Wellness Guide To Tahoe In The Summer
While Tahoe is a world famous ski destination, I’d argue that Tahoe summers are even better than Tahoe winters 🥰. Tahoe in the summer is a vibe. The hiking! The beach! The trees! The mountains! THE WATER! Truly, the water might be the most beautiful shade of blue I’ve ever seen.
We were in Tahoe for 5 days in August + did our best to explore the full lake! So much so that we actually stayed in 3 areas during our stay. 😂There’s not one *main area* of Tahoe — Tahoe is made up of many small towns… Incline Village, King’s Lake, South Lake Tahoe, Carnelian Bay, Truckee, + more. All of the towns had a very touristy feel on the surface—ice cream shops, tshirt stores, + unfortunately, mostly mediocre food. However, once you’re immersed in nature you will completely forget about the touristy towns — Tahoe is absolutely stunning + I totally get why so many people have cabins here. It’s the perfect place for all the outdoor adventures + for every season!
To Stay
We stayed in Truckee, Carnelian Bay, + South Lake Tahoe! My favorite town was Truckee, however it’s the only town that’s not actually on the lake… but it is on a river! Truckee is about 20 minutes from the lake, so if it’s your first time visiting Tahoe, definitely stay on the lake! I recommend getting an airbnb in North Lake Tahoe. We liked this airbnb we stayed at in Carnelian Bay. Regardless of where you stay, you’ll 100% need a car to get around everywhere. Nothing is “too far” away though, which is great!
Coffee + Cafes
#1] Coffeebar (Truckee)
#2] Drink Coffee, Do Stuff (Multiple Locations)
#3] Hermitage Organic Cafe + Juicery (South Lake Tahoe)
#4] Cornerstone Bakery (Truckee) — Best bakery!
#5] New Moon Natural Foods (Multiple Locations) — This was our favorite spot. The smoothies + sandwiches are SO good. We got our groceries here, + loved it! Highly recommend getting getting sandwiches before or after your hike!
*For Next Time — Pacific Crest Coffee Company, Dark Horse Coffee Roasters, Thania’s Juice Bar, Cuppa Tahoe, Free Bird, Free Bird Chai
Eats + Drinks
*Disclaimer — We really didn’t eat at any restaurants because they just weren’t inspiring to me. We preferred to cook all of our own meals because the groceries were so good at New Moon Natural Foods! The only place we ate out at I’m not going to add to this list because it was meh. However, I talked to a few locals + gathered a list of spots that I would check out for next time. See below!
#1] Trokay — $$$$ 10 course tasting menu (Truckee)
#2] Moody’s — Bistro + live music (Truckee)
#3] Mediterranean Cafe — Fast casual Mediterranean plates (Tahoe City)
#4] Christy Hill —$$$ Beautiful lakefront patio (Tahoe City)
#5] Wolfdale’s Cuisine Unique — $$$ (Tahoe City)
#6] Old Post Office Cafe — Looks like a super cozy for breakfast… breakfast served all day (Carnelian Bay)
#7] Whitecaps Pizza — Pizza with beautiful outdoor seating on the lake (Kings Beach)
#8] Yard Hen — Apparently their fried chicken sandwich is out of this world, *Only opened Friday, Saturday, + Sunday! (Kings Beach)
#9] Bite Restaurant — Tapas (Incline Village)
#10] Sprouts Cafe — Casual health food cafe (South Lake Tahoe)
#11] Cafe Fiore — Italian (South Lake Tahoe)
Wellness
#1] ALL THE HIKES: Hands down my favorite part of Tahoe… the hiking is truly one of a kind. Do as many hikes as possible while you’re in Tahoe. These were our favs:
- Rubicon Trail — MUST! This is one of the best hikes I’ve ever been on with the most magical views of the shimmering lake. The entire trail is 16.4 out + back — we did a modified version, starting at Emerald Bay State Park Lookout Parking Lot [get there early for parking] + ended at Calawee Cove Beach [take a dip!]. Our trip was 10 miles roundtrip + took around 5 hours. It’s relatively flat + you’ll want to take your time because the views are incredible. 😍
- Tahoe East Shore Trail — This is a 5.2 mile out + back paved path that is accessible to bikes, too [we actually saw a lot of e-bikes!]. We parked near Tunnel Creek Cafe, + stopped by for a popsicle after our hike! It was absolutely beautiful, but zero shade… so definitely would recommend it as a morning or evening adventure when the sun is not super strong. Monkey Rock is nearby if you were looking for a bit of a challenge.
- Donner Peak + Mount Judah Loop Trail — I wouldn’t necessarily seek this trail out as a *must* [unlike Rubicon], BUT if you’re planning on hanging out in Truckee + looking for a challenge, I recommend this hike! It’s a 5.2 mile loop with beautiful views of Donner Lake.
- Eagle Lake Trail — This is a relatively easy hike… only 1.9 mile out + back. We loved this short trail, but it was the most crowded trail we went on.
#2] Wild Society: Transparent kayaks! Aka you get the best view ever of the clear, turquoise water all around you… + the best photos 🤗.
#3] SUP Tahoe: Stand up paddle boards! They also have kayaks.
#4] Pine Nut Cycle Cafe + Ebike Rentals: Rent an e-bike + explore Tahoe!
#5] Go to the spa: For a more fancy experience, check out Spa Edgewood. Guests have 3 hours of spa facility access before +/or after to us hot tubs, steam room, etc. SUGARED looks like an awesome spa for specialized facials.
#6] Try a workout class: The Sanctuary Massage + Yoga Studio, Alpenflow, + Blue Granite Climbing Gym
Things To Explore
#1] Private boat charter: We didn’t end up doing this, but this looked AMAZING. It’s definitely on my list for next time we are in Tahoe in the summer!
#2] Day trip to Truckee: Will make a “day trip” guide here eventually! 😍
#3] Day trip to Reno: I didn’t realize how close Reno is to Tahoe until we met people from Reno on one of our hikes! Next time we will definitely be adding a Reno stop.
#3] Brewery Tour: There are SO many breweries in Tahoe… our fav was Alibi Ale Works [they have a few locations!]. This is a fun South Lake Tahoe Brewery Guide.
#4] Take a dip in the lake, OF COURSE! There are so many amazing beaches in Tahoe. King’s Beach is the most “popular” beach in Tahoe… LOTS of sand + spots to choose from. However, I recommend bringing your suit everywhere you go in Tahoe — you never know when + where you’ll want to jump in the water!
#5] Camp! We’ve heard of amazing campsites at Meek’s Bay, D.L. Bliss State Park, + Desolation Wilderness.
#6] Gondala Ride: Heavenly Resort offers gondala rides in the summer [+ winter!] for an amazing view of Tahoe. Tamarack Lodge is at the top of the Gondala if you want food + drinks at the top!
#7] Drive the entire lake! The drive around the lake takes a few hours + you can make a fun day trip out of it — stopping for a hike, swim, eats, + wandering the towns. Take all the photos!
Pro Tips:
- Wear lots of sunscreen + a hat — especially on hikes at high elevation. I got fried the first day on our morning hike. Also, HYDRATE! Bring electrolytes!
- Take notice of a forest fire season. This is a helpful website for more information.
- Spend as much time near the water as possible. Bring your suit everywhere you go in Tahoe — you’ll never know when + where you’ll want to jump in the water!
- North Lake Tahoe is my recommendation for where to stay (airbnb!)
- Watch the sunrise + sunset at the lake… it’s incredible.
- If there’s only one thing you did during your stay at Tahoe, make it hiking the Rubicon Trail!
Have you been to Tahoe? Did I miss any of your favorite spots? Let me know!
Elisabeth