We have to use airline vouchers from America West by mid October. We have been trying to exchange our timeshare to Las Vegas with no success so now we're considering Lake Tahoe vs. Reno. We will be there for a week in July, Aug ., or Sept to mid Oct. Which has more to do besides gambling? Which has better shows? Any advice from Fodorites will be much appreciated.

Reno is no Las Vegas, make no mistake about it. In addition to the casinos, there are a hand full of shows (pretty second rate, in my opinion) and a nice car museum. That's about it.

Tahoe has only a handful of casinos, but some better shows, generally. And you have a lot of options for other activities on that lake -- one of the prettiest spots in the US in my opinion. There is also the very fun outdoor on the lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival (July and August) -- take your picnic and wine, sit on low beach chairs in the sand as the sun sets over the lake and then the show starts.
There are some nice places to visit on the lake (Thunderbird Lodge is fascinating), boat trips to do on the lake, hiking, and general outdoor activities. Take the gondola up to Heavenly for spectacular views.

For a taste of something different drive over to Virginia City, a tacky but fun restored silver-mining town.

For me, it would be no contest -- Lake Tahoe.

Agree with Patrick 100%! I thought Reno to be on the tacky side whereas Lake Tahoe beautiful and upscale.

There is no Reno vs Tahoe as it would be an unfair fight

Tahoe has so much to offer unless it's vagas style casinos. Tahoe is truly a mountain gem and fortunately the casinos have been limited to preserve the beauty of the lake.

July and Sept are my personal favorites. Lots less thunderstorms in Sept than July but still really warm.

Many nice and easy hikes area available. Echo Patrick's Thunderbird Lodge reco and the Gondola, take a lunch and hike around. Here's some of what we did last summer:

On the south you should see the Tallac Historic Site in the south here's a link for more info: http://www.visit-eldorado.com/tallac.html

The Erhman Mansion at Sugar Pine Point has been redone and is open again for tours. It's great, here's a link: http://cal-parks.ca.gov/pages/712/files/080703.pdf

Meeks Bay Resort has a great sandy beach. Bliss is a nice beach if you can get in. It fills very early in the morning unless you are camping there so an early entry is a must.

Cascade lake and falls a very pretty and an easy hike provides breathtaking views. Start at the trailhead at the end of the Bayview Camprground. The entrance is right across the street from Emerald Bay's Inspiration Point.

The Hyatt in Incline has a portable bar at the end of their pier. Great view of the lake from there.

I've also read another Fodor's thread about the north vs. south shores. If we choose the south because of the other activities are we going to be really far from casinos?

South shore is where the big casinos are. There is a strip of casinos just on the Nevada side on the south shore.

North shore is a lot more quite although there are a few casinos on the Nevada side of the north shore, they just are not the glitzy, loud, shiny casinos.

Just in case the timeshare trade option in reno is the Thunderbird Resort, don't go there! We traded into it once for a conference, which made it worth it only because it was "free" and we had alot of people, but it is not quality lodging and there is nothing resort like about it. It also is in Sparks, not Reno. I would very much recommend Tahoe over Reno...It is entirely different. Lake, big pines, etc. The north shore is less developed, and more scenic. Also only a 45 min. drive from there to Reno, if you want to go downtown to the casinos. South shore has lots more people and the bigger casinos.

Thanks for all of the info. thus far. Now here's another question (which shows how little we know about the area.)
Is the town of Stateline considered part of the South shore area which has been recommended by several of you? There seems to be more choices for us there but we're not sure if it's a good area.

Stateline is in California. You cross into Nevada and then it's South Lake Tahoe. There's no gambling on the Stateline side.

My FIL has a timeshare in Stateline and we just walk the couple of blocks to the gambling in Nevada. Just beware that not all the lodging is that close but there are several within walking distance of the casinos.

Utahtea

To clarify utahea's response even more fully, since you have made it clear you don't have an understanding -- yes Stateline is part of the South Shore area. Stateline and South Lake Tahoe are side by side at the south end of the lake. On the North Shore, the state boundry divides Incline (Nevada) from the various communities all running together on the California side. The state line runs north and south right through the lake and continuing on the land at both ends. Roughly two-thirds of the lake itself is in California, and the eastern one-third is in Nevada.

The western shore, particularly the northwestern corner is very populated and busy. The eastern shore is surprisingly less so, but quite a scenic drive.

I prefer the north and northwestern shore to the south shore, but if you are looking for bigger, glitzier, and more casinos and entertainment then the South Shore area will be better for you.

Utahtea, sorry, you got it backwards - South Lake Tahoe is California side, Stateline is Nevada. The "border" is such a narrow street, it's not even divided into 2 lines!

If you fly into Reno there is a shuttle to the Stateline/South Tahoe area, sorry I don't know how often it runs, and how much is the fee, it's a huge bus like Greyhound.

South Lake Tahoe is a town in California at the south end of the lake. It's probably the biggest single town on the lake.

As you go around the lake counterclockwise, there is the state border with the town of Stateline just on the other side. The town is basically a bunch of casinos and restaurants.

Continueing around the lake on the Nevada side, it is pretty sparsly populated. Zephyr Cove is on that side and the resort there is probably my favorite on the lake.

Next is Incline Village which is still on the Nevada side and has casinos.

Continuing around, is the state border and several small towns along the north and west side of the lake - Kings Beach, Tahoe City, etc. The west shore is the quietest area, furthest from the casinos.

Between the west shore and south shore, it Emerald Bay which is incredible.

OOPS quot;>

Well, they are so close I forget which is which!

Utahtea

We stayed at the Embassy Resort in S Lake Tahoe a few years ago. Very pleased. You mentioned timeshare and this is just that, so I thought I'd share.

It's right on the lake and you could walk to the casinos across the border if you really like walking. Emerald Bay is a short drive.

We stayed a week and since this was our 2nd time there, we did a day trip to Yosemite. (Yosemite isn't really near any other travel destination, so we decided to rent a car and make the 3(?) hour drive.)

We also spent 3 hours in Reno (where we flew into). That was enough.

Not sure if anyone mentioned the house at the bottom of Emerald Bay that you can tour. There are also some easy hiking trails around that... and a great waterfall if I remember correctly.

I live in Reno. Go to Lake Tahoe!

There is wonderful hiking that time of year in Lake Tahoe area too, has anyone mentioned that?
And you can alwasy go see the ranch where Bonanza was filmed.

And there is unusual shopping at LAke Tahoe, hand made pottery stores, nice unique shops and items.
There is a place you can go and rent time in an outdoor private hot tub. We did this on a clear night, under a zillion stars, and had some good wine and cheese w/us. There is a fence aroudn each hot tub so it was just us. Stars were amazing, shooting stars all over the sky.

exactly how far is the drive from Reno airport to the south end of Tahoe?

fjs: The Tahoe Casino bus takes an hour and a half from the airport to South Lake Tahoe - driving your own car would be about the same.