When guests walk into the cathedrallike lobby of the new Lodge at Edgewood Tahoe, they’re greeted with a gasp-inducing view of “Big Blue” right outside the soaring window wall at the Great Room’s far end. No road or buildings block the vaulted panorama; the only objects between glass and water are a strip of vibrant golf-course green and a few scattered pines on a west-facing shoreline serving up peachy sunset views.
The 154-room, alpine-style lodge is South Shore’s answer to luxury North Shore properties like the Ritz-Carlton Lake Tahoe, the Resort at Squaw Creek and the Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe. But it’s in a class of its own when it comes to location: right on the lake, yet surrounded by 235 acres of greenery in the form of Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course, a George Faziodesigned facility dating back to 1968. The tucked-away location is less than a half-mile from the busy Highway 50 entertainment corridor. For guests, the lodge’s complimentary shuttle service makes getting around a snap.
Like every new property at environmentally conscious Lake Tahoe, the LEED Silver-designed lodge was years in development. “The environmental assessments started about 12 years ago, and design and construction took five years,” Bryan Davis, director of marketing, says of the process that brought the $100 million project to fruition.
While the property has partnered with Preferred Hotels and Resorts, a lodging management company representing highend properties worldwide, it maintains its independent status. “One of our main decisions was to brand the hotel as an Edgewood property; we didn’t go after a flag,” explains Davis. “We felt the existing business lent itself to being able to brand the lodge and the spa simply as ‘Edgewood.’”
The Lodge at Edgewood provides considerable cachet for high-end gatherings. It offers a 3,000 square-foot divisible ballroom, a lake-view room attached to the Bistro restaurant that can be used for private dining or smaller meetings for up to 40, and a boardroom accommodating up to 16. An event lawn and beach are available in summer. That’s in addition to two large, lake-view rooms accommodating 50-200 guests in the adjacent golf-course Clubhouse.
Also on-property are an expansive (8,500 square feet) spa, a year-round heated swimming pool and hot-tub complex, fire pits, and a full complement of summertime water-sports activities and equipment, including boat rentals at the resort’s private pier. A serious investment in artwork shows up everywhere, including the bas-relief limestone carvings on the wall flanking the grand staircase. Guest rooms in the two-story structure boast patios or terraces, gas fireplaces, and soaking tubs as well as walk-in showers
While summer is the high season at Lake Tahoe, ski season is also big. “A lot of work went into making this property as ‘ski in, ski out’ as possible,” says Davis. “We have three Mercedes Sprinters with racks to take everyone to the Heavenly Gondola, and we also have concierge service at the resort.”
Visitors to Edgewood, whether overnight guests or day-trippers, can enjoy three sunset-view places to dine and imbibe: the Bistro & Bar at the new Lodge; the more formal Edgewood Restaurant in the Clubhouse; or Brooks Bar & Deck, a Clubhouse venue situated just off the golf course’s 18th hole and honored by Golf Digest as one of the best golf pubs in the world. Newly appointed executive chef Charles Wilson reigns over the culinary teams at all three venues.
