Lake Tahoe Skiing
If you like ski vacations but don’t necessarily want to be freezing cold the whole time, look no further than Lake Tahoe skiing. Lake Tahoe is famous not only for the amazingly beautiful lake, but also for its concentration of ski resorts and sunny day skiing. With 14 ski resorts in the greater Lake Tahoe area it is easy to find what you are looking for. Resorts range from big to small, advanced to beginner terrain, and fancy resort to a “mom n’ pops” place. Once you figure out which ski resort has what you are looking for you need to determine what time of year to go, and where to stay. At Tahoe Rental Management we only handle private vacation homes or condos. Check out our listings to see what houses we have available where. We suggest picking your ski resort, then picking your place to stay. As for what time of year to go, there are two basic seasons for Lake Tahoe skiing: winter and spring.
Winter skiing is mid December through March. Generally you can expect big “wet” storms that drop 1 to 4 feet of snow over 24 to 36 hrs followed by sunshine and 40 degree weather. The snow usually starts to fall in late November and the ski resorts get into full swing by the Holidays. If you Don’t mind crowds the Holidays are a really fun time of the year, there is just something about Christmas lights sparkling against the snow! January and February are the coldest months, but the nice thing about Lake Tahoe skiing is that the single digit days never last long. March is when the temps warm up and big storms tend to roll in between the sunny days. This can be really awesome because you ski powder in the morning and enjoy a sunny and relaxed afternoon of groomers, but March it is inconsistent and varies and lot year to year. If chasing powder is your goal peak winter is a great time to plan your trip, but if skiing in a T Shirt seems more like your thing, spring Lake Tahoe skiing is your time.
They don’t call California the sunshine state for nothing, and that characteristic does indeed extend from the beach to the mountains. Spring skiing generally starts in the end of march and extends through May, maybe longer depending on how much snow we got earlier in the year. Lake Tahoe skiing in spring still has its occasional snow storms and grey days, but for the most part you can count on 50 to 60 degrees with sunshine. The trick to spring skiing is to have the night time temps drop below freezing, then day temps get above 45 degrees, and plan on getting out there around 11pm. Nice right? Earn some extra points with the locals by skiing in the morning and whitewater rafting in the afternoon! Another perk for spring is cheaper accommodations and discounted resort ticket sales. Keep in mind that some of the smaller ski resorts don’t have the resources to stay open into May so check predicted closing times before booking.
Tahoe has 3 basic seasons that come with different weather expectations: summer, winter, and the shoulder seasons: spring and fall. In the winter you can generally expect big storms that dump lots of snow followed by blue skies. In the summer we have fairly predictably 70 to 80 degree days with sunshine and low humidity. Spring and fall is when things get a little more unpredictable. One week it will be sunny and 75, the next we get 2 inches of snow. If you have the flexibility to keep an eye on the weather and wait to book until it looks good in the 10 day forecast you can get some great deals, great