Fall color near Las Vegas
The Strip stays green and the desert stays tan, but Las Vegas hides a real foliage escape: less than an hour up Kyle Canyon, Mount Charleston's aspens turn brilliant gold against limestone cliffs. Push a little farther and Zion's cottonwoods glow beneath red rock walls well into late fall.
Fall activities in Las Vegas
Little classic fall color reaches Las Vegas itself — these are the closest real shows, ranked by distance.
Nevada
239 miPeak October 18
Aspen groves turn gold across the Great Basin's mountain ranges, most famously Lamoille Canyon in the Ruby Mountains and Wheeler Peak in Great Basin National Park. Peak color typically runs late September into mid-October.
Utah
290 miPeak October 15
Quaking aspen turns the Wasatch and high plateaus gold along the Alpine Loop Scenic Byway, while Fishlake National Forest hosts Pando, the massive aspen clone. Peak color typically falls in late September to early October.
Arizona
233 miPeak November 3
Aspens gild the San Francisco Peaks and White Mountains by late September, while bigtooth maples set Oak Creek Canyon near Sedona ablaze in red and orange through mid-to-late October at lower elevation.
California
252 miPeak November 13
Eastern Sierra aspens turn gold along the June Lake Loop, Bishop Creek Canyon, and Lundy Canyon, often paired with turning black oak in the foothills. Peak color generally arrives in early-to-mid October at elevation.
In Las Vegas itself
Peak: November 2–November 16
Color builds from October 25 · mostly bare by December 2
Method: daily ERA5 temperatures (Open-Meteo) drive a photoperiod + chilling phenology model, sampled at Las Vegas’s own coordinates rather than a regional average. Dates are computed for Las Vegas at 620 m — about 2.2 days later than the surrounding terrain. Estimates, not promises — street trees vary block to block. Check locally before you plan around a weekend.
Where locals go
Things to do in fall in Las Vegas
Orchards, cider, haunts, and harvest season — the iconic fall stops within a day trip of Las Vegas.
Haunted Harvest at Springs Preserve
Fall festivalColor nearby peaks November 8
The lights-on, kid-scale alternative to Vegas haunts: four evenings of trick-or-treat stations, crafts and food trucks scattered through the Springs Preserve's "Boo-tanical" Garden, with costumed characters lurking in the beds. Tickets are timed-entry and online only.
Don’t miss: Trick-or-treat stations · "Boo-tanical" Garden setting · Members enter early at 4pm
The Gilcrease Orchard
OrchardColor nearby peaks November 6
Sixty acres of you-pick orchard in northwest Las Vegas, run since 1997 by the non-profit Gilcrease Orchard Foundation on land the Gilcrease brothers farmed from the 1970s. Ted called it his "pick and pay" orchard; fall brings apples, a pumpkin patch, corn maze and wagon rides.
Don’t miss: 60 acres of you-pick · Non-profit foundation since 1997 · Fall pumpkin patch and corn maze
Halloween Town Pumpkin Patch (Silverado Ranch)
Pumpkin patchColor nearby peaks November 8
Halloween Town sets up several pumpkin patches around the Las Vegas valley every October, this one off Silverado Ranch Boulevard on the south side, with carnival games, a pumpkin-themed mini golf course, and rides sized for both toddlers and teenagers. It closes for the rest of the year, so the whole lot exists just for the six or so weeks around Halloween.
Don’t miss: Carnival games and pumpkin mini golf · Rides for toddlers through teens · Seasonal pop-up, October only
Boulder City
22 miHistoric town
Color nearby peaks November 12
Boulder City was built from scratch in 1931 to house the workers who raised Hoover Dam, and it remains one of only two towns in Nevada with no casinos. The Boulder Dam Hotel sits at the heart of a walkable historic downtown that now houses a small museum on the dam's construction, twenty-some miles from the Las Vegas Strip.
Don’t miss: Boulder Dam Hotel and museum · Dam-construction history · Casino-free historic downtown
in Nevada
Moapa Valley Cornmaze
47 miCorn maze
Color nearby peaks November 19
An hour northeast of Las Vegas in the farm country around Logandale, the Moapa Valley Cornmaze turns into a haunted corn maze after dark and a plain day maze for younger kids in daylight. Between mazes there is a pumpkin patch, a corn cannon, pig races, and a cow train, enough to fill a whole desert-valley afternoon.
Don’t miss: Haunted corn maze after dark · Day maze, pumpkin patch, corn cannon · Pig races and cow train rides
in Nevada
Guides
Frequently asked
- Does Las Vegas get fall colors?
- Some, but it's understated. The Strip stays green and the desert stays tan, but Las Vegas hides a real foliage escape: less than an hour up Kyle Canyon, Mount Charleston's aspens turn brilliant gold against limestone cliffs. Push a little farther and Zion's cottonwoods glow beneath red rock walls well into late fall.
- Where's the closest good foliage to Las Vegas?
- Nevada, about 239 mi away, peaking around October 18. Aspen groves turn gold across the Great Basin's mountain ranges, most famously Lamoille Canyon in the Ruby Mountains and Wheeler Peak in Great Basin National Park. Peak color typically runs late September into mid-October.
- When does Las Vegas see what color it gets?
- The model predicts the area's late-season change around November 2–November 16 — subtle in town, and no match for a trip toward Nevada and Utah.
- What are the best things to do in fall in Las Vegas?
- Beyond the leaves: Haunted Harvest at Springs Preserve (3 mi); The Gilcrease Orchard (11 mi); Halloween Town Pumpkin Patch (Silverado Ranch) (11 mi); Boulder City (22 mi); Moapa Valley Cornmaze (47 mi). All of them are mapped on this page.
- What are the best things to do in autumn near Las Vegas?
- Come autumn — autumn (September–November) — locals head for Haunted Harvest at Springs Preserve (3 mi); The Gilcrease Orchard (11 mi); Halloween Town Pumpkin Patch (Silverado Ranch) (11 mi); Boulder City (22 mi); Moapa Valley Cornmaze (47 mi). Each is on the map with the distance from Las Vegas.