When do the leaves change in Seattle?
Seattle's maritime autumn runs late and long: Japanese maples and big-leaf maples color through late October, while the larches in the Cascades — the state's signature gold — peak weeks earlier at elevation.
Peak: October 16–October 23
Color builds from October 3 · mostly bare by November 8
Sampled at Seattle’s own coordinates rather than a regional average. Dates are computed for Seattle itself at 59 m elevation. Street trees vary block to block, so check locally before you plan a weekend around it.
34 weather points cover Washington, and the model shifts their answer 2 days earlier, which is what it takes to match 2 published peak dates from smokymountains.com, king5.com and 1 other source. This year's weather has the peak running 5 days later than a normal year. Washington does not turn all at once, and the gap from the earliest corner to the latest runs about 25 days. How the forecast works
Fall activities in Seattle
Drag the date slider to see when color moves through the country around Seattle, or tap a pin for that stop’s own peak window.
Franklin Falls
43 miTrail
Typically October 1–October 20
An easy two-mile round trip off Snoqualmie Pass through old-growth hemlock and cedar to a 70-foot waterfall, with vine maple burning red…
in Washington
National park
Typically September 15–October 5
Paradise at 5,400 feet doesn't do tree color.
in Washington
The Enchantments
71 miTrail
Typically September 25–October 15
Washington's alpine larches turn gold in the first week of October, and the Enchantments' granite basins near Leavenworth are their…
in Washington
Tumwater Canyon
75 miScenic drive
Peak September 13
Highway 2 squeezes through this granite gorge west of Leavenworth, where vine maples flare scarlet against the Wenatchee River each October.
in Washington
Where locals go
Washington Park Arboretum
ArboretumPeak October 20
The 230-acre arboretum on Lake Washington runs vivid from mid-October into November, with Japanese maples along Azalea Way, the Pacific…
Green Lake Park
City parkPeak October 20
The city's favorite 2.8-mile loop rings Green Lake with sweetgums, maples, and cottonwoods that color through late October.
Kubota Garden
GardenPeak October 18
Fujitaro Kubota's 20-acre Japanese garden in Rainier Beach layers maples over ponds, bridges, and stonework.
Things to do in fall in Seattle
Orchards, cider, haunts, and harvest season. These are the iconic fall stops within a day trip of Seattle.
US Ghost Adventures: Seattle Ghost Tour
Ghost tourColor nearby peaks October 20
A lantern-carrying guide walks you about a mile through Seattle's oldest, most haunted blocks in ninety minutes, starting and ending…
Corn maze
Color nearby peaks October 18
Bob's has been challenging visitors to its corn-fusing labyrinth of 10-foot-tall corn since 2001, and the 12-acre maze still anchors this…
in Washington
Remlinger Farms
20 miPumpkin patch
Color nearby peaks October 18
East of Seattle in the Snoqualmie Valley, Remlinger Farms turns its u-pick fields over to a Fall Harvest Pumpkin Festival each autumn.
in Washington
Craven Farm
22 miCorn maze
Color nearby peaks October 17
Craven Farm has been running fall harvest days in the Snohomish River valley since 1983.
in Washington
Haunted attraction
Color nearby peaks October 17
Nightmare on 9 opened in 2012 and was rebuilt from scratch in 2019 into two haunts: Rippers Hollow, a cursed coal town, and the Vogel…
in Washington
Stocker Farms
23 miCorn maze
Color nearby peaks October 17
A Snohomish Valley farm "bringing hearts together since 1919," Stocker packs 30-plus attractions into its fall festival: the corn maze, a…
in Washington
Guides
Frequently asked
- When do leaves peak in Seattle in 2026?
- Peak color is predicted for October 16–October 23 (best estimate October 19). Color starts around October 3 and trees are mostly bare by November 8. These dates are computed for Seattle itself, at 59 m elevation, using the same weather model as the tracker.
- When is fall foliage season in Seattle?
- Seattle colors during autumn (September to November). Counting from the first turn to bare branches that is about 36 days, and the best of it falls in the week either side of October 19.
- What's the best foliage near Seattle?
- Franklin Falls (43 mi); Mount Rainier, Paradise (63 mi); The Enchantments (71 mi). For a longer trip: Washington (87 mi, peak ~October 16); Oregon (264 mi, peak ~October 24); Idaho (432 mi, peak ~October 11).
- What are the best things to do in fall in Seattle?
- Beyond the leaves: US Ghost Adventures: Seattle Ghost Tour (1 mi); Bob's Corn & Pumpkin Farm (20 mi); Remlinger Farms (20 mi); Craven Farm (22 mi); Nightmare on 9 at Thomas Family Farm (22 mi). All of them are mapped on this page.