My wife, 2 small boys and I recently returned from Lake Tahoe
where we spent 3 days skiing at Diamond Peak. I hadn't been
skiiing in 35 years, my wife not in 21 and it was the first time for
my boys (ages 5 and 7).
Let me say that the program that they have in place for teaching
children is second to none. Once you have signed the child in for
the lesson and paid the tab (not too steep) they take care of everything. Never more than 5 children to a teacher. Breaks for snacks and a great nuturing place. I recommend it highly for folks
who want to get their kids started and go skiing themselves while
the kids are in class.
As a relative novice, I can't speak for how an advanced skiier would like Diamond Peak, but the lesson (with teacher Jake) was
great. In two hours I was skiing down the easy slopes. Neither
my wife nor I wiped out ONCE and we had a great time.
The rental shop is quick, reasonable and the equipment is first
rate. For $74 we got a beginner lesson, rental and all day lift tkt.
We can't wait to go back next year!

I live in Tahoe and am always glad to recommend Diamond Peak to visitors and locals alike. It's not the place for extreme terrain, but if the sun is shining, the lake views are fabulous and the resort has one of the fastest, longest lifts in Tahoe, allowing you to get tons of vert on wonderfully groomed cruisers. Weekends are never crowded and during the week, you'll feel guilty that they are running the lift just for you - most days you can park so close you can almost ride onto your car hood. The service and employees are great and very family friendly and the ski school has some of the best instructors in Tahoe. Most instructors are PSIA/AASI III and the group lessons are a screaming deal at $24 for 2 hours ($16 for repeat lessons) - most of the time you'll have the instructor to yourself anyway. Just don't tell too many friends - I am rather fond of having this tiny secret resort to myself most days.

My wife and I have always skied in CO and at Whistler, but were invited to Lake Tahoe for the first time. Because of the wind, our friend took us to Diamond Peak, where some of the runs are protected. Good choice! The groomed blacks were very nice, the 24" of powder one day certainly was a challenge, but fun, and the views are wonderful. The Lodge is small, but convenient. No lift lines, easy access, reasonable price and great snow. We'd certainly go back!

I am very happy I checked the review on Tripadvisor before deciding on Diamond Peak (vs Squaw Valley) for the 4 days we just spent skiing. We hadn't skied in 20 years and our 5 year old had never skied. We found the instructors at the adult ski school very good and our child LOVED the children ski schools. Instructors are well trained and seem to enjoy dealing with kids. We were told to come at 8.30am to sign up our child for the group lessons (starting at 10am) and were a bit apprehensive about crowds during President's week. We got there on the Tuesday (after President's day) and it was fine. Everything went smoothly, the resort is just the right size, beginner slopes are right there when you get in. We would go in early at about 8.30am, sign in our kid for the day, have breakfast right there at the base lodge, leave him in the ski school after breakfast, where he would have 2hrs ski in the am and 2hrs in the pm, and lunch with his friends and ski instructors, and we'd pick him up at 4pm. Our kid had a great time and so did we. We'll definitely go back next year.