Coming from the Bay Area, it’s always a treat to have a snow weekend getaway. We have always loved visiting Yosemite in the winter (check out our guide to Yosemite in winter!) but when our friends suggested spending a couple of days exploring Truckee, California (near Lake Tahoe) in January, we couldn’t resist joining them! With young kids, most of the weekend was snow play in Truckee and our kids had a blast! It’s definitely worth it!
Disclaimer: This blog post features some affiliate links. This means I get a small commission if you make a purchase (at no extra cost to you). You can also learn more about my affiliate policy here. Thank you for the support!
Where to Stay
We were two families with 2 toddlers each, so we rented a cozy home at Truckee which had quite a bit of space to accommodate all of us. We made use of the kitchen to make breakfast, snacks and some dinners and the kids had fun watching movies and playing boardgames in the living room.
There are plenty of different types of accommodations in Truckee so find a place that works best for you and your family!
Here’s our 2 Day Winter Itinerary in Truckee
Day 1
Our goal for this weekend getaway was to get as much snow play in Truckee as possible and enjoy our time with our friends. We spent the first half of the day snow playing at Tahoe Donner, including tubing and sledding. The kids had a blast sliding down the snow hills and the runs were faster than expected which made it fun for the grownups.
After naps and a snack, we explored Truckee downtown in the late afternoon and ended the evening with dinner and drinks at Old Town Tap.
Day 2
We started the morning at West End Beach, which showcased a beautiful lake surrounded by snowcapped mountains. We heard this area was a fun place for snow play. We had fun crawling through pre-made snow tunnels, building a snowman and enjoying the views.
We stopped for lunch at Burger Me in downtown Truckee and enjoyed some burgers, fries and shakes on their patio.
We then headed to Johnson Canyon to find some more sledding hills. There was an open area for gentle sledding and also a few trails for hiking. We sled for a bit but found the snow to be too icy. So, we decided to go for a hike. While hiking, because there was an incline on the trail and no one in sight, we had way more fun sledding down the wide, curving, hiking trails. Highly recommend if the trail is empty! (obviously, use discretion)
We ended the night celebrating our friend’s daughter’s 3rd birthday with pizza and a Frozen themed strawberry shortcake. It was a short but sweet weekend in Truckee!
