Our Honeymoon at Lake Tahoe


Hi all! I've been fortunate to do a little bit of traveling these past few months, and the posts that I describe exactly what we ate, where we shopped, what we saw, etc. have been my most popular. You guys love to travel, too! I thought I'd share our experience on South Lake Tahoe because it was the best time ever and you NEED to visit.

Sunday

There's tons to do around the Marriott resort that we're staying in, so we decided to explore a little! There's a restaurant attached to our building called Azul, and I got this delicious tostada. So. Good. There are looots of other restaurants too, not sure we'll be able to hit them all but we're sure trying!

Today's outfit: free people tank - jeans - sandals 

There are wildflowers everywhere! This is just a rose bush, lol, but I've been blown away by the amount of flowers everywhere. Anywhere there is open space they have either planted flowers or designated the area a conservation area for the foliage. It's beautiful!



There are two open beaches super close to us. The first is a private beach for a resort (with a $10 entrance fee, not bad considering the amazing view and privacy) and the other is a water-toy rental area that's usually pretty packed. Both are pretty small so we've decided to keep exploring around the lake to find a better option. These two are gorgeous, but we know there's better 😉

Monday

We picked up some groceries from a cute little store near us so for some of our meals this week we can stay in. We had a cute little breakfast this morning and we took it super easy. We haven't really had a morning in a really long time that we could do absolutely nothing, so while it was honestly kind of hard to take part of our vacation to do nothing, it was rewarding. We specifically planned for Monday morning being a "nothing" morning.

After breakfast, we headed to The Summit for a day of shopping. The Summit is about an hour from where we're staying, so the weather was much warmer (which was weird)! Since we're right on the lake, our daily temperatures are literally 20 degrees cooler than the cities surrounding us. I've linked the outfit I wore on this excursion!



Today's outfit: top (similar) - jeans - shoes - headband 

When we came back we had some time before our trivia night (lol, we're doing all the "old couple" type things at the resort), so we shopped at all the touristy shops surrounding our resort. It was super fun and there are lots of cute little motels around us, including the Stardust Lodge. Their lawn is FULL of wildflowers!



Tuesday 

Tuesday morning we grabbed breakfast at a cafe around the corner from us, called Heaven's Little Cafe. It was evident that the cafe did in fact belong to heaven. I got a latte and the french toast and it was delicious, but if I were to go back I'd try the breakfast burrito. Matthew got the breakfast burrito and it looked amazing.  

After our breakfast we went to Emerald Bay. Emerald Bay is where all the popular photos from Lake Tahoe are taken. There isn't much of a beach, the whole shore line is littered with boulders and there are tons of fallen trees in the water around here. BUT, oddly enough the things like that scattered throughout the water here are what make it so beautiful! Because of those things you can see just how clear the water is. Rumor has it you can see a dinner plate up to 75 feet below the surface of the water 😯And I believe it! We spend most of our day just laying around Emerald Bay. You have to park along the highway and trek your way down a path to get to the water. It's about a mile and we were NOT prepared for this, so I was wearing sandals and Matthew was wearing Sperry's 😂 But we made it, and it was worth it! I'd recommend preparing for this lake day by bringing your sandals in a bag along with snacks and lots of water. 

There are lots of areas to rent kayaks, paddle boards (nicknamed "SUP" here- stand up paddle boards), speed boats, jet skis, and plenty of other things! We were exhausted after not properly preparing for this day, so we decided we'll rent kayaks another day. There's a small island in Emerald Bay where a "viking" built a castle to host friends and family and it now serves tea all day for travelers. Hopefully we'll get out there via kayak later this week! 

We finished the day with a very late dinner at Base Camp Pizza and ordered the BBQ Chicken and Bacon pizza! I can't say enough good things. 

Wednesday

Wednesday was a hiking day! There are obviously a million trails to choose from around here, so to make the decision easier, we chose the most famous trail, Mount Tallac Trailhead. It did NOT disappoint! We hiked a moderate trail (very directly uphill, but easy terrain) for about 2 hours before we decided to turn back. We made it 4 miles one way and it kept going for 5 more. We were so close to the top, it was heartbreaking to turn back, but also we were SPENT. 



This is the view from about half-way through our hike. The lake closer to us is Fallen Leaf lake- much smaller but just as gorgeous as Lake Tahoe, which is the further body of water you see here.
dress is old, but Gap has a similar one - similar bag - gold strappy sandals - statement flowers

Okay, I'll be honest. After our hike we made ourselves a huge salad for lunch and took a long nap 😂 It was crucial! But after the nap, we dusted ourselves off and got going. We went to Harrah's down the street for a little lighthearted gambling (an oxymoron?). We won close to nothing, but still had the time of our lives. It was just nice to be care-free and laugh at each other as we lost (and sometimes even won). 

Thursday


All day beach day. And it was perfect. However, I reapplied sunscreen at least four times, and still walked away with a burn! I can't win, you guys 😂 There are multiple little beaches along the shore of Lake Tahoe and after some research we decided on Zypher Cove. I did not disappoint! We spent as much time as we possibly could here without burning to a crisp! A few other people brought sun shades like umbrellas and stuff and that would have been a fantastic idea. If you're on a beach at an elevation such as that, you really need some protection other than your sunscreen. Also, I found the cutest umbrella for such an occasion, here! 

This is a shot of the cute umbrella the couple next to us brought 😂 I had to be sly for this.

My beach day outfit! Dress - swim top - bottoms - shoes - earrings

After our beach day, we had a glass of wine and tried to decide between pool or casino. Considering we had spent our entire day in the sun, casino won this one! Our casino time was mostly getting drinks and and putting a few dollars in a slot machine every once in a while, lol, don't get mad please. Personally I only love the casinos because of the energy! You know what I mean?? Everyone is so excited and I feed off of that so easily. But after the casino, we got the largest ice cream we could order together and finally sat down and relaxed for the evening. 

Friday
Friday was so bittersweet! It was our last day in beautiful Lake Tahoe so we knew we needed to spend it taking in the scenery. As is tradition, we took it super early in the morning just making a good breakfast in the suite, reading a little and allowing ourselves to just enjoy our time and relax! When we were ready though, we decided to hike the Van Sickle Bi-State Park trail. It wasn't easy but it was beautiful. There's views all around, lots of lizards, and a little waterfall about 2 miles in. By the time we were done hiking it was basically time for dinner! 



We had the best BBQ ever (sorry Kansas City) at Ten Crows BBQ for dinner! Goodness, I felt like we ordered the whole darn menu! We had some serious nachos for an appetizer and if you can believe it, they came with pulled pork over the top 😅 It was so. good. To end our perfect final day in Lake Tahoe, I got cozy in my pajamas and sent Matthew to buy us chocolate from a little chocolate shop that was near us😂 And it was delicious and I have no regrets!

Lake Tahoe is such a precious place, guys! To get the best out of the area you really do need to keep active. But there are so many opportunities for this! You can rent kayaks, bikes, boats, go on hikes, gondola rides, cruises, and soooo much more. We had such an amazing time exploring the breathtaking area and honestly I'd love to return. 

Thank you for reading this!! I hope I did an adequate job of showing just how phenomenal the area is! Please reach out if you're planning on making a trip to beautiful Lake Tahoe!

  





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