Kiva Beach is one of the harder to find beaches, just because of the lack of signs. It’s located just north of Camp Richardson in Lake Tahoe.

Turn right at the Forest Service Visitor Center turnoff and follow the road past the Visitor’s Center (this is also the parking for the stream profile chamber) to the beach parking lot.

There is a short walk to the beach, but the parking is free. You can also park at the Visitor’s Center and enjoy a longer walk (not quite a hike) along the meadow to Kiva Beach (no dogs on this trail though).

The beach itself is a huge flat sandy plain that lies at the mouth of Taylor Creek. The water however, is a bit rocky until you get a little ways out. You can go out a long way, though.

There are fantastic views of the surrounding mountains, especially Mount Tallac. mid summer you will find large blooms of Blue Pod Lupine among other wildflowers.  Source: AboutLakeTahoe.com

The Lakeside Beach is a members only beach with the memberships going out to those living (or staying) in the immediate area. This includes the Park Avenue area hotels, motels, and the casinos.

The area can be reached by turning off Highway 50 onto Park Avenue at either the state line or the Crescent V Shopping Center (yes, the same road hits both spots).

The beach also features a state of the art playground and swing set as well as an old style giant metal slide. The beach surrounds The Lakeside Beach Grill, an al fresco eatery that also has a beachside walk up window.

The swimming is decent here, but not spectacular. It is just beginning to get to the silty part of the lake resulting from the Upper Truckee River, so the water is not as clear as it is elsewhere.

As with other beaches in this area and to the east, the sand is rather coarse so bring beach shoes of some sort.