With the big ski resorts opening for Thanksgiving. This is the year for a Lake Tahoe winter holiday. Spend your holiday season under birdbird skies and glistening fir trees. There are a dozen mountain resorts ringing the lake that never freeze. With lots of sun, outdoor activities reign, so travelers will find sledding, snowshoeing, XC skiing and more. Here are the Top Things to do at Lake Tahoe in December.
Top Things to Do at Lake Tahoe in December
Head to a Ski Resort
Have a Holiday Dinner
Go Sledding or Snow Tubing
See the Holiday Decorations
Go Snowshoeing
Best Place for a Sled Ride in Lake Tahoe
Why Visit Lake Tahoe in December
If the snow is falling, Lake Tahoe is a winter wonderland out of a holiday movie. From the crystal blue lake to the evergreen trees to the mountain peaks, this area is stunning, covered in snow.
As a top winter destination in the U.S., one of the top things to do at Lake Tahoe in December is to visit a ski resort. Visitors will find more than a dozen ski resorts within an hour’s drive. For first-time visitors, both skiing and snowboarding are popular.
Top Things to do at Tahoe City
Top Things to Do at Palisades Tahoe
Formerly Squaw Valley, Palisades Tahoe is located at 1960 Squaw Valley Rd. in between Tahoe City and Truckee. It is one of the premier mountain resorts in Lake Tahoe.
Thanksgiving at Palisades Tahoe
For the 2025-2026 Ski Season, Palisades Tahoe opens on November 26, 2025.
Thanksgiving Buffet
In a lavish buffet, enjoy locally sourced holiday favorites. Two seatings are available at 2:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, November 27. 2024. Adults are $95, kids (5 – 12) are $29, with kids 4 and younger free. Reservations required.
Welcome to Winter
In a come-and-go event, visitors will enjoy live music and the lighting of The Tram Plaza tree. Located at the Village at Palisades Tahoe from 12:30 to 5 p.m. Free.
TahoeLive
TahoeLive will be on Friday, December 12, Saturday, December 13 and Sunday, December 14, in a ticketed event for 18+. Advance tickets required.
KT Bass Bar Music Series
Free live music on the KT Bass Bar from 1 to 5 p.m. on Friday, December 12, Saturday, December 13 and Sunday, December 14.
Great Basin Carollers
Back for 2025, this group sings the sounds of the season from 4 to 7 p.m. on December 20 to 24, 2025. Located in The Village at Palisades Tahoe and free to enjoy.
Disco Tubing at Palisades Tahoe
Tubing is fun, and Disco Tubing is fab! Add LED lights, lasers and a live DJ, and the SnoAdventures area comes alive after 5 p.m. Timed hourly admissions at 5 p.m., 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. with 55 minutes to tube for $83. Advance online reservations required. Tubing opens on December 20, 2025.
Must be 40 inches tall to participate. One person per tube with adult and kid-sized tubes available.
Santa in The Village
The big guy will be in the big chair in the Village for the last-minute requests. Photos are available.
Santa will be on hand from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Sunday, December 21 to Wednesday, December 24. Free
Christmas Eve Dinner Buffet
In a lavish buffet, enjoy locally sourced holiday favorites. One seating is available at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, December 24. Adults are $99, kids (5 – 12) $34 with kids 4 and younger free.
Winter Guide to Lake Tahoe
Holiday Events at Northstar California Mountain Resort
Northstar California’s alpine-inspired village provides a charming backdrop for celebrating the holiday season. Located at 5001 Northstar Drive, in between Tahoe City and Truckee. Northstar opens for the season on Friday, November 21, 2025.
Ice Skating
Bring your own skates and skate for free daily from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Skate rental is $20. Located in the Village.
NorthStar Winter Music Series
The Village is your destination for apres on Saturday with live music, fire pits around the ice rink. Every Saturday from mid-November until mid-April.
On Fridays and Sundays, the Village ice rink hums with music from a local DJ from mid-November till mid-April. Free and open to all.
Winter Wonders
On Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from mid-December through New Year’s Eve, head to the Village for live music, Santa sitings and ice skating. Free and open to all.
S’mores Fun
Visitors should head to the Village Overlook for s’mores at one of the fireplaces. Maybe grab a cocktail at the nearby bar (additional cost), then watch the sun set. Free and open to all.
New Year’s Eve Celebration
All day long, there will be activities at Northstar Village, like face painting and a parade from 12:30 to 1 p.m.
Top Things to do in Tahoe City
Holiday Events at Mt Rose Ski Tahoe
A local favorite for the large range of terrain, Mt Rose Ski Tahoe offers a signature event for the holiday season. It opens for the season on Saturday, November 8, 2025.
Ring in the season with some Santa Cheer. Come dressed in a full Santa suit to ski or snowboard in unison down the mountain. Kick off the holiday season on Saturday, December 13 and Sunday, December 14, with special lift tickets.
New for 2025, Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe is added snow tubes. Wild Slide Tahoe is a 20-lane tube park with 750-foot-long lanes, served by dual conveyor belts. There’s even a new lodge for this area, plus a separate parking lot.
Celebrate an early New Year’s Eve at Mt. Rose. See the Snow Cat Parade at 4:45 p.m., then there’s a torchlight parade at 5 p.m., finishing up with fireworks at 5:45 p.m.
Mt Rose Ski Tahoe is located at 22222 Mt Rose Highway between Reno and Incline Village.
Mt Rose Ski Tahoe Family Review
Diamond Peak Ski Resort
Another favorite among local families is Diamond Peak Ski Resort, with interchangeable lift tickets for parents and kids under 6 who ski free. Diamond Peak opens for the season on Thursday, December 4, 2025.
To celebrate the season, Santa and Penguin Pete will visit on December 24 and 25 from 10 a.m. to noon. Take a picture with Santa and then see his moves on the slopes.
Diamond Peak Ski Resort is located at 1210 Ski Way in Incline Village on the north shore.
Granlibakken Tahoe
Granlibakken Tahoe is an intimate resort on the western shore and minutes from Tahoe City. Offering a secluded property rich in Tahoe history and it hosted the 1932 Olympic ski jump trails. It opens for the season on Thursday, November 27, 2025.
Wednesday, December 24, is the annual Torchlight Parade at 5 p.m., free and open to all.
Thursday, December 25 is the Christmas Buffet.
Located at 725 Granlibakken Rd. in Tahoe City.
Tahoe Film Fest
Film fans will want to check out the line-up of independent films at the Tahoe Film Fest. From December 4 to 7, 2025, more than a dozen films will be shown at several theaters in Tahoe.
Skiing and Sledding at Granlibakken Tahoe
Sleigh Rides at Sand Harbor State Park
A holiday tradition since the 1960s, take a one-hour horse-drawn sleigh ride through the postcard-perfect scenery at Sand Harbor State Park on the north shore with Borges Sleigh Rides.
Available daily from November until March. Reservations are recommended. Adults starts at $60 kids 2 to 10 are $30, with higher prices for holidays and weekends. Located at 2005 Nevada Highway 28, outside of Incline Village. State park admission required.
Tahoe City
Located along the western shore of Lake Tahoe, it’s a hub of activity.
Tahoe City Winter Sports Park
Take the kids ice skating at Tahoe City Winter Sports Park. Also find a small sled hill, great for toddlers, along with groomed snowshoeing and cross-country ski trails (dependent on snow).
It’s open every day in December and advance reservations are required. Located at 251 N. Lake Blvd.
Free Sledding at Lake Tahoe
Capture the nostalgic charm of finding a perfect sled hill in the largest national forest outside of Alaska. Find hills for everyone from bunny-suited toddlers to daredevil teens. Best of all, it’s free.
Find off-highway parking and a year-round restroom. Located in Tahoe Meadows, a year-round outdoor destination about seven miles from Mt. Rose Ski Resort. It’s just past the Mt. Rose Summit on the Mt. Rose Highway (Hwy 431) on the way to Incline Village.
With off-highway parking and a steep hill, this area attracts a crowd quick during school holidays and weekends. Find parking in front of the sledding hill and along the short access road off the highway, but no restrooms. Located just past Spooner Summit on U.S. Highway 50 at the turnoff for Nevada Highway 28.
Best Free Sledding in North Lake Tahoe
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