Kings Beach State Recreation Area

King’s Beach and the associated State Rec Area was the Tahoe beach closest to where we stayed while in the area for family vacation. We spent a couple mornings there in late May during what proved to be an unseasonably warm week in the region, making the temperatures mid-70s…BEAUTIFUL!
Let’s start with the good: tons of space on the beach, beautiful water, very little wake/​tide (making it great for little kids to play in the water without getting washed out to «sea»), a good-​sized playground, plenty of picnic tables and grills, permanent bathrooms and changing rooms, and lots of cute, local stores and restaurants nearby.
My only knock on the complex would be that the beach wasn’t as comfortable, if that’s the correct term, as others you come by in the region. The sand is a bit more coarse, even rocky, a bit darker in color, and there’s not much option for shade or seats on the beach, short of bringing your own gear.
Obviously, as with all views in and around Lake Tahoe, the vista is STUNNING.
There is some parking, both along the street for free, and a parking lot that charges.
All in all, we had a couple great visits here!

No swings!!! WTF!
Get control of the dogs. In five minutes I watched not one but two different dogs run into the water and shit.
There is a portioned area for dogs but that somehow bleeds into dogs running all over the entire beach with no leashes and no positive control of them.

Great view of the lake and surrounding mountains. Pretty nice beach with tons of food options nearby. Parking can be difficult and you have to pay for the good parking areas. The beach is nice (but not the best Tahoe beach, check out Sand Harbor for that). If you have young kids they will love it here. If you want to paddle board or kayak you can rent that stuff from many nearby stores.

I’ve never been here in the summer, but if you’re looking for a laid-​back place to stop in the winter months for a gorgeous view of the lake, this beach is definitely worth it!
Parking in the lot is $ 5 (self-​registration), but you can usually find 2-​hour parking along the road, too, and it’s a quick walk.
There’s enough of an incline off the parking lot to make a suitable sled run for the littles, and there’s plenty of room for dogs to run around and play catch. If the snow weren’t so powdery, this would also be primo real estate for a snowman or two. There’s nothing especially exciting going on here, but it’s a large clearing and a guaranteed spot to catch some beautiful views with little effort.
Once it gets warmer, this is a great spot for launching your kayak, or chilling out in a beach chair and having a couple drinks. Looking forward to coming back! B-)

At one time the pier went out over the water. Now the water is a hike from the end of the pier. Here the drought really shows up. The place where the sand ends and the water begins is a long walk.
The bathrooms closest to the jungle gym is still open. The ones on the far side are closed for the season.
I like that there is a parking lot, even if I have to pay $ 5. The good thing is I can visit multiple parks and not keep paying.
If you are looking for a game of hoops just bring your ball. We saw a small group of youth playing in the early evening. This beach attracts mostly tourists and a few locals on their lunch break.
If you were hoping to launch your boat this dock won’t work for you. You will have to carry your boat a long ways to find water. We did see 2 stand up paddle boarders.
There are lots of benches to either sit on or enjoy the view or you can sit on a picnic beach and have lunch.
So pretty, I’ll be back.

Nice views, good access, beach is a bit dirty and smelly in places.
This is a very popular beach for good reason. Very shallow now maybe 2– 3′ deep, 50′ out.
Some points to know.
-$ 10 to park in the lot easy to carry kayaks or boards in —
or free to park in neighboring streets
–clean, big family restrooms that make it great for changing clothes
–volleyball net
–they offer jet ski, kayak, and pedal boat rentals along with parasailing
–the scenery is beautiful of course!!!
–it’s a lot busier at this beach, with many families and activities going on. If you want a place more serene and private, don’t go here.
–no dogs allowed
–the sand had a weird black color when nearing the water; wasn’t sure if this was the sand, but there was a lingering weird odor the day we went
It’s worth a visit if you want to have all amenities and restaurants close by, but there are plenty of other, probably cleaner, beaches heading in either direction.

Excellent beach. It is clean and had a great paddle racing event over the weekend.
The parking is closely. There are a number of activities available.

Pros:
–clean, big family restrooms that make it great for changing clothes
–volleyball net was unoccupied, so we had a blast using it in the evening!
–they offer jet ski, kayak, and pedal boat rentals
–free to get in, look for free parking along the streets
–the scenery is beautiful of course!!!
Cons:
–it’s a lot busier at this beach, with many families and activities going on. If you want a place more serene and private, don’t go here.
–no dogs allowed
–the sand had a weird black color when nearing the water; wasn’t sure if this was the sand, but there was a lingering weird odor the day we went
I would definitely go back if we wanted to also visit shops and if we stayed overnight close by!

I’ve been vacationing in Tahoe my entire life. While I’ve spent most of those summers on the south side of the lake, my husband and I wandered up to north shore to check it out this year. It was a very warm day when we visited and parking was not an issue. Parking is ample.
However, there is very little shade at Kings Beach. Partial shade or the option for shade is a value for us. On top of that, the public restrooms were out of commission that day, which inspired us to leave and find another beach. It’s not the clearest of water on that side of the lake, either.
I’m sure it’s lovely for those who frequent it, and the lack of crowds is very nice. It’s simply not for us or those seeking a more complete Tahoe experience.

I love Kings Beach. I’m completely partial to it so this review is 100% biased. The beach is free, you can always find parking and they have Fireworks on the 3^rd of July. Seriously? It just doesn’t get any better.
I rarely see trash, people are respectful and there are a plethora of GREAT restaurants in walking distance. *Steamers garlic chips are AMAZING*
Lately it hasn’t been packed so there is plenty of room to throw the frisbee or play volleyball with the net that is set up by the community center.

This area is incredibly gorgeous anytime of the year! There’s a small pier you can walk out on to get a better view of the mountains and water. The sandy area takes up some of the beach while the other half has plenty of rocks to climb on. On a Saturday in early May it was very low key down here unlike what the summers down here looks like! It is a very touristy area so it can get very busy. It is well worth a stop for some gorgeous photos and to dip your feet in the crisp, cool water.

Great clean beach location wt tons of beach to explore and relax on. Multiple restrooms, vending machines, play ground for the kiddios, & picnicking areas make it a ideal family friendly location! Dogs are also welcome :). Parking was only 5 bucks for an all day parking pass.

One of the most scenic beaches I’ve seen. It’s extremely clean.

My boyfriend and I recently moved to Reno and, back in May when we were just visiting, we were told we had to come to Lake Tahoe. King’s Beach was one of the more requested beaches, so we made this our first stop.
By late morning, it was slightly crowded, but nothing like a beach you’d see in Cali. There was still plenty of space for you to not feel suffocated. It wasn’t too loud and the sand was nice and soft. The views are beautiful and parking is literally right by the beach and was only $ 5. Definitely the cheapest parking we have found so far (without having to walk a mile to get to the beach, that is, if you want free). We didn’t stay too long but it was definitely a wonderful time. Definitely will come again!

Amazing place.
Fun for a weekend.
Lot of water stuff like skiing, para gliding and camping around lake.
Though its hot summer, water is chilling.

I finally had the opportunity to visit this beach after living in Reno for over 10 years. I normally go to Sand Harbor or Zephyr Cove. However, my husband is working here, «tearing up the area» as another Unilocaler has previously mentioned. As a side note, they are building an underground filtration system so road gunk doesn’t get into the lake. So, while it is a bit difficult to navigate the area, it’ll be worth it in the end.
Now, for the beach, it isn’t nearly as nice as the other beaches I’ve visited in Tahoe. However, my husband said it is because the lake is low so it’s not as sandy… who knows though. There are also flying ant bugs all over the place. But, the beach is a lot less crowded than Zephyr or Sand Harbor, so that’s a plus. Parking is $ 10, which is pretty reasonable. There are numerous food places within walking distance too, in case you forgot lunch (like I did). The other positive thing about this beach is the playground.

Amazing view! I had some family come into town and wanted to take them to a beach on the way to Reno. So I decided once again to search on Unilocal for some location ideas. No surprise, Unilocal saves the day again! My first choices were in South Tahoe, but last minute, we decided to go to North Tahoe. Based on Unilocaler’s reviews, I decided to choose Kings Beach.
Visited on 5÷4÷2014 around noon, was charged $ 5 for parking. Not bad at all! It’s suppose to be $ 10 for non-​residents but I think everything rams up on Memorial Day weekend. We headed towards the picnic tables and the on the left, behind the toilets. There’s a playground, bridge that you can walk to take pictures. Due to constructions, the bathrooms were closed and only dirty, smelly port-​a-​potties were available (–1 star for that).
It was a rather chilly and windy day. But the kids are fun in the sand building castles and catching crawfish by the shore. The view was absolutely gorgeous, like something out of a painting. Would definitely recommend.

We came here twice on our New Years vacation. First was for a walk after eating lunch at the Kings café across the street. It was really beautiful, and everyone was enjoying themselves. Dogs were roaming freely, and they looked very happy as well as their people!
The second time we came here was to watch the sunset on NYE. We came by after our long and beautiful hike at the flume trail. It was a perfect ending to a perfect day!!!
In all I love Kings beach, and I’m looking forward to returning!

The weather was hot in Tahoe and we wanted a beach day. Turned out to be one of the best beach days ever.
I packed a picnic lunch for two and we planned to visit a fun beach where we could have fun and lay out in the sun. It was pretty crowded, since it was a hot summer day but we still found a nice spot in the sand.
The weather was unreal, I had never been to Tahoe when it was that hot. The only relief was to plunge into the icy cold Lake, life is good. We enjoy it as much as all the kids giggling in the water.
We enjoyed our lunch and suntanning session when we decided it would be fun to rent a jet ski. There are two water sports companies on the beach with a variety of activities. It was gonna be my first time on a jet ski!
We had one of the best days at Kings Beach, one which I will never forget. This is a great place to have some fun at the beach, get some sun and enjoy the view and enjoy Tahoe in the summer.

This places definitely gets busy! Luckily, there’s plenty of street parking if you don’t mind walking a few blocks.
The beach itself is pretty nice. The sand is soft, with the exception of some pieces of wood from the surrounding trees. It does get hot walking around bare foot, so bring flip flops! There’s lots of families around, but we had no trouble finding a spot to lay out on the sand around noon. There’s a wooden pier off to the side and lots of families bring or rent beach toys (giant water tricycles, rafts, jet skis, etc.). Off the beach there’s a wooded area that provides lots of shade and there’s several picnic benches. Even out of the way closer to the street, there’s a paved path with benches along the way.
When we went, there was a little street fair going on with many things for sale and a shaved ice truck. There was also a small car show going on with classic cars on display.
This seems to be the main beach that everyone seems to go to, and with good reason. It’s location is perfect for those staying in Truckee — about a 15 minute drive down from the Northstar Resort.