Places to vacation on a lake

Lake vacation is the perfect way to relax, unwind, and get some much-needed exercise all in one. And we’re talking about more than just running on the beach!

If you’re looking for a way to have fun with your friends, Lake vacation is the perfect place for you. You can try out water sports like kayaking or canoeing—or even just riding a jet ski or parasailing. But don’t think that those activities are all there is to do: Lake vacation also has plenty of other options like hiking, biking, or just hanging out by the lake itself!

So if you’re ready for some outdoor adventure this summer, Lake vacation might be the perfect place for it.

1. Lake Havasu, AZ

Lake Havasu City really earns its nickname “Arizona’s Playground.” Let’s break it down by the numbers: The lake itself, situated in the middle of the Mojave Desert, boasts 400 miles of shoreline, 300 days of sunshine per year, and 60 miles of navigable waterways. Visitors can cool off with water activities like swimming, wakeboarding, waterskiing, paddlesports, and even scuba diving. There are more than 30 known dive sites within the lake.

Fun fact: The bridge spanning Lake Havasu is actually an antique from London. When it began sinking in the 1960s, the Brits sold it, then it was disassembled and rebuilt over Lake Havasu in 1971.

2. South Lake Tahoe, CA

While Lake Tahoe straddles the California/Nevada state line, about two-thirds of its 75-mile-long shoreline exists within California. The city of South Lake Tahoe (which edges right up to the town of Stateline, Nevada) is the biggest draw for tourists. Use that as your basecamp to explore America’s largest alpine lake, which has nearly 200 miles of surface area surrounded by the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Try parasailing, speed boating, jet-skiing, wakeboarding, kayaking, sailing, and paddle wheeling. The blue-green lake is also known for its fishing, with visibility up to 75 feet below its surface.

3. Lake Placid, NY

Twice home to the Winter Olympics (in 1932 and 1980), Lake Placid is also the Adirondack Mountains’ hotspot for water sports. The lake in town is actually called Mirror Lake, and it’s best for SUPing or sailing. Motorboats are discouraged and jet skis are actually banned to preserve the views. Just north of town, Lake Placid dwarfs Mirror Lake with 2,200 acres open to all boats. The water gets choppy, making it perfect for pontoons, powerboats, and speedboats, the latter of which allows you to fly through the lake’s water ski slalom course. For a slower, closer look at the shoreline (and the Gilded Age log mansions there), take a canoe.

4. Burlington, VT

Burlington sits on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain, just an hour south of the Canadian border. Nestled between the Green Mountains of Vermont and the Adirondack Mountains of New York, Lake Champlain has 490 square miles of surface, 587 miles of shoreline, and water as deep as 400 feet. Plus, it’s primed for water sports from paddle boarding to sailing. It’s home to bass, pike, and carp for fly-fishing via motorboat or guided canoe trips. There are nine shipwrecks to explore under the surface to boot. The Burlington Waterfront also has plenty of public beaches to relax on while you’re deciding on the best activities

5. Grand Haven, MI

With more than 1,600 miles of shoreline, Lake Michigan offers more beaches than any other American lake—and its waters touch Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Minnesota. The sugary soft sands of Grand Haven’s main beach wouldn’t be out of place down south—and with a nickname of “Coast Guard City, U.S.A.,” it should come as no surprise that people here love every kind of water activity, including fishing and boating. The town happens to be situated right where the Grand River meets Lake Michigan, making its shores the starting point for everything from tubing, water skiing, and kayaking to paddleboarding and kiteboarding.

6. Lake Geneva, WI

Lake Geneva is known for the historic lakeside mansions dotting its shoreline in the town of Lake Geneva and the villages of Fontana-on-Geneva-Lake and Williams Bay. You can literally walk through their backyards on the Lake Geneva Shore Path, which covers 20 miles around the 8-square-mile lake. Or, you can take them in from the water, where you can hire a private fishing guide, go parasailing, or rent a boat for the day. One super unique way to experience the area: Ride the mailboat on Lake Geneva Cruise Line, where “jumpers” leap from the boat to deliver and pick up mail in dockside mailboxes as the boat keeps moving.

7. Sandpoint, ID

Sandpoint occupies prime real estate on the edge of Lake Pend Oreille, which, at 43 miles long, is Idaho’s largest lake. Nestled right under the Selkirk, Bitterroot, and Cabinet mountains, the glacial lake is ideal for water adventures. Rent a power boat or pontoon boat to explore on your own, take a fishing charter to search for rainbow trout, or go on a scenic cruise if you’d rather let someone else navigate. All the expected water sports, from paddleboarding to jetskiing, are available, too. The city beaches are all walkable from downtown, but if you’re looking for something more intimate, head to Green Bay, a local swimming hole super close to Sandpoint.

8. Lake Lure, NC

Lake Lure was the film set for Dirty Dancing, so you’d better believe this spot is a quintessential lake town. Less than an hour from Asheville, the lake was actually created when the Rocky Broad River was dammed in 1926. Now, it covers 720 acres below the Blue Ridge Mountains, with 27 miles of shoreline from which you can take in the views. Lake Lure’s waters are filled with bumper boats, water cannons, waterslides, and boats for water skiing and jet skiing if you’re looking for an adrenaline rush, as well as kayaks, fishing and sail boats, pontoon cruisers, kayaks, and tubes if you just want to chill.

9. Mammoth Lakes, CA

Tucked into California’s Sierra Nevada mountains, Mammoth Lakes is known for its proximity to ski trails and its popularity amount Olympic runners and marathoners for altitude training. But in the summer, the wealth of easily accessible alpine lakes makes it a playground for water sports. Swim in Horseshoe, McLeod, and Crystal Lakes; join triathletes training at June Lake beach; paddle among the limestone tufa towers of Mono Lake, which is two and half times saltier than the ocean; or rent a pontoon boat to fish for trout in Convict Lake. To relax, seek out any of the bubbling hot spring pools dotting the landscape around Mammoth.

10. Grand Lake, CO

Grand Lake, the largest and deepest natural body of water in Colorado, also serves as the “Western Gateway” to Rocky Mountain National Park. Grand Lake, the town, is your home base for all the activities the lake can handle. It may be small—just 1 mile by 1 1/2 miles—but it’s located in the headwaters of the Colorado River, which makes for a pretty stunning setting. You can rent or bring your own kayak, sailboat, paddleboard, canoe, pontoon, or motorboat to launch off the beach. Or head to Point Park, where you can fish from the dock and take out non-motorized water toys. The town even has a boardwalk with 60-plus storefronts.

11. Fond du Lac, WI

Translated from French, Fond du Lac means “farthest point of the lake”—a nod to its location at the south end of Lake Winnebago. Lake Winnebago is the largest one entirely within Wisconsin (Fond du Lac is just under an hour from the shores of Lake Michigan), and covers approximately 137,700 acres, with 88 miles of shoreline. Because it’s so easy to access—and because it receives such steady winds—this lake is a favorite among windsurfers and kite surfers (most launch from Roosevelt Park). And in the summer, because the lake is relatively shallow along the shores, water temperatures can get up into the 80s.