Fall color near Jacksonville
North Florida sees more autumn than people expect — this is not maple country, but sweetgum, hickory, and bald cypress bring rust and amber to the St. Johns bluffs very late in the year. The Jacksonville Arboretum and the Theodore Roosevelt Area hold the best of it, and the Okefenokee's cypress glow makes a fine day trip north.
Fall activities in Jacksonville
Little classic fall color reaches Jacksonville itself, so these are the closest real shows, ranked by distance.
Drag the date slider to see when color moves through the country around Jacksonville, or tap a pin for that stop’s own peak window.
Florida
120 miPeak December 4
Florida offers only muted color, but bald cypress, sweetgum, and red maple along the Panhandle's river bluffs at Torreya State Park and Blackwater River turn rust and gold in late November into December.
Georgia
193 miPeak November 17
North Georgia's Blue Ridge foothills turn hickory, sourwood, and maple gold along the Richard Russell Scenic Highway and around Vogel State Park, with peak color typically arriving in late October to early November.
South Carolina
250 miPeak November 9
Upstate maples and oaks around Table Rock and Caesars Head State Parks turn by late October, while blackwater cypress-tupelo swamps at Congaree National Park hold muted color into November across the Lowcountry.
Alabama
337 miPeak November 16
Cheaha State Park and Little River Canyon on Alabama's southern Appalachian foothills turn oak, hickory, and sweetgum by late October, with milder color continuing into November across the rest of the state.
North Carolina
384 miPeak November 11
The Blue Ridge Parkway and Great Smoky Mountains National Park turn sourwood, maple, and hickory to scarlet by mid-October, while Piedmont oaks and the coastal plain hold color into November.
In Jacksonville itself
Peak: November 24–November 28
Color builds from November 13 · mostly bare by December 21
Sampled at Jacksonville’s own coordinates rather than a regional average. Dates are computed for Jacksonville itself at 6 m elevation. Street trees vary block to block, so check locally before you plan a weekend around it.
Florida is sampled at 22 weather points, then moved 8 days later so the model agrees with 1 published peak date from explorefall.com. Against Florida's own climatology, the 2026 weather puts the peak 1 day earlier. Florida turns close to together, with about 1 day between its earliest corner and its latest. How the forecast works
Where locals go
Things to do in fall in Jacksonville
Orchards, cider, haunts, and harvest season. These are the iconic fall stops within a day trip of Jacksonville.
Spooktacular at Jacksonville Zoo
Fall festivalColor nearby peaks November 25
Now in its 39th year, the Jacksonville Zoo's Spooktacular turns the grounds into an evening family Halloween festival with treat stations…
13th Floor Haunted House Jacksonville
Haunted attractionColor nearby peaks November 26
The Jacksonville outpost of the national 13th Floor haunt brand runs multiple themed walk-throughs on Arlington Expressway.
Corn maze
Color nearby peaks November 30
A Clay County farm on State Road 21, about 30 minutes south of Jacksonville, that opens a crop maze and pumpkin patch each autumn alongside…
in Florida
Ghost tour
Color nearby peaks November 30
A nightly 80-minute narrated trolley tour of the oldest city in the country, stopping at Tolomato Cemetery, the Old City Gates and the Old…
in Florida
Guides
Frequently asked
- Does Jacksonville get fall colors?
- Some, but it stays understated. Expect scattered street trees rather than a hillside, with the color worth planning around out toward Florida and Georgia.
- Where's the closest good foliage to Jacksonville?
- Florida, about 120 mi away, peaking around December 4. Florida offers only muted color, but bald cypress, sweetgum, and red maple along the Panhandle's river bluffs at Torreya State Park and Blackwater River turn rust and gold in late November into December.
- When does Jacksonville see what color it gets?
- The model predicts the area's late-season change around November 24–November 28. It stays subtle in town, and it is no match for a trip toward Florida and Georgia.
- What are the best things to do in fall in Jacksonville?
- Beyond the leaves: Spooktacular at Jacksonville Zoo (5 mi); 13th Floor Haunted House Jacksonville (6 mi); Amazing Grace Family Farms (29 mi); Ghosts & Gravestones St. Augustine (36 mi). All of them are mapped on this page.