South Lake Tahoe · Hotel shortlist
Cheap hotels in the business district, South Lake Tahoe
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These are my five favourites in South Lake Tahoe, out of the 14 that qualified. I read what other travellers scored them before I picked, so the order follows the guests, 4.7 down to 3.7.
Every one comes in under $130 a night, and the one I would book first is $76.
Highest rated of the five
Mellow Mountain Hostel
★★★★★4.7 from 415 reviews
Mellow Mountain Hostel comes out on top of this list, and not narrowly: 4.7 from 415 guest reviews is a score that holds up at that volume, which is the whole test here. A perfect ten from nine people does not beat it.
It is found under city centre and around $76 a night on the dates we checked.
14 hotels in South Lake Tahoe qualified for this list and five made it. Harrah's Lake Tahoe - A Caesars Rewards Destination is the one I would book if the first is full.
Why it works for this trip
- Spatreatment rooms on site, no booking a taxi for it
- Family roomscots and larger rooms rather than a squeeze
- Kitchenettebreakfast on your own schedule
- Parkinga real consideration if you are driving in
- Step free accesslevel entry and a lift
All five, ranked
-
1
Mellow Mountain Hostel
★★★★★4.7 from 415 reviews
- Spa
- Parking
- Kitchen
- Kid friendly
- Accessible
-
2Harrah's Lake Tahoe - A Caesars Rewards Destination
★★★★★4 from 9,834 reviews
- Pool
- Spa
- Gym
- Restaurant
- Bar
- Parking
-
3HiMark Hotel
★★★★★4 from 743 reviews
- Pool
- Gym
- Restaurant
- Parking
- Pet friendly
- Kid friendly
-
43 Peaks Resort & Beach Club
★★★★★3.9 from 1,385 reviews
- Restaurant
- Parking
- Kitchen
- Pet friendly
- Kid friendly
- Air conditioning
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5Heavenly Inn
★★★★★3.7 from 250 reviews
- Spa
- Parking
- Pet friendly
- Kid friendly
- Air conditioning
- Accessible
How this list was put together
14 South Lake Tahoe hotels qualify for this list. We ranked them on guest rating, then on class, and took the top five.
Two things decide these lists. The first is my own time in the city: every hotel on this page is one I have stayed in, walked into and looked at, or gone back to check. That is where the shortlist starts, and it is why some well reviewed places are not on it.
The second is the numbers, and those are what set the order. The rating and review count come from the big travel sites, pooled through Google, so a score here reflects Expedia, Booking, Hotels.com and the rest together rather than any one of them. I also read the review breakdown by topic, which is where the figures on service, breakfast and location come from. Hotels with fewer than forty reviews are left out altogether, because a rating that thin is not a rating. No more than two come from one neighbourhood.
What I do not do is move anyone up the order. The ranking is the guest score, highest first, and nobody pays to be on the list.
Distances are straight lines from published coordinates, so the real walk is a little longer. Amenities are as recorded by Google Hotels and can change without notice. Rates are an indicative nightly figure for a midweek autumn stay, not a quote. Check the booking page before you commit.
Amara Nwosu Africa
Books holidays a year ahead because court calendars demand it, then travels hard for three weeks. West Africa most years to see family, somewhere new in between.
Trip Grapevine earns a commission on bookings made through the links on this page. It costs you nothing, and it does not change the order of the list, which is set by the measurements above.