Why I Always Wanted To Go To Tahoe
Lake Tahoe was always a place that I wanted to visit since I watched the romantic movie City of Angels. I liked the nice, quite house and the beautiful view at the lake in the film and I thought I really would like to see it once in my life. I have to tell you how lucky am I because I have been there six times already in the past four years. There are still a lot of places to visit there and a lot of things to do which I haven't done before.
Some Information on Lake Tahoe
Lake Tahoe is located along the border between California and Nevada, west of Carson city.
Some details:
- It is a large freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the USA.
- It is the largest alpine Lake in North America.
- It is the second deepest lake in the USA.
- Lake Tahoe is the 26th largest lake by volume in the world, 150.68249 km3
Things To Do at Lake Tahoe
There are plenty of things to do at Tahoe. We prefer to go there in the Winter because of the skiing, but this area is has a lot to offer in all months of the year. There are many hiking trails, biking trails, you can go boating, sailing, kayaking, fishing or just relaxing on the beach.
In 2010 we traveled to South Lake Tahoe in the Fall and hiked to Mount Tallac. The leaves were amazingly colorful. The hike was very nice, not too short. It took about five hours to reach the peak. The view was fascinating.
Where To Stay at South Lake Tahoe
If you are going to ski as we did you can find 19 different ski resorts around the lake. Heavenly is my favorite place so far. We have stayed in different hotels, but I think the best choice was Marriott's Timber Lodge. If you don't want to spend too much money for a suite you have to go during the week because prices go up significantly during the weekend. Staying in a suite with kids is so good. You don't have to worry about being quiet after they go to bed and you will have a nice kitchen where is very easy to make a breakfast, a fast dinner or lunch.
This hotel is just a few steps from the gondola which goes up to the ski area. In the hotel there is a big outdoor heated swimming pool with five hot tubs in addition to a nice gym.
Skiing and the Ski School in Heavenly
I have skied in a lot of countries in Europe such as in Austria, France, Italy, Slovakia, Slovenia and Bulgaria. My favorite places to ski in Europe were always France and Austria. I like to ski in places where there are a lot of runs. At Tahoe I have skied in different resorts such as North Star, Squaw Valley, Sierra at Tahoe and Heavenly.
It is very interesting that the quality of snow is totally different in the Western US than in Europe. I can't tell you why but carving on the snow is a unique experience here (in a good way).
Sophie - our four year old daughter - took four days of ski lessons in Austria this winter. It was time to continue what she learned here at Tahoe this February. She enjoyed being in the ski school two full days.
We made a reservation for her two weeks prior just to be sure she will have a place and to save a couple of bucks. We had to drop her off between 8:30 and 9:00 AM at the gondola and we could pick her up even at the top of the gondola at 3:00 PM or at the bottom at 3:45 PM. I knew already she will have a lunch break at 12:00 PM but what surprised me was that until 10:30 AM she hasn't skied. I was looking for Sophie on the ski runs around 10:15 AM and after I didn't find her I was terrified. It took me a while to figure out that they had snacks in the Bear Cave instead of skiing. I was disappointed. I think 140 dollars per day is not cheap so why do they only teach the kids 2x1.5 hours a day?! I think it is not fair. In Sophie's group there were 6 kids to one instructor which is normal. Sophie enjoyed the lessons a lot. On the first day she was on the level 3 and the second they we moved her to the level 4, which meant she could use the chair lifts.
After 2:15 PM when I picked her up on the second day, I have to tell you, it was amazing to ski with her.
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