From Reno to Northstar: Shuttle or rental car?

[TsuKata]

We're trying to decide whether to take the free shuttle to Northstar from Reno or to rent a car and drive ourselves.

Pros/Cons of rental car:
+ Can set our own schedule
+ Place to stick stuff that we *may* want during the day but don't think we'll need
+ Allows us to tourist/shop on the way back if we want
- We may have to drive in rough conditions
- We're not as familiar with the roads
- Parking is really far and we'll have to take a shuttle from parking to the lifts anyways
- Costs money to rent and for gas

Pros/Cons of shuttle:
+ Someone else does the driving, someone familiar with the route
+ It's free
+ It drops us off relatively close to the main gondola
- We're stuck on its schedule, meaning minimal post-ski time to drink floofy drinks or shop
- If the shuttle breaks down or has a problem, we're screwed

So, that's what we've thought of. For those familiar with the area or with doing this, what would you recommend? Any pros/cons we've missed?

 

[MaineSkiLady]

Do I presume correctly that you're staying in Reno?
I've only done this trip once, and Reno was just our gateway - we stayed in South Lake Tahoe and were resort hopping, so we opted for the car. It ain't cheap. On the other hand, it's a vacation, why be tied down to the shuttle's schedule? I vote for the rental car. Most big ski resorts do have the distant parking-shuttle-to-base deal anyway.

 

[MaineSkiLady]

p.s. I was there last week of March the year I went, did not have a problem with either directions or road conditions. And we hauled it from SLakeTahoe to Kirkwood a couple of days, which is about an hour's drive wayyyyy out there. It was fine. Great vacation. Would do it again in a heartbeat. Have fun!

 

[TsuKata]

Yep, we're staying in Reno.

 

[TahoeJanine]

Tsukata,
The roads to Tahoe resorts are straightforward and well marked. Right now, the roads are completely clear of snow. We're expecting a small bit of snow tomorrow (Wednesday) or Thursday, but sun is expected the rest of the time, and CalTrans clears the roads ASAP after a snow. So if you want mobility, time to shop, ability for non-drivers to drink "floofy" drinks, then I'd drive. Also, the roads around Tahoe are beautiful, and you may just want to drive around the lake to look around.

Reno is about 36 miles away, so it's not a short drive, but it's a fast drive on a major interstate highway (I-80).

TahoeJanine

 

[TsuKata]

We decided to rent a car. Thanks for the advice all!

 

[MaineSkiLady]

Good call. I think you'll be pleased by this decision - more flexibility/freedom. It's vacation, after all! Have a great trip!

 

[nimbus]

You made a good call, TsuKata. I was looking into this very issue, and found out that both the Mt Rose and Squaw Valley shuttles from Reno stop running as of April 1st. Not sure about Northstar, though.

 

[TsuKata]

Yeah, the shuttle service actually called us today to let us know that Northstar has cancelled the shuttle. So, yay for good decisions.

By the way, this was a heated debate item between my DH and I. Thanks to y'all's comments, I won...and now I just keep getting proven right.

Hee. I love when that happens.