Lake Tahoe is my absolute favorite weekend OR week getaway from LA. If you only have a weekend, it’s best to do a long one, ’cause it’s a bit of a drive from Los Angeles. We’ve been a number of times now, twice on Labor Day weekend, which I normally wouldn’t suggest due to the crowds, but it’s definitely doable, especially if you know all the best places to go and how to avoid the crowds. The biggest factor is timing. You need to get to the beaches early to claim your spot before the crowds roll in. Some hidden beaches even cap the number of people allowed, so get there early!

Fun Fact: I just learned that Lake Tahoe is 2 million years old, and it’s among only 20 lakes in the world considered to be ancient!!

If you’re driving from LA through Mammoth, the drive from Mammoth to Lake Tahoe is beautiful. There’s an overlook you can stop at called the Mono Lake Overlook, that simply looks over Mono Lake, haha! It has a great view of the lake, which is interesting because it’s a saline soda lake.

The lack of an outlet causes high levels of salts to accumulate, which makes the lake water alkaline and creates these spires all over the lake called Tufa Towers. The Tufa Towers are calcium-carbonate spires and knobs formed by the interaction of the freshwater springs and the alkaline lake water. They stick out of the water and look like giant stalagmites. You can also take the South Tufa trail (off the highway) down to the lake to check out these tufas up close! 

The Layout of Lake Tahoe

If you’ve never been to Lake Tahoe, not only is it incredible, but there’s something super unique about the lake’s geography as well! Lake Tahoe is the largest Alpine lake in North America. It’s also split down the middle. Half of the lake is in California and half is in Nevada. The main area of town is called Stateline because it’s on the state line! This is where quite a few restaurants and bars are, as well as casinos (on the Nevada side).

I don’t suggest staying in Stateline. You can choose where you’d like to stay according to how close you’d like to be to what activities interest you the most. I choose to be in the more quiet, pristine areas of the lake. There are incredible places to stay on both the California and Nevada sides. We’ve always stayed on the Nevada side, about a 10-minute drive from Stateline in Zephyr Heights, right above Zephyr Cove.

Where to Stay in Tahoe on the North Shore

Our new favorite place to stay is a super simple condo in Incline Village. It’s great because it’s walkable to everything, all the restaurants and bars, and it’s only a 12 minute drive to our favorite beach! It’s also a really good deal for Tahoe!

Where to Stay in Tahoe on the California Side

Another adorable place right on the lake that I’d love to stay in at some point is the Cottage Inn.

Where to Stay in Tahoe on the South Nevada Side

Our favorite bed and breakfast in Tahoe is called Where Eagles Fly. We’ve stayed here multiple times and love it every time! It’s a huge log cabin on top of the mountain overlooking Zephyr Cove. The house is tucked away and secluded, which is awesome, and the view from the balcony is incredible!!! It’s actually a home that the owner designed and built himself. The architecture is quite impressive and the decor is quite quirky! The owners live upstairs and rent out the extra rooms on the bottom two levels. It’s an extremely spacious house, so you’ll hardly ever see anyone else who’s staying there.

There are 5 different, very unique, rooms. The views from the wrap-around balconies are insane. You can have your breakfast overlooking the lake while watching hot air balloons hover over it. It’s really beautiful and crazy cheap for Lake Tahoe, especially for such a stunning place. It depends on the room, but it’s $125-$150/night, with the most expensive room running at around $190. The pricier room is a full apartment with a king bed, full kitchen, washer and dryer, and a private entrance.

That goes for big holiday weekends as well! They don’t raise their prices like most places. Also, they have three adorable little puppies that will play with you and your dogs, if you choose to bring your doggy. Dogs are allowed, welcome, and free of charge here!!! Which is honestly impossible to come by.

It’s best to book through them directly rather than through a third party. They provide a cash discount as well! Just call either or both numbers on this card and they will take care of everything! If they don’t answer right away, call back until they do! The owner’s names are Fred and Barbara, they are sweet, funny, and accommodating characters. Be sure to tell them I sent you!

Favorite Beaches, Bays, and Coves in Lake Tahoe

Most of the prettiest places on the lake are a relatively steep hike to get to, so wear sneakers or sandals that strap on and have traction for the walk down!

FYI: This list of beaches and coves starts at Zephyr Cove on the Nevada side and leads up to Incline Beach in the order listed, so you can easily stop at each of them as you make your way up the Nevada side of the lake.

Zephyr Cove:

Zephyr Cove is right below our Bed and Breakfast, and it’s a stretch of beach that’s super easy to get to. It does get crowded because it’s easily accessible. Even so, it’s still a pretty place to swim! The further north you go towards Zephyr Cove Park, the less crowded it gets.

FYI: This beach does have a parking lot and they will charge for parking. It’s normally $10 for the day. To get around this and park for free, just park on the side of the main road near Zephyr Cove and take the trail down to the beach.

Secret Cove:

The most stunning spots on the lake are a hike down to get to, but that makes it even more wonderful, because it weeds out the crowds of people. Secret Cove is the most magical little cove, that’s actually clothing optional, so it’s very bootyful! The water here is insane!!! I would vote this cove as the prettiest part of Lake Tahoe! Secret Cove is a must! Come here to relax and swim the day away in the most pristine water and setting you could imagine. The water here is so distinct in color, you’d never think you’re in an Alpine Lake. It looks like an island off the coast of Greece or Italy!

FYI: Park on the side of the main road and hike down. Parking is free.

Chimney Beach:

Chimney Beach is my next favorite! It also is a bit of a hike down to, and it’s beautiful!!! It’s an actual beach, instead of rocks and boulders, but it’s still secluded and the water’s gorgeous. This is another perfect beach to hang out on and swim the day away.

FYI: This beach does have a parking lot and Parking is free!

Bonsai Rocks:

Bonsai Rocks is beautiful too! It consists of crystal clear, turquoise water surrounded by giant boulders to sunbathe on, swim to, climb up, and cliff jump off. It’s gorgeous, and a must-see in Lake Tahoe!  

FYI: Park on the side of the main road and hike down. Parking is free.

Sand Harbor Beach:

Sand Harbor is an easily accessible beach, which is rated by many as the number one beach in Tahoe! The only downside is that dogs aren’t allowed. It’s incredibly clear, and the colors run so perfectly from transparent, to turquoise, to dark blue. There are two sides to Sand Harbor, each equally beautiful. They share the same parking lot, so simply drive in and choose where you’d like to be. This is generally a very calm, glass-like beach, so it’s a great place to float or paddleboard or kayak.

FYI: This beach does have a parking lot and they will charge for parking. It’s normally $10 for the day.

Sand Harbor is also a great place to spend swimming away the last few hours of the sun. The sunsets are stunning to watch while sitting here on the sand. Once it’s dark and you’re ready to leave, your car will only be a few steps away, instead of an extremely steep hike up in the dark. 

Hidden Beach:

Hidden Beach is a gorgeous beach located between Sand Harbor and Incline Village. It’s a pristine beach covered in white sand, boulders, and crystal clear blue water. This is another beach I could easily spend the entire day swimming or basking in the sun on a boulder. You’ll see little trails that branch off on the way down to Hidden Beach. These trails will lead you to beautiful hidden coves that are also perfect little spots to stop and swim for a while.

FYI: Park on the side of the main road and hike down. Parking is free.

Best Hiking/Biking Trail on the Nevada Side:

Flume trail is an awesome hiking/biking trail with stunning views and overlooks throughout the entire trail!

The next list of beaches and coves are on the California side of Lake Tahoe!

Emerald Bay:

Make sure to check the traffic before heading to Emerald Bay, because this one is a touristy spot. Depending on where you are driving from on the lake, it could take a good hour or two if traffic is bad. We drove from our place in Zephyr Cove. The views on the route from Stateline to Emerald Bay are incredible! We drove past the normal crowded parking area to the Rubicon Trail. It’s much easier to park here, and the hike down is really nice!

FYI: There is a parking lot that’s normally packed and you’ll have to pay. I suggest parking on the side of the main road and hiking down. Road parking is free.

We found a few beautiful secluded little areas along the trail right on the lake to stop, swim and chill. I could easily spend a day swimming here as well. It’s hard to choose where to spend most of your time, because EVERYWHERE IN LAKE TAHOE IS SO INCREDIBLY GORGEOUS!

D.L. Bliss/Lester Beach & Calawee Cove

This place is STUNNING! D.L. Bliss is the name of the National Park. Inside the park there are campgrounds, hiking trails, beaches, and coves. We visited Lester Beach and Calawee Cove. They are right next to each other, so you can check out both! Out of the two Calawee Cove is my favorite. It looks exactly like a beach in Greece. The water is the prettiest turquoise-clear and it stays quite calm here for most of the day. The sun starts to set earlier here than on the Nevada side of the lake simply because of its positioning on the lake. So, try to get here a bit earlier to get the most out of your day.

FYI: Parking is $10 and you enter through D.L Bliss National Park. Keep driving down and the parking lot is literally right on either Lester Beach or right above Calawee Cove. The parking here is as easy and convenient as it gets!

Speedboat Beach

Speedboat Beach is up north on the upper part of the California side of the lake. It’s almost on the border of Nevada. This is a cute, yet very small beach, that’s super easy to get to. There’s not much beach space, but it’s a pretty swim stop, and there are cool boulders to layout on. Most people come here to paddleboard.

FYI: There is free street parking on the road leading to the beach. It’s first come first serve.

Restaurants/Bars:

Our favorite Mexican restaurant in Tahoe is Lupita’s Mexican Restaurant in Incline Village. It has a low-key ambiance, nothing fancy, but the food is awesome!! Our favorite sushi place so far is Koi Sushi in Incline village. They have a great all-you-can-eat sushi deal too.

Clear Kayak/SUP Rentals!

Wild Society is the ONLY company that rents clear Kayaks and Stand Up Paddle Boards on Lake Tahoe. Trust me, you’ll want a clear bottom kayak or SUP for this water! They rent them out for 1, 2, 4, and 6-hour rental periods. They even offer an after a dark lit-up night tour, which looks awesome as well! Check out their website for rate inquiries and bookings.

Keep Tahoe Blue

As always, pick up all of your trash, don’t leave anything behind on any of the beaches, coves or anywhere on or near this lake! Tahoe is insanely gorgeous and we need to keep in that way!

In Short!

Lake Tahoe is a must-do summer road trip for Californians and Nevada folk alike! It’s also an incredible winter getaway as well! Skiing Heavenly Mountain in Lake Tahoe is definitely on my to-do list! Until then, use these tips, secrets, and suggestions for your next long summer week or weekend in Lake Tahoe!

If you have any other questions about Lake Tahoe, or if there’s anything you feel I’ve left off the list, don’t forget to reach out in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you! I hope you have the absolute best Tahoe adventure!

Tahoe Travel Accessory List!

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