Mountain townsCalifornia2026

California Mountain Towns

Big Bear Lake, Mammoth Lakes and South Lake Tahoe were the most booked of the 38 mountain towns in California on Airbnb in the 12 months to October 2026, with an estimated 80,927, 66,329 and 41,654 stays. July is the busiest month across them, and the typical stay is 3.6 nights.

Source: AirROI Reviewed by Jun Zhou, Founder @ AirROI Updated November 4, 2026

Figures are AirROI estimates. How they are made

Among the 24 towns with 200+ homes

Most booked of these 24: Big Bear Lake 80,927 stays
Highest revenue per home of these 24: Three Rivers $68,493 a year
Highest rated of these 24: Mariposa and Topanga 4.90 out of 5
Lowest nightly rate of these 24: Crestline $269 a night
Longest typical stay of these 24: Topanga 5.3 nights

Ranking

California Mountain Towns Ranked by Airbnb Stays

Every one of the mountain towns and villages in California with 100 or more Airbnb homes and recent stays, most booked first.

California Mountain Towns ranked by Airbnb stays, with homes, typical stay, busiest month, nightly rate, occupancy, revenue per home and guest rating

1	Big Bear Lake	80,927	3,370	3.0 nights	December	$457	29%	$39,296	4.77
2	Mammoth Lakes	66,329	2,696	3.9 nights	February	$458	36%	$49,577	4.76
3	South Lake Tahoe	41,654	1,876	4.8 nights	July	$527	36%	$56,042	4.76
4	Truckee	31,033	1,689	4.6 nights	July	$582	33%	$51,144	4.79
5	Oakhurst	29,837	730	3.0 nights	June	$374	45%	$54,978	4.87
6	Big Bear City	27,444	1,041	3.0 nights	December	$359	30%	$31,351	4.82
7	Three Rivers	23,833	462	2.6 nights	June	$409	50%	$68,493	4.87
8	Lake Arrowhead	20,093	848	3.2 nights	December	$433	29%	$37,297	4.87
9	Tahoe City	16,967	800	4.3 nights	July	$571	35%	$57,342	4.79
10	Idyllwild-Pine Cove	16,758	458	3.1 nights	December	$307	39%	$37,083	4.85
11	Mariposa	14,813	336	3.1 nights	June	$310	49%	$51,374	4.90
12	Kings Beach	12,800	487	4.3 nights	July	$481	38%	$54,973	4.78
13	Groveland	12,626	474	3.5 nights	June	$369	34%	$38,563	4.80
14	Arnold	10,871	504	3.5 nights	July	$356	30%	$33,102	4.84
15	Carnelian Bay	9,032	371	4.4 nights	July	$594	38%	$64,317	4.77
16	Olympic Valley	8,951	484	4.3 nights	February	$563	33%	$50,873	4.79
17	Shaver Lake	7,588	330	3.3 nights	July	$398	30%	$37,103	4.85
18	Julian	7,396	250	3.0 nights	December	$347	35%	$35,722	4.87
19	Crestline	7,371	304	3.3 nights	December	$269	31%	$24,100	4.82
20	Topanga	6,447	219	5.3 nights	August	$397	45%	$49,400	4.90
21	Running Springs	5,879	224	3.3 nights	December	$292	33%	$27,348	4.88
22	Mount Shasta	5,529	177	3.9 nights	July	$267	45%	$37,895	4.88
23	Bass Lake	5,165	215	3.7 nights	July	$538	34%	$52,614	4.84
24	Meyers	4,828	153	4.3 nights	July	$519	40%	$70,629	4.80
25	Twain Harte	4,818	207	3.5 nights	July	$329	32%	$32,835	4.85
26	Coarsegold	4,494	135	3.1 nights	June	$359	41%	$44,683	4.83
27	Dunsmuir	4,300	160	3.0 nights	July	$215	34%	$23,195	4.81
28	Ahwahnee	4,206	107	3.1 nights	June	$316	43%	$46,231	4.87
29	Tahoma	4,140	200	4.9 nights	July	$639	37%	$64,106	4.82
30	Springville	3,717	123	3.4 nights	June	$277	38%	$36,997	4.87
31	Homewood	3,635	151	4.6 nights	July	$641	39%	$74,256	4.80
32	Unincorporated Santa Monica Mountains	3,072	94	3.9 nights	August	$745	44%	$91,711	4.92
33	Kernville	3,030	118	3.0 nights	July	$315	31%	$33,969	4.81
34	Pine Mountain Club	2,881	125	3.8 nights	December	$285	29%	$23,752	4.86
35	Twin Peaks	2,862	107	3.0 nights	July	$290	32%	$28,497	4.92
36	Soda Springs	2,469	119	4.0 nights	July	$452	36%	$43,731	4.89
37	Wrightwood	2,294	106	4.0 nights	December	$321	31%	$25,143	4.90
38	Kirkwood	2,005	102	3.4 nights	February	$516	31%	$42,179	4.78

Figures are AirROI estimates for the 12 months to October 2026, and stays count Airbnb bookings only. Typical stay is a booking's length, occupancy the share of available nights booked, and revenue the yearly average per home, before costs. Guest rating is out of 5.

Town by town

Where the Top Towns Stand Out

3 of 8 are busiest in December. South Lake Tahoe and Truckee peak in July, Oakhurst and Three Rivers in June, and Mammoth Lakes in February. Among guests who left a review, Los Angeles is the top home city in 6 of the 8. Houses are the largest home type in 4 of the 8. The lines below add what the table can't show, where one of the 8 most booked towns leads its peers or differs from the rest.

Big Bear Lake
Of the 24 mountain towns in California with 200 or more homes, Big Bear Lake had the most Airbnb homes, at 3,370, in the 12 months to October 2026. Cabins, campers and other outdoor stays were the largest home type in Big Bear Lake, at 54% of homes.
Mammoth Lakes
Of the 24 mountain towns in California with 200 or more homes, Mammoth Lakes had the biggest share of apartments and condos, at 76%, in the 12 months to October 2026.
South Lake Tahoe
In the 12 months to October 2026, among guests who left a review, San Francisco was the top home city for South Lake Tahoe, California, at 8.2%.
4
Truckee
In the 12 months to October 2026, among guests who left a review, San Francisco was the top home city for Truckee, California, at 18%.
6
Big Bear City
In the 12 months to October 2026, cabins, campers and other outdoor stays were the largest home type in Big Bear City, California, at 68% of homes.
7
Three Rivers
Of the 24 mountain towns in California with 200 or more homes, Three Rivers had the highest occupancy, at 50%, in the 12 months to October 2026.
8
Lake Arrowhead
In the 12 months to October 2026, cabins, campers and other outdoor stays were the largest home type in Lake Arrowhead, California, at 49% of homes.

When to go

Busiest and Quietest Months

July, June and August rank as the busiest months for Airbnb nights across the mountain towns in California, and November and April as the quietest. July is the busiest month in 17 of the 38, while Big Bear Lake peaks in December, Mammoth Lakes in February, and Oakhurst in June. Across the 38 towns, nightly rates run lowest in September, at about $392, and highest in December, at about $525. Across the 38 towns, stays run longest in July, at 4.4 nights, and shortest in September, at 2.9 nights.

July ranks first, April last

Airbnb months in calendar order. The number is the month's rank, and 1 is the busiest. The bar shows its part of Airbnb nights.

Three busiest months
Other months

Month by month: rank, typical stay and nightly rate

Months in California by rank
Rank	Month	Typical stay	Nightly rate
1	July	4.4 nights	$481
2	June	4.0 nights	$442
3	August	3.5 nights	$439
4	December	3.9 nights	$525
5	February	3.4 nights	$513
6	January	3.3 nights	$515
7	September	2.9 nights	$392
8	March	3.3 nights	$467
9	October	3.1 nights	$409
10	May	3.5 nights	$415
11	November	3.3 nights	$425
12	April	3.4 nights	$415

Who comes

Where Guests Come From

Among guests who left a review, 92.7% come from within the United States. Among those guests, the largest groups from abroad come from Mexico and the United Kingdom. The top home cities among those guests are Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco. Mariposa draws the most from abroad, at 21%, among towns with 200 or more homes.

Top countries abroad

Among guests who left a review

Mexico 1.2%
United Kingdom 1%

Top home cities

Among guests who left a review

92.7% from within the United States

Los Angeles 11%
San Diego 5.3%
San Francisco 4.5%
San Jose 1.7%

The money view

Revenue, Occupancy and Nightly Rate

Among the 24 towns with 200 or more Airbnb homes, Three Rivers has the highest estimated revenue per home, at $68,493 a year. Of those 24, Three Rivers has the highest occupancy, at 50%, and Crestline has the lowest nightly rate on Airbnb, at $269. The most booked of the 38, Big Bear Lake, earns about $39,296 per home.

Highest revenue per home of these 24

A year, AirROI estimate

Three Rivers $68,493
Carnelian Bay $64,317
Tahoma $64,106
Tahoe City $57,342
South Lake Tahoe $56,042

Highest occupancy of these 24

Nights booked, AirROI estimate

Lowest nightly rate of these 24

On Airbnb, AirROI estimate

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most popular mountain town in California?

By AirROI's estimates, Big Bear Lake is the most booked of the 38 mountain towns in California, with 80,927 Airbnb stays in the 12 months to October 2026. Mammoth Lakes is second, with 66,329. This counts Airbnb bookings only.

What is the most affordable mountain town in California?

By AirROI's estimated nightly rate on Airbnb in the 12 months to October 2026, among mountain towns in California with 200 or more homes, the lowest are Crestline ($269), Running Springs ($292) and Idyllwild-Pine Cove ($307). That is the average asking price on booked nights, not what it costs to live or buy there.

What are some small mountain towns in California?

By AirROI's count of active Airbnb homes as of October 2026, the smallest of the 38 mountain towns it lists in California are Unincorporated Santa Monica Mountains (94), Kirkwood (102) and Wrightwood (106). AirROI's list starts at 100 homes, so smaller places are not on it.

What mountain towns in California offer the strongest Airbnb returns?

Returns depend on what a home costs to buy and run, which AirROI's figures do not cover. On AirROI's estimated revenue per home in the 12 months to October 2026, among mountain towns in California with 200 or more homes, the highest are Three Rivers ($68,493), Carnelian Bay ($64,317) and Tahoma ($64,106). Among the same towns, Three Rivers has the highest occupancy, at 50%.

Method

How These Lists and Numbers Are Made

How a town gets on this list. A town needs 100 or more Airbnb homes with recent stays. A language model then judges the place from its name, state, country and coordinates, not from words in its name: it has to sit in a mountain range or right at its foot, with the mountains the reason it is known and why people go. The town's own listings can back that up, with 15% of its listing titles naming the mountains. A town whose listings do not gets a second, stricter check, which asks whether people go there for that or mainly for something else. Big cities stay off. Corrections come last: places the checks got wrong are added or taken off, and rows that name one place are joined.

How the figures are made. Stays, occupancy, nightly rate and revenue are AirROI estimates built from Airbnb listing data, and cover Airbnb only. A town's stays are its bookings in the period, and the typical stay and busiest month come from the same data. Guest ratings, home sizes and how far ahead guests book are the latest figures in each town's AirROI data. Month ranks compare each month's part of Airbnb nights. Origin rests on 1,702,576 reviews and describes guests who left a review, not everyone who stayed. A town needs 1,000 reviews before this page gives its share from abroad.