A recent USA Today readers' poll has proclaimed Lake Tahoe as the "Best Lake in America".

The poll was narrowed down to 15 finalists which were nominated by regional magazine editors. Ultimately North America's largest and most popular alpine lake won the honors by accumulating more than 5,000 votes via Facebook and Twitter.

The editors tried to spotlight some of the nation's smaller, less famous summer getaways so they ignored the five Great Lakes.

Lake Tahoe is recognized for its timeless beauty and an international reputation as an outdoor recreational Mecca. The combination of great outdoors, entertainment, nightlife, dining and gaming identify its unique character.

"The Sierra Mountains around Lake Tahoe clinch the deal," wrote Dick Goodrick, a former Michigander who now lives in Dayton, Nev. "Year-round recreation, skiing, hiking, casinos, mountain bike riding, fishing, wake boarding, sailing on big boats, paddle wheel dinner/cruise boats, clear deep blue water, spawning salmon, zip-lining, historic homes to visit, and much more. No lake can match it."

Other Lake Tahoe awards include top rankings from TripAdvisor, Orbitz.com and Rand McNally as the No. 1 ski destination in the U.S.; and numerous designations from Forbes.com, MSNBC, SKI Magazine, Skiing Magazine, Transworld Snowboarding for diverse categories such as snow quality, scenery, après, off-hill activities, and terrain parks for Heavenly Mountain Resort, Sierra-at-Tahoe and Kirkwood Mountain Resort.

Michigan's Lake Charlevoix was runner-up in the poll, with strong support for Alabama's Lake Martin, Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks and North Carolina's Lake Lure plus a sizeable number of votes for New York's Blue Mountain Lake, New Hampshire's Newfound Lake and Washington's Crescent Lake.