Sugar Bowl Resort
Sugar Bowl is a ski and snowboard area in northern Placer County near Norden, California along the Donner Pass of the Sierra Nevada, approximately 46 mi (74 km) west of Reno, Nevada on Interstate 80, that opened on December 15, 1939. Its address puts it 3 mi southeast of Soda Springs. A drive of 22 mi reaches Lake Tahoe.
A ski area, 3 mi southeast of Soda Springs
About 179 inches of snow a year
The nearest weather station records about 179" of snow in a normal winter, with January nights around 23°. When to go ↓
Soda Springs is the nearest base
Soda Springs is 3 miles northwest, with 18 places to stay. Where to stay ↓
A day trip from Sacramento
Sacramento is about 79 miles southwest (straight-line). Where to stay ↓
An airport 10 miles away
Truckee Tahoe (TKF) has airline service, about 10 miles from Sugar Bowl Resort.
Written from NOAA 1991–2020 normals, Overture places to stay, Census town figures and Wikipedia.
Weather through the year
Each month’s highs and lows around Sugar Bowl are below.
Sugar Bowl Resort
Sugar Bowl is a ski and snowboard area in northern Placer County near Norden, California along the Donner Pass of the Sierra Nevada, approximately 46 mi (74 km) west of Reno, Nevada on Interstate 80, that opened on December 15, 1939. Sugar Bowl is a medium-sized ski area in the Lake Tahoe region, and is well known for its long history, significant advanced terrain, high annual snowfall and being one of the closest ski areas to the San Francisco Bay Area. Sugar Bowl's terrain is 17% Beginner, 45% Intermediate and 38% Advanced.
Sugar Bowl was founded by Hannes Schroll and a group of individual investors and is one of the few remaining privately owned resorts in the Lake Tahoe area. Sugar Bowl was the first ski area in California to install a chairlift and the first on the west coast to install a gondola lift.
- Type
- Ski area
- Terrain
- 94 runs · 1,452 ft vertical · 13 lifts
- Wikipedia readers
- 6.2K a year
- Official site
- sugarbowl.com
Rooms near Sugar Bowl Resort
Lodging nearby is in Truckee (39) and Soda Springs (18).
Truckee
The closest town with somewhere to stay.
17,278 people · 48% vacation homes
8 mi northeast of Sugar Bowl
Compare 8 towns
| Town | From Sugar Bowl | Drive | Places to stay | People | Typical home | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Truckee 48% vacation homes | 8 mi northeast | 10 min | 39 21 hotels · 3 inns & B&Bs · 7 lodges & cabins · 7 campgrounds · 1 RV park | 17,278 | $948K | C+ |
| Soda Springs 62% vacation homes | 3 mi northwest | 5 min | 18 11 hotels · 6 lodges & cabins · 1 hostel | 150 | $840K | — |
| Sunnyside-Tahoe City 66% vacation homes | 14 mi southeast | 20 min | 15 5 hotels · 3 inns & B&Bs · 5 lodges & cabins · 2 campgrounds | 1,599 | $1,019K | — |
| Tahoe Vista 68% vacation homes | 15 mi east | 25 min | 15 7 hotels · 8 lodges & cabins | 1,048 | $1,039K | — |
| Kingvale 100% vacation homes | 6 mi west | 10 min | 3 1 motel · 2 campgrounds | — | — | — |
| Dollar Point 67% vacation homes | 14 mi southeast | 20 min | 8 6 hotels · 1 lodge or cabins · 1 campground | 1,477 | $846K | — |
| Kings Beach 44% vacation homes | 17 mi east | 25 min | 11 4 hotels · 2 motels · 2 inns & B&Bs · 2 lodges & cabins · 1 hostel | 2,736 | $772K | — |
| Tahoma 77% vacation homes | 20 mi southeast | 30 min | 15 7 hotels · 3 inns & B&Bs · 2 lodges & cabins · 3 campgrounds | 873 | $901K | — |
Day trip from
Straight-line miles.
Getting there
Nearest airports with airline service
Places to add to Sugar Bowl
All of these are within 66 miles.
Big draw122 mi LakeLake Tahoe
24 mi LakeDonner Lake
39 mi Ski areaPalisades Tahoe Olympic Valley122 runs · 2,542 ft vertical
45 mi State parkDonner Memorial State Park
65 mi LakePyramid Lake
64 mi DamOroville Dam511 mi Ski areaNorthstar at Tahoe Resort125 runs · 2,311 ft vertical
32 mi Stadium & arenaMackay StadiumPhoto credits
Lake Tahoe: Lara Farhadi, CC BY 2.0 · Donner Lake: J.smith, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Palisades Tahoe Olympic Valley: Jonnyboyca at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Donner Memorial State Park: Joe Parks from Berkeley, CA, CC BY 2.0 · Pyramid Lake: Rhalden, Public domain · Oroville Dam: California Department of Water Resources, Public domain · Mackay Stadium: Lanski, CC BY-SA 4.0
Questions before you go
What town is Sugar Bowl Resort near?
Soda Springs, CA, about 3 miles northwest.
How far is Sugar Bowl Resort from Sacramento?
About 79 miles southwest of Sacramento, as the crow flies.
What is the closest airport to Sugar Bowl Resort?
Truckee Tahoe (TKF), about 10 miles away. The nearest big hub is Reno Tahoe (RNO), about 33 miles.
Where should I stay near Sugar Bowl Resort?
Truckee (8 mi, 39 places to stay), Soda Springs (3 mi, 18 places to stay) and Sunnyside-Tahoe City (14 mi, 15 places to stay).
Ask people in Soda Springs
Be the first to share a tip in Soda Springs’s Town Square.
Sources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · NOAA climate normals · U.S. Census.