My husband and I will be attending a wedding at Heavenly resort on Saturday July 28. As neither of us have been to Tahoe before, we decided to extend to a 4 night stay. Below are my tentative plans. I would appreciate any input on must do Tahoe activities. Thank you!

Thursday 7/26: We arrive in Reno 10:40 am. Approximately how long will it take to drive to South Lake Tahoe? We're staying all four nights at the Black Bear Inn. I was thinking that afternoon we'd just get acclimated to the area we're staying in and also ride the Heavenly Gondola. Dinner booked at Cafe Fiore patio for 7:45.

Friday 7/27: Our only obligation this day is a welcome lunch for the wedding guests at Lakeland Village from 11am-2pm. We're not in the wedding party so should have that evening free. I'm guessing all the guys will want to hit the casino. Would we have time to visit Angora Lakes between 2ish and 8ish, or should we save until Sunday when we have a full day?

Saturday 7/28: The wedding is at 5...how best to fill the day? A drive around the lake, one of the boat tours from Zephyr cove? Whatever we do, we will need to be back at Black Bear to get ready by 3.

Sunday 7/29: A full day on our own - yay! We have dinner booked at Evan's at 7 pm.

Monday 7/30: Flight is at 12:10pm, so we'll just have breakfast at the Inn then depart.

I guess my concern is how long it takes to drive around to different parts of lake. I don't want to try to squeeze too much in and miss the wedding.

OMG all my favorite places!!!!

Love Black bear Inn, Cafer Fiore and Evans!!! It's a dream come true!!

Allow about an hour if you are making a bee-line from Reno to South Lake Tahoe. Since you'll get there around lunch you might want to head to Lake Tahoe via Mt Rose highway and end up near Incline. Have lunch lakeside at the Lone Eagle Grille at the Hyatt. If not you could eat at riva Grill at teh marina in South Lake Tahoe or pick up subs at Yellow Submarine or Subway and either take them with you on your gondola ride and picnic at teh lookout or on the grass right on Tahoe Blvd.

I'd say do the hike so that Sunday you can do activities further away from SLT.

Great idea to take the lake cruise on Saturday before the wedding.

On Sunday head to the west side and see the sights there:
You should visit the Tallac site.
http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/ltbmu/recreation/tallac/

If you like fish take a look at the Stream Profile Chamber:
http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/ltbmu/recrea...streampc.shtml

Hikes to take from South Lake Tahoe are the Moraine Trail, which is a fairly easy hike of 1 mile (one-way). It’s a relatively flat trail through the forest and along the shore of Fallen Leaf Lake. Take Highway 89 north approximately 3 miles from South Lake Tahoe to Fallen Leaf Road. Continue approximately 2/3 of a mile to Fallen Leaf Campground. Drive through the campground and park just before campsite #75 on the right. There is no fee for day use. Look for the trailhead sign near the parking area.
Continuing north on 89:
Vikingsholm at Emerald Bay – short side hike to Eagle Falls or Cascade Lake & Falls
http://www.vikingsholm.com/

Eagle Falls / Eagle Lake Trail starts at Eagle Falls Picnic Area, highway 89 across from Emerald Bay. Permits are required on this hike and a self-registration station is at the trailhead. The hike is only about 2 miles round trip to Eagle Lake (only about 1/3 mile to the falls); the terrain varies from steep to flat and crosses beautiful Eagle Falls on a steel footbridge.

Emerald Bay - Vikingsholm Trail starts at the parking area on the north side of Emerald Bay, on Highway 89. It's a wide, well-maintained trail, but fairly steep, about 2½ miles round trip. At the bottom of the trail is a picnic area, as well as world-famous Vikingsholm, a replica of a Scandinavian castle.

Cascade Lake & Falls – Turn into the Bayview Campground across from Emerald Bay Inspiration Point, drive to the end and park at the trailhead. Take the trail that veers left. Spectacular views of the 200-foot high falls and Cascade Lake can be seen from this short trail.

Further north on 89 you can find any or all of the following:
DL Bliss – nice beach but very hard to get into during the summer so if you go get really early start. Great trail that goes all the way to Emerald Bay.

Meeks Bay – great beach, during the summer there is a grill shack right on the beach. Paddle boats and tricycles available for rent. Beautiful views of the lake.

Sugar Pine Point – Beautiful grounds and daily tours of the Ehrman Mansion
http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=510

Chambers Landing – It has 2 beach sections. During the summer months, one part is roped off as private and the other part is open to the public. Not really great sand, and the shore is rocky. The best part is the dock with the historic Chambers Bar at the end. This place will be hopping on that weekend. Many people boat in and the dock is like a party at happy hour, reduced Chambers Punch prices.

Heading north you will pass Sunnyside and then arrive in Tahoe City.

If you have time you can go rafting:
. Here’s a link to one of the companies with an online coupon:
http://www.truckeeriverraft.com/taho...017/direct?c=1

In Tahoe City you can continue around the lake
When you arrive at the state line, you can take a brief detour to see the old fire lookout. Turn north on Reservoir Road, which is next to the Biltmore. Then turn right onto Lakeview Ave. Continue on this road, if it forks stay left and do not turn onto Tuscarora. It will bend back before you reach the parking area for the short walk to the lookout. The lookout provides you with really beautiful views of the area and lake.

As you continue on the north side of the lake Sand Harbor is just outside Incline and is a great Beach. In the summer, you can get tickets for a Shakespeare play. The scenery for the plays cannot be beat. http://www.laketahoeshakespeare.com/

My husband and I visited Lake Tahoe last year on our 10th Anniversary. We loved it. We stayed at the Incline Village Hyatt. Suzie recommended eating lunch there at the Lone Eagle Grill, but we had an amazing dinner there one night! It's lakeside and has beautiful grounds around it. I also wanted to recommend renting a convertible. The scenery is so beautiful, it really added alot being able to drive around with the top down. If you can get your hands on a GPS, we used ours, and didn't have to worry about watching the roads at all...just kept our eyes on the scenery. It was great to just get in our rental, type in the address to the hotel and let it be our tour guide. It also tells you your approximate time of arrival, so you won't miss the wedding! :0)

Thank you both!

Suzie, I'm pretty sure I got the restaurant recommendations from one of your posts! I've been researching since January and felt funny calling last month to make reservations so early, but they didn't seem to think anything of it. So when we're driving around on Sunday, are most of these sites well marked by signs? We'll have a map of course but just curious.

Paytcam, convertible and the GPS are excellent ideas I had not thought of!

suzie has given you great info - can't really add much. Just one comment though - you are there over a July weekend. There will be quite a bit of traffic, and congestion in places all around the Lake Fri night/Sat/Sun so just be prepared for some of those drives to take longer than you'd think.

A six hour trip is plenty of time to see Angora Lakes. Kind of tricky to get to but on the same road leading to Fallen Leaf Lake. Just a reminder that the pay parking lot for Angora fills up fast. If you get there in the afternoon, be prepared to park alongside of road.

On the way back stop at The Beacon Bar & Grill for "Rum Runners" out on the beachside deck.
http://www.sunnydayguide.com/laketahoe/index.html

Sadly, I wouldn't suggest touring Angora Lakes. That area of Tahoe just had a dreadful fire. We'll be at Tahoe at the same time as you for a wedding. Not the same as yours but I got a kick out of the coincidence. Having been to Tahoe hundreds of times, I can tell you that Suzie gave good suggestions. Here's a site for some thoughts, too: http://www.tahoesbest.com/Places/index.html

It may not be a matter of choice on visiting the Angora Lakes area as it is closed right now. Here is one web site that will keep that information updated:

http://www.aboutlaketahoe.com/hiking/angora_lakes.htm

Thank you for the update! I'm sure with all of the other great suggestions we'll keep plenty busy. I have been following the news stories about the fires, and its such a shame. I hope those of you that live there have not suffered any losses.

I think that you may want to keep in mind that the South Lake Tahoe shoreline is in the process of burning up right now...Drought conditions up there mean a major forest fire making national and even world news. I hope that you are keeping a close eye on the situation. It such a wonderful destination, but when there's a fire right there it could get kind of dicey, unfortunately.

Good luck,
Jacob Marley

The south shoreline of Lake Tahoe is most certainly NOT "burning up right now". Please stop the misinformation.

Tahoe is open for business and because of the media overhype of the fire, is suffering a major downturn in tourist traffic & dollars right now.

Have a great time.

Jacob, you world traveler, you need to get out more. The fire was never near the shore of lake tahoe it was west of the lake and on the Angora Ridge. The fire was 100% contained by 7/2/07. Lots of popel actually had a wonderful July 4th celebration without ill effects of the fire.

Though the Angora Lakes Resort may be closed it may still be possible to hike there as it is ouside the burn restricted area.

Suzie,
You are right. The fire is fully contained. It did, however, get close to the lake, or at least close enough to threaten my place and require evauation on Tuesday. Basically, while they stopped it at highway 89 (near Evans/Tallac Village), a couple of spots did break out on Tuesday on the other side of the highway. Fortunately, those wonderful fire crews jumped on those spots immediately with helicopters and fire trucks and the fire didn't continue to spread.

Anyway, the lake if fully open for business. The air is clear again and the lake looks as wonderful as always. The local economy needs all the help it can get. So I hope people won't put off visiting.

Jack I was very concerned when it got down low and DH, who had been at the fire every day but Tuesday, said he was parked at Evans and able to see where the fire had burned down to the previous day.

I'm gald you did not lose your home. You must be so relieved.

Maybe you'd like to correct JacobMarley, our Seasoned Traveler, as well. http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...4&tid=35026000

Everyone is assuming that beckytx just wants to take in scenery. I think a fun day trip to Carson City/Virginia City would be great, also. Wonderful western history here. Worth the trip, Carson City is just 1/2 hour south and Virginia City 15 miles from there. Have fun!

Thanks, Sarge! I will look into Carson City too. I'm really looking forward to this trip as I've never visited this part of the country. Suzie, how dressy are Cafe Fiore & Evans? Is it too chilly for sundresses at night?

And don't miss the old west cemetery in Virginia City! Very cool. Found this link for VC:

http://www.virginiacity-nv.com/things_to_do.htm

Have fun!!

PPS It can get cool at night. If you wear a sundress that you can add a pashmina or jacket to, it would be fine. Check the weather.com site before you go. They listed expected highs and lows for up to 10days out. But make sure you check both Lake Tahoe and Carson/Virginia City, as temps can very greatly depending on elevation. (I remember one beautiful day sunbathing in July in Reno, and the next day, it snowed!!!)

When I go to Evans and Café Fiore I do wear a summer dress with a summer sweater or a cotton jacket. Though I do slather on the sunscreen I find that after a day in the sun in Tahoe my skin still gets kind of overheated so I never do need a big sweater or anything when I’m out at night. If I will be staying outside for an extended time, like when we are camping, I do throw on a sweatshirt. Some years though it has been oddly warm at night in July (and this was before the whole global warming thing). I do think that you’d be more comfortable with your arms covered after the sun goes down though. Most men in the restaurant have on only a short sleeved shirt and some khakis during the summer. It is pretty casual, though I wouldn’t go in shorts or anything. It’s the mountains and people are on vacation so they do dress more casually than they would if Evans was located in a city setting.

Suzie, I have one more question for you! Do you know of a place in South Lake Tahoe to get an inexpensive manicure/pedicure? I'm not looking for a relaxing spa experience, just somewhere functional. Thanks so much for all of your help!