Tahoe Keys Marina — Attraction in South Lake Tahoe

Insufficient Parking Signage Paired With the Worst Customer Service

My father treated our family (party of 8) to go on an evening cruise with Bleu Wave which launches from the Tahoe Keys Marina. When we returned to shore after sunset, we found that our car had been towed. We paid for an Uber (shared with 2 other gentlemen from our boat who had also been towed) to go to the tow yard and another to get the family home (we had an 8 and 10 year old with us which added to the unfortunate situation).

We were unable to see the No Parking signage because as you can see from the photos, it is all below waist height and upon arrival, the entire No Parking gravel lane was full of parallel-parked cars except for the one space we took. We were only able to see the initial No Parking sign painted on the ground right by the entrance but for the rest of the long stretch, there are only arrows painted on the ground which led us to believe that we could and should park there.

Before we and the other two gentlemen from our boat were charged more than $500 each to get our vehicles back, the tow guy said that he hates getting these kinds of calls because it is simply taking advantage of honest people. He added that Harbor Master Lizette apparently put a call out in the marina for 2 hours for people to move their cars before contacting him to move a total of 15 cars. Trouble is, some of the drivers were on a boat far out of earshot of the marina. Wouldn’t you expect a harbor master to know the various companies that run their businesses from the marina and what their operations and hours are? On top of that, there was a funeral for a marina staff member that day. As Harbor Master, did she not know or approve of the large portion of the parking lot that was cordoned off to accommodate the mourners thus making the long stretch one of the last places anyone could park on marina property? Just outside the marina, there is proper signage for parking that can still be read if a car is parked in front of it - please consider doing the same on your property to care for future customers.

Like many tourists who visit this marina, we were first time visitors. Why do we have to pay the price for the marina’s insufficient-in-number and ineffective-in-height “No Parking” signage that was blocked by a long line of parked cars? How can we abide by signage that is not in view?

These were our questions. So my father, wife and I returned to the marina the next morning and went to the booth where we had received our Bleu Wave boarding ticket the day before only to find a tall, curly-haired young employee of Suntex (the company who owns and/or operates the marina) lying on the floor of the booth. At first we were concerned for his health but he was just resting at 10am. We explained the situation and he promptly shut us down saying that Lizette has a very strict No Parking policy. This Suntex representative showed no regard for his job and communicated zero concern for us, our circumstance or that the marina might be at fault due to negligent signage. To top it off, once we started to take photos of the parking layout, he mentioned to the customers he was checking in (who had their car and boat parked in the No Parking zone) that we were “just some losers.” His lack of professionalism was appalling.

But maybe this young man had true foresight to dismiss us as one-time customers because that is what we certainly will be unless this situation is rectified and we are fully reimbursed for the marina’s negligence in providing adequate customer service both in personnel and signage.

Attached photos show the stretch of gravel where 15-20 cars were parked upon our arrival and the inadequate number, height and locations of...

Under no circumstances should anyone bring their business here. The management reeks of dirty business. We pay to launch our boat and as we are loading in our family, the manager comes out in a fury accusing us of renting out his boat, saying we are transporting people across the lake with his rental. It just so happens that our boat is a similar model to the one they rent to customers. Regardless of our efforts to prove we own the boat and had just paid to launch it, he continued to harass us and threaten us with calling the police while taking multiple pictures of us. We drive off thinking nothing of it but an unprofessional encounter...

Flash forward to a month later, we make the mistake of launching our boat here again after our family was harassed. Our fuel pumps went out and we were unable to get back in time to get the employees to let us take the boat out, so it was left parked overnight which we have been told in the past was ok, and had done with no problem. We return the next day to our boat being impounded first thing in the morning before open hours and before we had a chance to even show up, with an outrageous 2,500 dollar charge. The employees all told us the manager remembered this boat and told them to impound it as soon as he saw it. The charges on the impoundment included multiple days of impoundment fees (even though it was only impounded that day) and a list of other fees which nobody could explain to us. All the employees could say was that he would continue adding more charges if we fought or upset him. There was conflicting information from all employees and no way to get a straight answer or written proof of anything. We spent two days trying to contact the manager to no avail, so we got the police involved. It turns out the manager Robert had been in the next room the entire time, refusing to face us or explain the charges. The police could do nothing but warn us never to return to this marina, as the manager is known to screw people over and have a temper that leads to physical altercations.

Overall, we had to pay 2500 dollars (cash- mind you) for a half day impoundment due to this completely unprofessional manager unable to keep his temper. To top it all off, as we were leaving one of the employees mentioned that he was quitting because the management frequently uses drugs at work.

Lake Tahoe would be better off with this marina investigated and shut down for good. We will be going to civil court over the matter. Do not bring your...

Be warned: Do NOT leave your boat trailer at Tahoe Keys Marina! Back over July 4th I rented a slip and kept my boat trailer at the marina for a week. When I went to pull my boat out the trailer hitch was severely damaged to the point of unusable. It was also covered in mud. One of the employees, who had moved my trailer, somehow cranked the hitch assembly to one side. I had to leave my boat in the marina for 3 weeks while I waited for the part to be shipped from the factory. The employees at Tahoe Keys apologized for the inconvenience and even admitted the same thing had happened to another customer. They promised the trailer would be repaired as soon as possible. Chad, the manager, assured me I would not be charged for the slip. How kind of them to not charge me since thanks to their incompetence I had no way to take my boat home! The employees are given strict orders not to refund or cover damages under any circumstances. It has taken me all this time to write a review as I have been dealing with insurance and hoping the Marina would do the right thing and cover the parts they damaged. This has not happened and therefore I am left no recourse but to write this negative review. This company does NOT practice good customer service. The employees are not to blame, however I will continue to urge people not to do business with Tahoe...