Lake Tahoe is a very special place. My wife and I eloped there during the early summer a couple years back and my kids and I have spent some amazing days skiing on the mountains around the Tahoe area. There is something very unique about spending time on the west side of the lake overlooking the mountains, but still knowing you can get to those mountains in the background within a 30-60 minute drive from just about anywhere (that is Heavenly in the background and if you look close you can see the main gondola in the middle).
Tahoe is the spot both during the winter season, but also during the summer season. I've got a few friends who have actually moved there and enjoy the year round pleasure of being on the lake during the summer and skiing during the winter. While we haven't been able to get on the lake yet we have certainly crushed the mountains over the last several ski seasons with no plans to slow down.
The flight from Austin is quite simple. Quick'ish flight to Reno, NV and then about a 60-minute drive into South Lake Tahoe where Heavenly is located. We've actually stayed several places in the area including an amazing Airbnb over on the west side of the lake (which is the California side) in an area called Homewood. Definitely one of the most amazing Airbnb's we've ever stayed in made even more special because my wife and I were eloping and making memories together. We've also stayed in South Lake several times, once at Desolation Hotel and once at The Jeffrey and would recommend both to anyone going to Tahoe depending on what you are looking for. Desolation is newer and designed to be more modern in terms of accommodations and also has a small bistro onsite with a solid menu. The Jeffrey is also nice, but more more of motel format updated and upgraded to be very comfortable and also a 10-minute walk to the gondola.
The Skiing in Heavenly
The skiing in Heavenly is just that. It should be noted that Heavenly straddles the border between both Nevada and California and we have actually skied both sides in consecutive years. Parking is easy to reserve and get to depending where on the mountain you'll be skiing, but we've found the gondola from the center of the village to be even easier. The mountain is huge with 27 lifts and 120 trails with plenty of greens, blues and blacks depending on what you are looking for. Dining on the mountain, which is very much on our radar after experiencing Michelin star dining on the mountain in Switzerland (read Andermatt is Experiencing New Beginnings!), is solid with mostly burgers and barbecue to choose from. We will definitely be going back to Heavenly in the future because we have so much more to explore on that mountain.
The Skiing in Kirkwood
The reference to "Kirkwood Deep" is their slogan, which I think is brilliant and fitting. Kirkwood is a much smaller mountain than Heavenly situated about 50 minutes from Heavenly Village. Kirkwood has become one of our favorite spots over the last few years primarily because it's a smaller mountain, but still accommodates a number of challenging blue and black runs. My boys, who are much better skiers than I, enjoy the more challenging runs and also enjoy the bowls and snowboard parks that Kirkwood offers. Aprés ski is also great at Kirkwood and has what I would call a hut that only seats about 70 people and has the friendlies bartender in the area named DJ.
We are counting the days until we can go back to Lake Tahoe and I suspect it will be sooner rather than later. I know my boys want to go back and ski and I'm quite sure my wife would be happy posting up in Tahoe for a break from the summer heat in Texas. Lake Tahoe is a special place that has built many Heavenly memories for us!
