Visitor reviews for Northstar at Tahoe Ski Resort

Northstar at Tahoe Ratings

Overall: 3.5. Based on 7 votes and 5 reviews.

Snowsure: 3.4

  • Occasionally gets enough snow for skiing
  • Is often closed due to a lack of snow
  • Occasionally suffers from a lack of snow
  • Rarely suffers from a lack of snow
  • Northstar at Tahoe is snowsure even in the poorest seasons

Variety of pistes: 3.8

  • The ski runs are featureless and unvaried
  • The ski runs are varied but not extensive enough for a week
  • Northstar at Tahoe has diverse and interesting pistes including forests and high alpine terrain

Off-piste: 3.7

  • No off-piste worth mentioning
  • Off piste is out-of-bounds
  • Some varied offpiste that stays fresh for one or two days
  • A vast array of off-piste routes that can stay untracked for several days

Scenery: 4.0

  • An ugly resort in a bland setting
  • Average mountain views and resort
  • A spectacular setting and a beautiful / historic resort town

Access: 3.7

  • At least one overnight stop
  • Requires a whole day
  • Requires more than half a day – you may have time for a few turns
  • Arrive by lunchtime and ski all afternoon
  • There is a main airport within an hour of Northstar at Tahoe

Public Transport: 3.7

  • There are no buses or taxis to Northstar at Tahoe
  • There are slow or infrequent buses / trains available
  • Getting to the resort is easy with frequent bus / train connections

Accommodation: 3.9

  • No places to stay in/near Northstar at Tahoe
  • A few places to stay in the resort
  • A wide variety of accommodation suitable to suit all budgets

Cheap Rooms: 2.3

  • No budget accommodation available
  • Just one or two hostels so book ahead
  • Several cheap hostels and pensions available

Luxury Hotels: 3.8

  • No luxury accommodation available
  • Just one or two luxury hotels so book ahead
  • Several up-market hotels in Northstar at Tahoe

Ski in/Ski out: 3.6

  • The ski area is located far from any accommodation
  • A free ski bus takes you to the ski area in a short trip
  • Ski-in ski-out accommodation is available

Childcare: 3.4

  • There are no child care facilities at Northstar at Tahoe
  • The resort has limited child-care facilities
  • the resort has excellent child-care facilities including at least one reasonably priced creche

Snowmaking: 4.3

  • Northstar at Tahoe relies entirely on natural snow
  • There are just a few snow cannons
  • There are snowmaking facilities on all pistes

Snow Grooming: 3.6

  • There are no snow groomers at Northstar at Tahoe
  • Occasionally some pistes are left ungroomed and in a poor state
  • All the runs at Northstar at Tahoe are groomed daily

Shelter: 4.3

  • There is nowhere to ski when it is windy or visibility is bad and lifts often shut
  • There are some trees for poor visibility but main lifts sometimes close
  • Northstar at Tahoe is mostly in forest where you can ski in flat-light and windy days, lifts rarely close

Nearby options: 3.6

  • If snow conditions are poor at Northstar at Tahoe, it will be poor everywhere nearby
  • There are good alternatives within an hours drive
  • Other locations on the same lift pass provide a rich variety of snowsure ski conditions

Regional rating: 4.0

  • Northstar at Tahoe usually has poor snow conditions compared to other resorts in region
  • Has average conditions for the region
  • Usually has the best snow conditions in the region

Lift Staff: 3.4

  • The staff at Northstar at Tahoe are rude or unhelpful
  • Lift staff at Northstar at Tahoe are pleasant, cheerful and eager to help

Crowds/Queues: 2.8

  • The resort is always busy and there are usually long lift queues
  • It is quiet apart from occasional weekends and school holidays
  • It is uncrowded and lift queues are very rare

Ski Schools: 3.7

  • No ski schools available
  • One or two ski schools but local language only
  • A few ski schools but book early for multi-lingual instructors
  • Plenty of ski schools and multi-lingual instructors available
  • Excellent ski schools with friendly multi-lingual ski instructors

Hire and Repairs: 3.8

  • Nothing can be sourced, not even ski-wax or ptex
  • There are some ski shops but rentals need to be booked in advance
  • Good quality ski equipment can be purchased or hired and overnight repairs are possible

Beginners: 3.7

  • Beginners can only watch others ski and snowboard
  • A few gentle slopes but beginners will get bored in less than a week
  • Vast areas of gentle terrain

Intermediates: 4.5

  • No intermediate terrain at Northstar at Tahoe
  • Intermediate skiers will get bored after a few days
  • Vast areas of cruising runs

Advanced: 3.3

  • Nothing for advanced skiers and snowboarders
  • Enough steep terrain for a few days with some good offpiste
  • Enough steep terrain and offpiste areas to entertain advanced skiers for at least a week

Snow Park: 4.5

  • Not even a kicker at Northstar at Tahoe
  • Average sized park quite well looked after
  • Huge park area and expertly crafted pipes, jumps and boardercross trails

Cross-country: 3.0

  • There is nowhere to go for cross-country skiing around Northstar at Tahoe
  • There are some cross country trails available
  • The area features many spectacular and well maintained cross-country trails

Luge/Toboggan: 2.2

  • No designated luge or toboggan runs
  • There are toboggan runs that open quite often
  • Northstar at Tahoe has long and well maintained luge / toboggan facilities suitable for all ages

Mountain Dining: 3.3

  • Nowhere to buy food by the pistes
  • Some places to eat up on the mountain but they are often busy and expensive
  • There is a variety of excellent mountain eateries right next to the slopes to suit all budgets

Eating: 4.2

  • Bring your own food, there isn't even a shop
  • There are a few places to eat in the resort but nothing special
  • A wide variety of places to eat and drink in the resort, from fast food to fancy restaurants

Apres-Ski: 3.5

  • Nothing to do, not even a bar
  • There are a few bars in the resort but nothing special
  • Clubs and bars stay open until very late and have a friendly atmosphere

Other Sports: 3.6

  • No sports facilities at all apart from ski lifts
  • Resort has just a small public swimming pool
  • Resort has all kinds of sports facilities, including a full-size swimming pool

Entertainment: 2.9

  • Besides the snow and walking there is nothing to do here
  • The non-skier will find things to do for few days but may become bored after a week
  • The resort area is a fascinating place to visit, regardless of winter sports

Winter Walks: 3.4

  • Very limited walking and no snowshoe trails
  • A couple of designated scenic walking/snowshoe trails
  • Extensive and diverse winter walking trails for all abilities

Ski Pass Value: 2.6

  • A 1 week ski pass is overpriced compared to the number of lifts available
  • The ski pass is averagely priced and covers a reasonable number of lifts
  • Ski passes are excellent value for money and cover a lot of lifts spanning a big area

Value (National): 3.0

  • Overall, Northstar at Tahoe is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the country and not worth the money
  • Overall represents average value for money
  • Overall offers the best value resort in the country

Value (Global): 2.7

  • Overall, Northstar at Tahoe is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the world
  • Overall it offers pretty average value for money compared to resorts from other countries
  • Internationally the resort offers excellent value for money

Show all 35 ratings

March 06, 2024
Rembert Pieper from Ski USA - California USA - California
Northstar has beautiful runs and great views. On the negative side, the management of access to the resort is terrible. Long delays to park a car (in remote parking lots), even ski buses (often) have to park in remote parking lots. It takes a lot of time to get in and out of the shuttles, and there are even lines for the shuttles. Even on weekdays, such delays getting skiers to the gondola occur. This leads to shorter times on the slopes. Ambience and food quality in the lodges is another negative (bad food sold at exorbitant prices).
April 29, 2023
Jean-Paul Bergès from Ski USA - California USA - California
Northstar used to be a gem but current management has destroyed the atmosphere. Vail resort is too greedy to improve parking, access to the slopes and bus transportation, which would certainly lead to a better rating. I love the skiing in the trees and the variety of runs is great, but I hesitate to come because of the painful access to the slopes, probably the worst in the west. Northstar used to be a 4 stars resort but in my view has degraded to a 2 stars resort.
January 18, 2011
Jon Driscoll from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
I have been boarding in Tahoe (Northstar at Tahoe) for the last 6 years and Northstar was a gem that I only discovered 3 years ago and it's the reason I return to the States every year! The boarder parks are top notch with just the right levels of beginner, intermediate and advanced, coupled with this there are a lot of steep tree runs through powder to explore. The main piste runs are all nice and wide for beginners and there are a varied amount of runs to choose from. Food is good on the mountain with a wide choice of meals and the main town is great for apres-ski shopping. There are no picture perfect views of the lake at Northstar but the drive from Heavenly (40 mins max) skirts the lake with some fantastic vistas to stop off at and take in the scenery. If you are going to Tahoe you must visit Northstar. You will not be disappointed!
January 05, 2008
M. McPherson from Ski USA - California USA - California
This is by far the most beautiful and well thought out resort I have ever been to. The staff are professional and courteous, the slopes have something for everyone (skier and boarder alike), and the food is fantastic. My wife had nothing but praise for the instructors who taught her to ski in one day. And my three year old son learned to ski as well (well... he is still making pizza of course :). This left me to roam the mountain unabated. Everyone had a great time. I can't wait to get back there :).
November 02, 2004
thibaut colar from Ski USA - California USA - California
This is another great tahoe resort, and if it was not for the fact taht you spend longer in the parking lot/walking to the lift than skying it would be great. If you can go during the week you will love it, but during the weekend s it is crazy, way too many people and cras here.