Aw, summer camps…where kids have a week of pure fun, shooting archery and going on ropes courses, paddling in alpine lakes and practicing mindfulness in the pines. Hiking, roasting marshmallows, and unwinding…free from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and responsibilities.
But why should kids have all the fun? Adults deserve a little time off for playfulness in the mountains, too. Fortunately, these one-of-a-kind experiences geared towards adults provide a bit of a break to detach and let loose in Tahoe.
OMNI Tahoe Yoga Festival
August 2-4 at Valhalla Tahoe
If you’re looking for a weekend full of sunset flows, live music concerts, movement sessions, cold lake plunges, hot saunas, and more, the OMNI Tahoe Yoga Festival is the place to go for your Tahoe camp experience.
Now in its fourth year, the OMNI Tahoe Yoga Festival is now down on the shores of Lake Tahoe, hosted at Valhalla.
“The biggest shift this year is that we’re changing locations and it’s three days instead of two. We’re trying to get people to stay a bit longer, and we’re excited about our new location. The only way we can top beautiful views at the top of a mountain is being down by the lake,” says OMNI Tahoe Owner Jess Broyles.
The new venue allows the festival to have a bigger vendor market (40-plus businesses, wellness brands, and handcrafted items) and two nights of live music on its main stage between the Valhalla boathouse and estate.
The OMNI Tahoe Yoga Music Festival costs $175 for a 1-day Sunday ticket and $375 for an entire weekend 3-day ticket; the festival entrance fee includes all workshops, movement sessions, the concert for either Sunday or Sunday/Monday, and more. DJ Sol Rising will be back this year as well as DJ Taz Rashid and other DJs/musicians rotating between yoga classes.
Evan Hatfield and the Tone Ranger will be headlining the nightly concerts.
“We’ll have two saunas from Lost Sauna there so you can go sit in that and then jump in the lake,” Broyles says. “There will be panel talks and discussions in the Boathouse Theatre and we’ll be using the Grand Hall for strong workshops and movement classes. And every morning we’ll open the festival with sound baths on the pier,” she adds.
The festival draws yoga aficionados anywhere from 30-65 years old, appealing to those who have a consistent yoga practice or know the top yoga instructors and want to meet them. “It’s great for other yoga teachers, too, as we offer teaching credits towards their certifications,” Broyles says. “I think it’s also great for anyone tiptoeing into yoga because it’s so immersive. It’s a whole weekend of wellness and music and there’s a big vendor market. It’s a fun way to spend three days in Tahoe.”
For those traveling to Tahoe for the festival, several lodging partners such as Black Bear Lodge, Playpark Lodge, Station House, and Margaritaville offer discounts for festival attendees, with a shuttle swinging by those properties to pick people up. It being at Valhalla Tahoe means that Camp Richardson and Fallen Leaf Lake campground are close by, in biking distance. “And we will have a bike valet,” Broyles adds.
“It’s much more immersive being at Valhalla this year; it’s easy to get around.”
For more information or to buy tickets to the OMNI Tahoe Yoga Festival, visit https://www.omnitahoe.com/tahoe-yoga-festival .
Sierra Nevada Journeys Grown-Up Getaway Camp
August 14-16 in Portola
As an outdoor environmental education-based nonprofit, Sierra Nevada Journeys hosts a slew of day and overnight camps for kids and teens, but it’s the Grown-Up Getaway Camp that has become its main fundraiser for the year.
Located an hour north of Truckee (in Portola), Grown-Up Getaway Camp hosts about a hundred adult campers who can take part in activities such as a challenge course, happy hours, paint & sips, stargazing, pickleball, archery, slip ‘n’ slide, kickball, and more.
Mostly, people come from Northern Nevada and/or Northern California to get away for the weekend with their friends or family, but people have come from as far away as Europe for the grown-up getaway.
“One woman last summer came from London…she was visiting her daughter in LA and they both came up and did the camp,” says Marketing Director Lisa Blauth.
“The average age of attendees is mixed…everyone has to be at least 21 years old because of the beer and wine served, but we get people in their twenties and thirties who don’t have kids yet, to people in their forties and fifties who’ve become empty nesters. A few young souls in their sixties and seventies come, too,” Blauth adds.
Campers can make the most of their experience by joining activities such as pool parties and getting on the challenge course or just relax, unwind, and do nothing.
It costs $500 for the entire weekend, which includes food, activities, and shared accommodation (each cabin holds 12 people). Saturday night, a live band out of Quincy called Nightbrain will play (as well as DJ Braidz, also from Quincy) and Sierra Nevada Journeys is adding new activities such as storyteller hour (“You write your own story and then give like a mini Ted talk,” says Blauth).
“I think [attendees are] looking for that nostalgia or vibe from being in summer camp as children, or if they never went to summer camp, then they want to see what they missed out on,” says Blauth. “It’s a super fun and positive vibe. Grown-Up Getaway Camp is all about bringing people together and meeting new people. Even if you come by yourself, you’ll have new friends by the end of it.”
To book your bunk bed at Grown-Up Getaway Camp, visit https://www.sierranevadajourneys.org/grownup-getaway-camp.
Tahoe Adventure Company Lodge-to-Lodge Kayaking Tours
Custom dates in North Lake Tahoe
For those who want to spend as much time on the lake as possible while in the Tahoe area, going on a lodge-to-lodge kayaking trip on Lake Tahoe is a dream come true (especially if you’re into “all things paddle”). Fortunately, not only does Tahoe Adventure Company offer daytime tours, full moon tours, and more, but they can book a custom 2-4-day paddling trip for you and your crew, which involves you in a double kayak paddling your heart out on Big Blue and then arriving at a lakefront lodge, being treated to dinner at a local restaurant, and passing out in a cozy bed as you guides handle all of the logistics.
For at least 15 years, Tahoe Adventure Company has helped groups plan custom kayak tours where people can get around 6-10 miles of paddling per day going around Lake Tahoe’s north and western shorelines.
“We’ll stay at Sunnyside [the first night], a Tahoe Vista location [the second night], and end at the Hyatt,” says Tahoe Adventure Company Operations Manager Katie Hickey of the 4-day/3-night trips. Paddling west to east shores, participants usually paddle in the morning, arrive at the destination around lunch, hang out and enjoy the property, and then go to dinner. Custom Lodge-to-Lodge Kayaking trips include the gear, a guide, instruction, and all meals— breakfast, lunch, and dinner (lunch is usually picnic-style and for dinner the group will go to a local restaurant).
Attendees paddle in sturdy sea kayaks with rudders, so it’s not too hard. “We talk about the local history of the lake and wildlife, and go at a nice pace,” says Hickey. A typical itinerary includes starting at Sugar Pine Point State Park and paddling down to Emerald Bay, then coming back up the West Shore and ending at Sunnyside. For people who plan a custom trip longer than two days, they just continue around the North Shore.
“It’s a great special tour/adult camp,” says Hickey. “There’s no minimum age requirement; my mom flew out here with a group of ladies to do it for her 70th birthday, and they all had a great time,” Hickey says.
While rates can fluctuate depending on the number of people in a group and time of year (lodging tends to be most expensive or not available in the height of summer so spring or fall is the best time to book a trip), a tiered 2-night/3-day trip runs around $3,195/pp for a 2-person tour down to $2,195/pp for an 8-person group. A 3-night/4-day trip ranges from $3,195-$4,195/pp.
“It’s well-received when special groups come and do it, and special amenities can be arranged, like we can pre-book a spa package in advance for a guest,” Hickey adds. “There’s one group of guys who go all around the country doing experiences like this. It’s a great custom-based experience for people who really seek these kinds of adventures.”
To plan your custom Lodge-to-Lodge Kayaking Tour with the Tahoe Adventure Company, visit https://tahoeadventurecompany.com/ourtrips/wateradventures/lodgetolodgekayaktours/.