# What should I do/see in South Lake Tahoe? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 14, 2019, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945 "2019-05-14T14:57:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/1 "2019-05-14T14:57:05Z")
I think I’m going to go to South Lake Tahoe for a day or so. What should I do? Where should I stay? Safe and CLEAN are very important. Thanks for your advice! ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/2 "2019-05-14T15:21:15Z")
It’s been many years since I was there, but there are several large hotels with Vegas-style entertainment on the Nevada side (you can tell where the border runs next to the town of Stateline by looking at the heights of the hotels). I used to have a relative who worked in one of those casinos, who got me a room cheap. But they WANT to encourage people to stay so that they’ll gamble.My experience was that the hotels were all pretty clean. But, for all I know, times have changed. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/3 "2019-05-14T15:29:05Z")
AirBnb CAN be a good idea. Note that they banned them the future, but it won’t go into effect until later. If you have primary car access, I recommend driving around even if your base camp is in SLT/Stateline area. Driving will SUCK if there are any special events like 4th of July. Some of the stuff near Heavenly is a bit yuppie, and parking can be bad, but the garage works. Specific interests? ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/4 "2019-05-14T15:46:58Z")
Go for a day hike (lots of good trails, especially on the California side around Emerald Bay) and gaze at the glorious spectacular beauty of the lake. (You’ll be at 7000 ft, though, so your lungs will be objecting to the shortage of oxygen.) ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/5 "2019-05-14T17:46:11Z")
Nevada Beach is nice, as is Zephyr Cove. Parking can be a challenge on weekends. Road construction currently on the East shore around Sand Harbor, so I would avoid that like the Clap. If you have a Jeep, great off-roading at the top of Kingsbury Grade all the way north to US 50, but will likely be impassable till August. Lots of snow up there. Pretty much everywhere is ‘clean and safe’, so don’t sweat it. Lakeside Inn or Tahoe Beach and Ski seem like fun places. Take a dinner cruise on the Dixie. Or any chance you get to get on the water. Mott Canyon Bar and Grill has the best potato salad I’ve ever had. Red potatoes with bacon and blue cheese crumbles. Yum! They got great beer there, too. It would help to know when you’re coming. You can still ski on the weekend till the end of May, and hiking/boating are kinda rough just now. They are forecasting snow this Thursday as low as 7k ft. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/6 "2019-05-14T17:51:11Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > My experience was that the hotels were all pretty clean. But, for all I know, times have changed. If anything, it’s gotten better in recent times. Lots of ‘redevelopment’ and lots of little trashy motels are now gone. The Montbleu and Harrah’s/Harvey’s are pretty nice and try to fake being ‘upscale’. 😉 Site to book a boat ride: [Lake Tahoe Cruise Schedule | Zephyr Cove Resort & Lake Tahoe Cruises NV](https://www.zephyrcove.com/cruises/cruise-schedule/) ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/7 "2019-05-14T20:11:52Z")
I was actually thinking about driving up tomorrow, but it looks like some weather is coming in. Maybe if I go for a casino type thing this trip? ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/8 "2019-05-14T20:17:26Z")
They do have a nude beach. Just sayin’… ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/9 "2019-05-14T21:08:45Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > If anything, it’s gotten better in recent times. Lots of ‘redevelopment’ and lots of little trashy motels are now gone. The Montbleu and Harrah’s/Harvey’s are pretty nice and try to fake being ‘upscale’. 😉 > > Site to book a boat ride: [Lake Tahoe Cruise Schedule | Zephyr Cove Resort & Lake Tahoe Cruises NV](https://www.zephyrcove.com/cruises/cruise-schedule/) 35 years ago when I first started going to Tahoe, Harrah’s really was upscale - the only AAA 5-Diamond hotel in northern Nevada. After a long absence, and many corporate takeovers in the interim, I went back a few years ago. It’s slipped, badly. Bill Harrah must be rolling in his grave. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/10 "2019-05-14T22:20:35Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > Go for a day hike (lots of good trails, especially on the California side around Emerald Bay) and gaze at the glorious spectacular beauty of the lake. (You’ll be at 7000 ft, though, so your lungs will be objecting to the shortage of oxygen.) Bayview Trailhead has a nice view right above it, but it’s a pretty challenging climb. > [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > I was actually thinking about driving up tomorrow, but it looks like some weather is coming in. > > Maybe if I go for a casino type thing this trip? Yup, storm’s a-coming. All the casinos are fine. Lakeside is a little family oriented (dining and games, not shows) but they’re all “safe” if that’s what you’re worried about. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2019, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/11 "2019-05-14T22:40:23Z")
The Mrs. and I rather enjoyed the Taylor Creek visitors center, and the Tallac historical site, and the Valhalla Tahoe. They’re all in a row, park at the Taylor Creek center, stroll through all of them. Quiet, scenic, lovely. We even swam in Lake Tahoe. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2019, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/12 "2019-05-15T00:49:57Z")
Thanks all. These are some good options for my somewhat spontaneous trip. ---
**Author:** ![LVBoPeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/858c86/32.png) [@LVBoPeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVBoPeep)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2019, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/13 "2019-05-15T01:01:57Z")
If you end up going at all towards North Lake Tahoe (its not far really), you can’t do better for breakfast than the Old Post Office. I especially recommend the Crab Cakes Benedict. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2019, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/14 "2019-05-15T03:49:51Z")
> [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > I was actually thinking about driving up tomorrow, but it looks like some weather is coming in. > > Maybe if I go for a casino type thing this trip? Couldn’t have picked a worse time. Except for most of March. And all of February. 😃 Local news updated the snow level Thursday to Lake level now. Won’t be anything serious, but still. It was downright HOT up here last weekend. Just a little crazy. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2019, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/15 "2019-05-16T14:19:45Z")
When **DesertRoomie** and I were both working grave shifts at a casino on the North Shore, one Belmont Day we’d intended going over Mt. Rose Pass to Reno and our favorite race book when we got off work. We couldn’t because it was snowing too badly and, it being June, I’d foolishly taken the chains out of the trunk. Inside the basin it was fine, just a few flakes falling, so we went to Harrah’s in Stateline instead. After the race was over we easily made over Spooner Pass back to Carson City, our usual route. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2019, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-do-see-in-south-lake-tahoe/833945/16 "2019-05-16T14:45:00Z")
[Moderating] If this were primarily about good entertainment options in the area, then I suppose it might be a reasonable fit for Cafe Society. As is, though, it definitely looks more like IMHO. Moving.