West of Truckee, 3-mile-long Donner Lake is a busy recreational hub. The Donner Party camped nearby during the fateful winter of 1846. Donner Summit, further west, has six downhill and cross-country ski resorts.
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Donner Lake
Lake Tahoe
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
28.1 MILES
Stylized street scenes illustrate a century’s worth of automobile history at this engaging car museum. The collection is enormous and impressive, with one…
26.98 MILES
Sheer granite cliffs and a jagged shoreline hem in glacier-carved Emerald Bay, a teardrop cove that will have you digging for your camera. Its most…
23.09 MILES
Just 12 miles north of Carson City off Hwy I-580, almost halfway to Reno, you'll find this fabulous regional park with manicured gardens perfect for…
Ed Z’berg Sugar Pine Point State Park
19.64 MILES
The largest, and arguably most luxurious of the state parks at Lake Tahoe, Ed Z’Berg Sugar Pine State Park (formerly known as Sugar Pine State Park), sits…
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28.98 MILES
Three 1920s-era estates – Baldwin, Pope and Valhalla – sprawl across this 150-acre site on the southwest shore of Lake Tahoe. Free, self-guided tours wind…
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28.74 MILES
Housed inside the 1869 US Mint building, the Nevada State Museum generally hosts one visiting exhibition to complement its four excellent permanent…
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27.32 MILES
Swoon-worthy views of Emerald Bay, as the camera-wielding crowds testify.
26.91 MILES
Heiress Lora Knight's quirky mansion on the bay, Vikingsholm Castle is the focal point of Emerald Bay State Park, and a rare example of ancient…
Nearby Lake Tahoe attractions
4.19 MILES
Continuously in use until the 1960s, this 1875 redbrick building is filled with relics from the wild days of yore. George ‘Machine Gun’ Kelly was…
9.23 MILES
A fun retro exploration of the 1960 Olympics, featuring a film and much memorabilia. Located at High Camp.
9.59 MILES
Wonderful trails loop into the wild granite landscape, including a section of the 2659-mile Pacific Crest route. The area is notable for its dramatic…
10.95 MILES
This forest can be accessed from Truckee; it features some great hikes leading you around Donner Summit.
11.55 MILES
North Tahoe Regional Park, at the northern end of National Ave, has hiking, biking, snowshoeing and cross-country ski trails, a disc-golf course and nice…
12.39 MILES
A few blocks east of the bridge over the Truckee River, this well-preserved 1908 settlers’ cabin made from hand-hewn logs is one of the town’s oldest…
12.46 MILES
Commons Beach is a small, attractive park with sandy and grassy areas, picnic tables, barbecue grills, a climbing rock and playground, as well as free…
12.53 MILES
Just south of the always-jammed Hwy 89/28 traffic stoplight junction, the Truckee River flows through dam floodgates and passes beneath this bridge,…