America's Year-round Playground

The Lake Tahoe/Reno area is known for more than just exciting casinos, excellent dining, and exceptional weather. It’s also famous for being one of the nation’s most desirable places to reside.  With a tax and business climate as agreeable as the weather itself, it’s no wonder so many individuals and companies are moving to the area.

• Lake Tahoe is ranked by Rand McNally as the nation’s #1 location for outdoor recreation, including skiing, water sports, hunting, fishing, hiking, camping, golf, and tennis.
• Reno/Tahoe is the cultural center of the Sierra with an internationally acclaimed opera company, a symphony orchestra, chamber orchestra, ballet, chorale, several repertory theatre companies, art galleries, museums and an active Young Audience program.
• The region also touts a strong educational record, with the best SAT and ACT scores in the state, and a national test ranking that is above-average.

Lake Tahoe is 180 miles northeast of San Francisco, with access by major highways and airports on both north and south shores. Reno is within 50 minutes. Virginia City, the famed Ponderosa Ranch, the Carson Valley and many historic sites are within an hours drive.

Lake Tahoe is North America’s largest alpine lake, measuring 12 miles wide, 22 miles long and 72 miles around. It is the third deepest lake in the world with an average depth of 989 feet. The lake’s capacity is 122,000,000 acre-feet which is enough to cover the state of California with more than one foot of water. The Lake is two thirds in California and one third in Nevada. Because of several decades of stringent growth and development ordinances, the lake remains 99.7 percent pure. The average surface temperature of the water varies from 41 degrees in winter to 68 degrees in summer. The lake never freezes. Lake Tahoe’s weather forecasts 80 percent chance of sunshine in any season, low humidity, 40-50 degree average winter temperatures and 70-75 degree average temperatures in the summer. Average annual snowfall is 350 inches.

Long before white settlers arrived in the Lake Tahoe Basin, and for nearly 10,000 years, the lake was home to the Washoe Indian. They considered Lake Tahoe sacred - the water of life which fed all living things. The discovery of gold and silver in the Sierra, the arrival of the white man and the growth of towns and settlements in the late 1800’s, ended the era of the Washoe. Lake Tahoe became the favorite summer vacation spot for wealthy San Franciscans in the 1900’s, beginning the reign of tourism as the foundation of the lake’s economy.

Today, mild temperatures and the crystal clear lake encourage outdoor enthusiasts to sample Lake Tahoe’s many recreational activities: golfing, hiking, swimming, boating, fishing, camping, sailing, biking and horseback riding. And in the winter, Lake Tahoe proves its reputation as one the world’s finest year-around playgrounds with American’s highest concentration of ski resorts, including Squaw Valley/USA, host of the 1960 Winter Olympics. Alpine Meadows, Heavenly, Kirkwood and Northstar are but a few of the many major ski areas to choose from. Complete community services are available around the entire lake with a full range of fine restaurants, casino-hotels and top-name entertainment, convenient shopping, excellent public schools, colleges and an active arts community.