B737-800
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Situational Awareness
Inflight Event / Encounter CFTT / CFIT; Inflight Event / Encounter Unstabilized Approach
General None Reported / Taken
Human Factors
Cleared for a visual approach to 34L RNO at night in VFR. When I turned to a base leg PNF informed me that we were high. Informed tower we were turning a downwind leg to lose altitude. They said roger. We maintained 8;300 feet. Then they responded that they were getting a low altitude alert on us. We had GPWS on and neither one of us were indicating terrain issues. We had the field in sight the entire time and said so to ATC. We turned a left base leg then final and did a small S turn to continue to lose altitude. At 1;000 feet we were on PAPI but above glideslope fully configured and stable. Considered a go-around however did have one red on PAPI.I broke my protocol. I accepted a night VFR approach into a [high terrain] city. Should have stayed with ATC and received radar vectors and altitudes from ATC. It was my FO's first time into RNO.
I believe we should have stayed with [ATC] guidance and vectors due to the terrain and nighttime conditions and not have accepted a visual.
B737-800 flight crew reported they got a low altitude alert from ATC on a night visual approach into RNO.