live music. So touristy I din't wanna, but it was a good time. We booked it for the reunion. 100 sober fops board the boat and three hours later wobble off in need of an uber. The day cruise is $100, so the dinner cruise for 40 more gets you the sunset, the meal (ribeye, salmon, or chicken), live music and endless happy drunk people.

I've beat the desert heat by spending 23 days in Incline this summer. I've now done 9 more restaurants (including the cruise) and still find the food in Tahoe absurdly bad. I'll spare the reviews but they would include food poisoning for two poor gals who ordered the $50 lobster pasta special and the worst $14 breakfast burrito in history and the most uncomfortable seating possible in a higher end place. And and and... smh. If in Incline I do recommend Glasses. It doesn't have a view to attract tourists but it's a fun locals' wine bar with automated push button wine selections, and on our visit a very good jazz trio. The albarino was the big winner for us wine nerds. So good I took a couple bottles home. Thankfully they don't serve food. They even encourage you to bring your own or have a pizza delivered, which we did. But it was mostly meeting some interesting and fun locals that made it a good spot if you like that kinda thing.

Thanks for the info @Chaos34 . That's helpful. I'll drop the idea of the Ritz and see if I can get Edgewood for under $300. And Glasses sounds like something we could appreciate.

After reading through the info you provided, are you a TA?

TA? This means teacher's assistant to me. lol.
No. I'm not a TA.

 

[Senor Schmutzig]

I was just talking to my college roommate who goes out there every year. Apparently, his best friend from grade school has a house in Tahoe that we might stay at. I'll take that.

It's a no-go on the house, so I'm looking for other options.

I am trying to work an angle to get an affordable rate at either the Edgewood or the Ritz Carlton. Thoughts on either?

I haven’t been to Edgewood.

Ritz is a nice experience

This might be long, sorry. Ritz v Edgewood is such different experiences. Ritz has a Truckee address in a luxury ski village (Northwood) far north and several miles from the lake. Awesome for skiing in winter. Not much there but some overpriced dining, shopping and hiking in summer though. Edgewood is in the heart of the action at Southlake 40 miles away on the water with a legendary golf course and all the fun at Stateline.

My recommendation for north shore is still the Hyatt in Incline. Larry Ellison purchased and renovated it which comes with higher prices, but still a deal and such a serene chill location with all the fun options of Stateline yet isolated from the crowds.

We've booked a group of 30+ for a hs friends reunion in late September. The new Margaritaville resort won our business by costing 1/3 of Edgewood. I took the tour. I'd rather be on the water but it is brand new and quite nice. Short walk to everything right next to Harrah's. I recommend it if you don't want to pony up for Edgewood.

Under protest I also scouted the Dixie Belle dinner cruise. 140 bucks for a three hour sunset cruise from Zephyr Cove through Emerald Bay and back with mediocre live music. So touristy I din't wanna, but it was a good time. We booked it for the reunion. 100 sober fops board the boat and three hours later wobble off in need of an uber. The day cruise is $100, so the dinner cruise for 40 more gets you the sunset, the meal (ribeye, salmon, or chicken), live music and endless happy drunk people.

I've beat the desert heat by spending 23 days in Incline this summer. I've now done 9 more restaurants (including the cruise) and still find the food in Tahoe absurdly bad. I'll spare the reviews but they would include food poisoning for two poor gals who ordered the $50 lobster pasta special and the worst $14 breakfast burrito in history and the most uncomfortable seating possible in a higher end place. And and and... smh. If in Incline I do recommend Glasses. It doesn't have a view to attract tourists but it's a fun locals' wine bar with automated push button wine selections, and on our visit a very good jazz trio. The albarino was the big winner for us wine nerds. So good I took a couple bottles home. Thankfully they don't serve food. They even encourage you to bring your own or have a pizza delivered, which we did. But it was mostly meeting some interesting and fun locals that made it a good spot if you like that kinda thing.

Thanks for the info @Chaos34 . That's helpful. I'll drop the idea of the Ritz and see if I can get Edgewood for under $300. And Glasses sounds like something we could appreciate.

After reading through the info you provided, are you a TA?

TA? This means teacher's assistant to me. lol.
No. I'm not a TA.

Sorry, I meant Travel Advisor/Travel Agent.

 

[Osaurus]

Another vote for the Hyatt at Incline. I’ll probably stay there next time I’m in the area

 

[Dickies]

Better time to visit Tahoe/Yosemite; may or september? Mostly going to be doing hiking, biking and usual touristy stuff. Would prefer to stick to the shoulder seasons unless dealing with the extra cost and crowds is truly worth it.

If you're doing Yosemite, go in May for sure. You may deal with some snow on the ground at higher elevations in both places, but if you're mountain biking in Tahoe the dirt will be less blown out.

 

[NutterButter]

Better time to visit Tahoe/Yosemite; may or september? Mostly going to be doing hiking, biking and usual touristy stuff. Would prefer to stick to the shoulder seasons unless dealing with the extra cost and crowds is truly worth it.

If you're doing Yosemite, go in May for sure. You may deal with some snow on the ground at higher elevations in both places, but if you're mountain biking in Tahoe the dirt will be less blown out.

Why do you prefer May instead of Sept for Yosemite? Personally I'd like the extra daylight but I'd rather not hike in the slop at either place; the #1 trip goal is to hike half dome.

 

[JAA]

Better time to visit Tahoe/Yosemite; may or september? Mostly going to be doing hiking, biking and usual touristy stuff. Would prefer to stick to the shoulder seasons unless dealing with the extra cost and crowds is truly worth it.

If you're doing Yosemite, go in May for sure. You may deal with some snow on the ground at higher elevations in both places, but if you're mountain biking in Tahoe the dirt will be less blown out.

Why do you prefer May instead of Sept for Yosemite? Personally I'd like the extra daylight but I'd rather not hike in the slop at either place; the #1 trip goal is to hike half dome.

Just finished Yosemite in May, the waterfalls were in full bloom and def worth it.

 

[Dickies]

Better time to visit Tahoe/Yosemite; may or september? Mostly going to be doing hiking, biking and usual touristy stuff. Would prefer to stick to the shoulder seasons unless dealing with the extra cost and crowds is truly worth it.

If you're doing Yosemite, go in May for sure. You may deal with some snow on the ground at higher elevations in both places, but if you're mountain biking in Tahoe the dirt will be less blown out.

Why do you prefer May instead of Sept for Yosemite? Personally I'd like the extra daylight but I'd rather not hike in the slop at either place; the #1 trip goal is to hike half dome.

If hiking Half Dome is your primary objective then September would be better as the cables usually don't go up until the end of May. This is subject to the snow levels, which could push out the opening day even further. If you are a competent climber there are many people who tie onto the cables and climb it before they install the poles and boards. This also obviously depends on snow levels.

The reason I said May is that the falls are going to be raging and it's a sight to behold. If you are uncertain about whether you will return to Yosemite, I would prioritize the waterfalls over the Half Dome hike. It's a cool hike and definitely an experience, but with the permitting system it's a bit of a crapshoot as to whether you will even get the permit to scale the cables.

 

[NutterButter]

Better time to visit Tahoe/Yosemite; may or september? Mostly going to be doing hiking, biking and usual touristy stuff. Would prefer to stick to the shoulder seasons unless dealing with the extra cost and crowds is truly worth it.

If you're doing Yosemite, go in May for sure. You may deal with some snow on the ground at higher elevations in both places, but if you're mountain biking in Tahoe the dirt will be less blown out.

Why do you prefer May instead of Sept for Yosemite? Personally I'd like the extra daylight but I'd rather not hike in the slop at either place; the #1 trip goal is to hike half dome.

If hiking Half Dome is your primary objective then September would be better as the cables usually don't go up until the end of May. This is subject to the snow levels, which could push out the opening day even further. If you are a competent climber there are many people who tie onto the cables and climb it before they install the poles and boards. This also obviously depends on snow levels.

The reason I said May is that the falls are going to be raging and it's a sight to behold. If you are uncertain about whether you will return to Yosemite, I would prioritize the waterfalls over the Half Dome hike. It's a cool hike and definitely an experience, but with the permitting system it's a bit of a crapshoot as to whether you will even get the permit to scale the cables.

Good stuff. I knew they took the cables down but was thinking they'd be up by then. Ya know it never dawned on me that when they say the cables are down, that they're still there but just not propped up on the poles. No permit needed either. A little hand over hand action to get up and down might not be so bad. At my age, I have no problem bailing on climbs I feel are too risky. I was bringing a harness regardless just in case a storm rolled in while being at the top.

 

[Dickies]

Better time to visit Tahoe/Yosemite; may or september? Mostly going to be doing hiking, biking and usual touristy stuff. Would prefer to stick to the shoulder seasons unless dealing with the extra cost and crowds is truly worth it.

If you're doing Yosemite, go in May for sure. You may deal with some snow on the ground at higher elevations in both places, but if you're mountain biking in Tahoe the dirt will be less blown out.

Why do you prefer May instead of Sept for Yosemite? Personally I'd like the extra daylight but I'd rather not hike in the slop at either place; the #1 trip goal is to hike half dome.

If hiking Half Dome is your primary objective then September would be better as the cables usually don't go up until the end of May. This is subject to the snow levels, which could push out the opening day even further. If you are a competent climber there are many people who tie onto the cables and climb it before they install the poles and boards. This also obviously depends on snow levels.

The reason I said May is that the falls are going to be raging and it's a sight to behold. If you are uncertain about whether you will return to Yosemite, I would prioritize the waterfalls over the Half Dome hike. It's a cool hike and definitely an experience, but with the permitting system it's a bit of a crapshoot as to whether you will even get the permit to scale the cables.

Good stuff. I knew they took the cables down but was thinking they'd be up by then. Ya know it never dawned on me that when they say the cables are down, that they're still there but just not propped up on the poles. No permit needed either. A little hand over hand action to get up and down might not be so bad. At my age, I have no problem bailing on climbs I feel are too risky. I was bringing a harness regardless just in case a storm rolled in while being at the top.

If memory serves, they put the cables back up around Memorial Day. Here is a pretty good resource that will give you a better idea what you're up against

 

[Senor Schmutzig]

Follow up question for those in the area.....I am going to the 49'ers v. Seahawks game on 11/17 which is the reason we are driving through Tahoe from Las Vegas.

My wife won't be going to the game (it's a work-related event) so we will probably find a place near the stadium or with easy access via VTA so I can hop on the train and get to the stadium easily. We may also go over the mountain to Santa Cruz on Monday to visit my aunt and then leave on Tuesday to fly back home which is why I would rather stay in that are versus staying in SFO proper.

Is there a decent area to stay that would be on the VTA and nearish the stadium? Any cool little neighborhoods like Burlingame in that area?

Sunnyvale? Los Altos? Mountain View?

 

[Drunken knight]

I do not know the south bay well enough to advise you down there