We are planning to fly into Reno/Tahoe in July or August. We are staying for 7 days. We want to spend our time at Lake Tahoe. We like to party some of the time, take in the sights some of the time, go out and explore/hike/, etc. some of the time, and also just relax some of the time. We also enjoy a great meal!! We don't need to do watersports because we own a boat and spend all of our summer on Lake Erie. So here are my questions:

Where should we stay that we can stay for $200 or less a night, but also a nice place?
Where should we NOT stay?
What should we definitely check out?
What might just be a waste of time?
If we wanted to take one or two day trips in the car, what should we visit? We have already traveled the coast from San Fran up to Seattle, so mainly somewhere inland.

Any help is greatly appreciated!!!!!!!!!!!

From Lake Tahoe you could easily visit Bodie--a ghost town preserved by the State of California in a state of benign neglect.

A little farther on is Yosemite National Park.

I have been at Lake Tahoe many times without discovering its charms. Perhaps that's because I don't ski, I don't have a boat, I don't own a house there, and I don't gamble.

HTTY

Virginia City is an easy drive from Tahoe. It will be packed that time of year so if you decided to go, leave early in the morning, or parking could be a real issue.

Now, VC is VERY touristy, old buildings, wood sidwalks, corny gift shops, but if you want to look a bit deeper it has an incredible history. The silver taken out of there helped finance the Union Army during the Civil War and also built much of San Franciso. You see many names from old San Franciso in VC like Stanford, Sutro, and the like. At one time over 25,000 people lived and worked in VC. It can make for a fun, relaxing, and interesting day, or part of a day.

I like the east or west side of the Lake much better than the south side but the atmosphere is very different each place. The east or west side makes going into Truckee a short drive. They have some fun bars, (believe it or not, Paul McCartney showed up at one of them during the winter some years ago and played and sang some tunes) some very good restaurants, and nice shops. Again, you could spend most of a day or a few hours.

The places I mention are very close to Lake Tahoe, not more than probably 1-2 hour drive at the most depending on what side of the lake you were on and traffic.

There's also a little town called Genoa on the Carson City side, up against the mountains. It was started as a Pony Express station. Some good restaurants and also Wally's Hot Springs..I THINK it's still called Wally's..its a spa. I haven't been down there in years. It used to be kind of funky and my husband and I used to hang out there on Sundays...hit the hot tubs and the restaurant (I live in Reno) but it was remodeled and got kind of fancy AND more expensive, so we stopped going, but it's a nice place. You can just drop over Kingsbury grade if you are in South Lake and you're almost right there.

Every year we stay at the Ferrari's Crown Resort in King's Beach. Great location w/a reasonable price. The resort is right on the water next to water sport activities & above average restaurants.

Try the walk/hike to Angora Lakes near Camp Richardson Resort . Easy trail from the parking lot leads to a lodge with a gorgeous lake and a nice small beach with picnic tables or rent one of the row boats.

Have lunch at The Beacon Bar & Grill located right on the water's edge and have their famous RumRunners.

Our favorite part of the lake is the north shore, Incline Village, only 40 minutes from Reno. It is really beautiful there, and less crowded in the summer. Our favorite spot, Sand Harbor is two miles from IV. We stay at the Hyatt Resort, which has a wonderful lakeside restaurant, The Lone Eagle Grill. Across the street are a number of other restaurants. Incline is in NV, so there is a casino at the Hyatt.

http://www.gotahoenorth.com/

Thank you so much for all of your suggestions, they are great. I have been reading in a few older posts about Tahoe that alot of people say don't stay in South Lake Tahoe. When I was looking on the web at other sites, it seemed like the place that most people were saying I should stay was South Lake Tahoe. If you have an opinion one way or another let me know. THANKS AGAIN!!!!

South Tahoe is more developed and it has several hotel casinos all groupled together on the CA/NV border. As you get into the CA side, lots of motels and fast food places etc. It suites many people.

The east and west side are not as developed and are more scenic in MHO. Some of it just depends on what you like to do. If the night life and gambling doesn't hold a lot of interest for you I think you would like the east and west sides better. If you want to gamble a bit, the Hyatt at Incline has a casino and there are a couple of them at Crystal Bay, right on the CA/NV border.

With the proliferation of gambling all over the country, it perhaps doesn't have the charm it once did when NV was the only place you could do it.

I lived in Tahoe for two years. It really depends on what you are looking for. If you want night life..south shore. If you want mountain air, quiet nights gazing at stars etc..north or west shore. Incline is a great area for families as is Tahoe City. West Shore is beautiful, close to Emerald Bay but mostly homes and house rentals. We always stay in Tahoe City. Close to Rafting on the Truckee. Hiking at Squaw Valley. Fishing on the Truckee. Great View and Music at Sunnyside. Sandwhich at The Bridgetender, Day Trip to Angouora Lake, Hike to Emerald Bay...Tahoe is one of the most beautiful places on Earth.Why did I move? I have been asking myself that for years!

If you want any nightlife, party atmosphere, and more dining options, South Shore is best. However, don't stay in town. You can rent condos or houses just outside of town for the same price as a hotel or resort and get away from the tacky casinos. Lake Tahoe Accomodations has the best rentals, IMHO.

http://www.tahoeaccommodations.com/index.htm

Have any of you stayed at Walley's Hot Springs and Spa in Genoa in October? If so, what do you think? We will be there for a week. What would be the top things to see and do in the area also reccomended restaurants. Any suggestions appreciated.

As I posted above, I haven't been to Walley's in years, but some years ago they did a HUGE remodel, new restaurant etc. I stayed there before the remodel.

Genoa is a quiet little town with a couple of very good restaurants. I read about the restaurant that USED to be The Pink House, is now owned by a chef from France and it really sounded good. I can't remember what the name of the restaurant was changed to...sorry. Genoas history is, it was one of the first Poney Express stops. If it wasn't so inconveniently located for my work, Genoa is a place I would really consider living.

Carson City, Virginia City, Lake Tahoe, and Reno are all easily accessable from there. The scenery a beautiful. You could also head south to Lake Topaz...NOT so pretty IMHO, and Mono Lake.

I'm trying to think if anything "special" is going on in October. If we have a good fall, the weather should be great and the trees will be starting to turn. All the summer stuff, Hot August Nights, The Rib Cook-off, the Balloon Races and the Candy Dance (in Genoa), the camel races in Virginia City, will be over.

We were just at Walley's for the 4th for 3 days & found it to be boring & wishing we were in Tahoe. Genoa area is nice to see but a whole week.... yipes!!

If you want a quiet atmosphere, stay at Squaw Valley. The ski resort village won't be too crowded, but there will be shops and restaurants there for you. We liked the Squaw Valley Lodge, for a nice condo/hotel. It has an outdoor pool, and covered parking. Different size condos are available there. They are privately owned, so each is decorated differently. Ask about that, if it's really important to you.

Two years ago, we rented it through Sue, at Squaw Valley Central Reservations, 800 545 4350/530 583 5585. Or the direct number to the Lodge is 530 583 5500.

We liked its location. It is at the base of Squaw Valley ski area, and our condo was directly at the base of the mountain. You can walk into the village. You can also take the gondola ride up to the top of Squaw. (One comment is NOT to purchase the gondola/dinner package. The restaurant at the top wasn't very impressive-looking for the price. Just go up there, walk around, see the sights, grab a drink, and head down again when you're ready.)

Have fun. Tahoe is beautiful. I wish I could remember the name of the very nice waterside restaurant where they serve a fresh abalone sandwich during the summer. It was wonderful.

Harrah's on the south shore is very nice - great rooms, good location (right near Heavenly Village)and good restaurants.

A week at Walley's Hot Springs in Genoa would be about 4 days too long, I think. Not much to do there.

Are the wineries in El Dorado County worth a visit from Lake Tahoe?