New Year's Eve Light Parade & Fireworks at Tahoe Donner

Tahoe Donner's New Year's Eve Light Parade and Fireworks Show lights up Tahoe Donner Downhill Ski Resort in Truckee on Thursday, December 31, 2026. Parade skiers and riders load the Eagle Rock chair at 6:15 p.m. and carry lights down the Race Course run, and fireworks launch from the sundeck right after. Tahoe Donner hosts the evening at its downhill ski area, and the lodge festivities are free.

What the Tahoe Donner Light Parade Is Like

This is a small-mountain, neighborhood-style New Year's Eve. Tahoe Donner Downhill is known around Tahoe as a friendly, family-focused hill with plenty of beginner terrain, and New Year's Eve has the same easygoing feel, with families and local kids gathering at the base as it gets dark. You watch a ribbon of lights wind down Race Course, then the fireworks go up from the sundeck right in front of you. The lodge, which reopened brand new for the 2025-26 season, has a large sun deck plus an indoor bar and dining area with mountain views, and a DJ keeps festive music going all evening. It all wraps up early enough that kids can see everything and still get to bed long before midnight.

Event Highlights

The light parade is the main event, with participants riding the Eagle Rock chair and skiing or riding down Race Course with lights. Fireworks follow immediately after the parade, launched from the sundeck. The lodge festivities, with a DJ, an apres menu and bar drinks all evening, are free. In past years, organizers also set up outdoor fire pits with hot toddies and hot cocoa, and the parade was open to intermediate skiers and snowboarders ages 10 and up who could ski or ride unassisted in the dark.

Cost and What to Bring

Watching is free, and spectators don't need to register for the fireworks. Skiing in the parade costs $5, spots are limited, and sign-up opens on Eventbrite in early December. In past years, parade participants checked in between 4:30 and 6 p.m., and late arrivals couldn't be accommodated, so build in extra time if you're skiing it. Food and drinks from the apres menu and bar are pay as you go. Truckee nights in late December are cold, so bring warm layers, a hat, gloves and insulated boots for standing outside during the show. Tahoe Donner notes that events are weather permitting and subject to cancellation, so check for updates before you head out.

Parking and Getting There

Tahoe Donner Downhill is at 11603 Slalom Way in Truckee, about 10 minutes from Interstate 80. The ski area has five parking lots with shuttle service to the lodge, and in past years organizers warned that parking is limited on New Year's Eve, so arrive early. TART Connect, Truckee's free on-demand shuttle, is another option. Tahoe Donner's parking page lists winter service within Truckee from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., but TART hadn't posted 2026-27 winter hours at the time of writing, so check the TART Connect app before counting on a ride home. Request early, since late-evening capacity is limited.

Find sign-up details on Tahoe Donner's New Year's Eve event page.