Much of the advice offered so far is pretty sound, though you can now eat whomever you like in the Donner Lake area as they have restocked.

I’m going to focus on Reno, but Tahoe has lots of great things to do and places to eat. It goes without saying that you MUST go to Tahoe, even if just to pass through.

Hotel order (just my opinion)... 1) Atlantis, 2) Peppermill, 3) GSR (Grand Sierra Resort). All are away from downtown, but I don’t share the others’ opinion that downtown is dangerous. No different than ANY downtown area in any city. Walking around after dark is just fine. As for the homeless, they’ve mostly turned one park on the river into their town, and it’s way east of downtown. A bike path goes right through/near there and I ride through now and again, and although it’s sad, they don’t pester or threaten people. I make a point of taking young people for rides there just so they can see how lucky they are, but also show them that they are just people with problems, but largely not dangerous or threatening.

Check with me before you come and I’ll see if I can get you a comped room at one of them (a hotel, not tent camping with the homeless).

All 3 have nice gaming areas with table games, slots, poker, keno. All 3 have sports betting areas with big screens and table service.

GSR has a movie theater, bowling alley, arcade, pool, and golf range (hit balls into man-made lake, aiming for holes on floating islands for prizes). Away from downtown, easy freeway access. Nicest restaurant: Charlie Palmer Steakhouse. When there’s no room left at our house (mother in law gets first choice on guest room), my sister in law stays there with her 3 daughters specifically because of the kid friendly stuff. The Lex Night Club has reopened, I think.

Peppermill has 2 towers. One is nicer than the other but I forget which. Has a nice pool. Not much else for kids that I’m aware of. The Bimini Grill is an excellent restaurant on the property.

Atlantis also doesn’t have much for kids that I know of, but their steak house is absolutely the best (Harrah’s used to be #1). The happy hour at Bistro Napa (2nd floor) is best in town. ALL drinks half price and they have a menu of appetizers that are all half off as well. I recommend getting at least one order of the butternut pumpkin squash ravioli.

All 3 have open poker rooms. Atlantis has highest comp date ($3/hr, probably going back to $4/hr after COVID).

The big showrooms are at GSR, Silver Legacy, and the Reno Events Center. Check for shows before you come as I’m unsure what COVID has done to them in that regard

In addition to the gaming museum at UNR, the Barry Sherwood Chip Emporium in South Reno is a must-see (ok, it’s just my personal chip collection at my house, but I do love showing it off!). Tours are free and guided by yours truly. Added bonus... my back yard faces the hills to the east where wild mustangs still roam. Free jeep tours are available, and if you’re into such things, killing clay pigeons and destroying pumpkins and watermelons can be arranged. But seriously, there are herds of wild horses numbering in the hundreds nearby. Very docile, but federally protected so you’re not supposed to feed/pet them.

Restaurant options:

*Stop in at Costco on Plumb Ln and pick up discounted gift cards (usually 2 $50 cards for $75-$80).

For breakfast, a local favorite with 4+ locations is “Peg’s Glorified Ham and Eggs” (aka “Peg’s Eggs”). Lots of the usual standard fare.

Lunch - Check out Wild River Grill or any number of other restaurants that are right on the Truckee River.

Reno has quite a few specialty/ethnic places. Ethiopian, Indian, Middle Eastern (“Shawarmageddon” wins the naming category). Yesenia had good Salvadoran food, but I think they might have permanently closed.

There are lots of vegan/vegetarian places (Laughing Planet is a good one - 2 locations), and naturally, fast food joints. Sonic is a kind of a fun drive-in joint if you don’t have those at home. Lots of flavors of shakes/freezes. And if you haven’t been to an In-N-Out burger place, order “animal style” or go online and search for “in and out secret menu”.

For Messican food, we love Los Compadres, but that’s pretty far south (near us). Then again, “pretty far south” is only 15 minutes from “pretty far north”, so... Their top shelf margaritas are awesome and not filled with overly sweet syrup, if you know what I mean. Tortilla chips are served hot as well (a must for me).

Jazmin on Double R Blvd is an excellent Asian food restaurant.

Breweries/distilleries - I don’t know if this is normal, but I would swear that Reno must be the microbrewery capital of the world. So many. Great Basin Brewery has a somewhat famous and popular “icky” beer. They also have restaurants with great food. There are several distilleries in the area, each offering tours and tastings. Downtown used to offer a wine walk, but I’m sure that’s paused right now. My wife, the wine snob, wasn’t impressed with what they served, but enjoyed the walk.

Hiking - park at Keystone or Rancho San Rafael and head up Peavine for some great views of the city, day or night. Prefer wooded hikes? Galena Creek Trail is nice. Hunter Creek Trail has a waterfall at the top.

Bike Paths and Mountain Biking - Reno has SOOO many great riding options from beginner to advanced paved paths and trails. Bike rentals are available and I have a 4-bike rack and can put 2 more on my roof if you want to shuttle (skip the uphill climb and just bomb the downhill!) or just need to get bikes to/from a starting point. I’ll be glad to take you anywhere you want to go.

Go Karts - Electric go karting is fast, fun, and surprisingly exhausting.

Golf - Wild Creek Golf has a cheap, 9-hole family friendly course. If you want “real” golf, lots of options. Lakeridge has a 17th hole that’s on an island 100’ below the tee box. Wolf Run is nice as well, and if you don’t mind a 30min drive north, Red Hawk in Sparks/Spanish Springs is also nice, with 2 different 18-hole courses to choose from. There are a number of disc golf courses (free). You can borrow my discs - enough for all of you to play). Show a disc at Archie’s on North Sierra and get 2-for-1, including their massive 1lb Wolf Burger!

Shooting/Archery - The desert is east access and lots of known areas to shoot. Multiple indoor ranges as well, offering rentals. Archery packages for kids at “Wasting Arrows” where you rent lanes by the hour.

There’s a water park, trampoline park, climbing walls (one goes up the side of the old Fitzgerald’s Casino, now Whitney Peak Hotel). Paddle boats, mini golf, the National Automobile Museum, the National Bowling Museum, Art Museums, Children’s Discovery Museum, Planetarium, axe throwing (with beer!) and probably a dozen other things. Bottom line is... come here and leave all your money before you head home. Don’t even bother going on a 5000 mile journey. Come straight here, empty your pockets, go home. Simple, really.

If you want me to bore you further, my number is 530-570-2222. Enjoy your trip!