Where to See Fall Colors Around Seattle

The colorful portion of Autumn in Seattle comes quickly and is gone before you know it. We want to help you catch those colors before all the leaves fall to the ground and wither away. We rounded up some of our favorite fall color spots in Seattle for your viewing pleasure. We love taking photos around the area when the colors start to change and will be updating this list with more photos soon.

Jefferson Park

The trees along the driving range at Jefferson Park are beautiful once they start changing colors. If you walk to the north end of the park you can also see a great view of the city and fall colors throughout the neighborhood.

The Fremont Cut

Take a walk along the Burke-Gilman Trail and enjoy the colors along the Fremont cut and colorful trees surrounding the houseboats in Lake Union further down the path.

Sam Smith Park

Sam Smith Park and the trail leading you over to Jimi Hendrix Park is a great spot to take in the colors of fall. The leaves have already started to change here as you can see with Charlie the Do206 pup taking in all the smells.

Lake Washington Boulevard

Lake Washington Boulevard is a great spot to take in some fall foliage and stretch your legs as you walk around the lake.

The Seattle Center

Right under the Space Needle and along with the Seattle Center fountain you can watch the trees change color and up your Instagram game in the process. These trees usually start changing colors around the beginning of October but are always subject to change based upon the weather.

University of Washington

Take a stroll through the University of Washington Campus and enjoy the changing colors. Around the quad and fountain are great places to start. It's also worth taking a walk down to Portage Bay and looking at the fall foliage around the house boats.

Kubota Garden

Kubota Garden features streams, waterfalls, ponds, rock outcroppings, and an exceptionally rich and mature collection of plant materials where a bulk of which change all kinds of different colors. Take a stroll and enjoy the autumn colors at their best.

Discovery Park

Venture through Discovery Park and over 500 acres of nature. Along the paths and trails, you will see plenty of colorful trees and bushes.

The view from Ella Bailey Park

Venture to the Magnolia neighborhood of Seattle and one of our favorite viewpoints Ella Bailey Park. From this vantage point, you can take in the view of the Queen Anne fall colors and the city rising above it.

Washington Park Arboretum

Wander through the Washington Park Arboretum and enjoy the cool breeze and changing colors. The Japanese Garden located in the Arboretum is also VERY worth visiting to view the fall colors.

Lincoln Park

Lincoln Park is a beautiful wooded park in West Seattle that also hosts some big ole trees that like to change colors. If you want down to the shoreline you can also take in the colorful hillside behind the Vashon Ferry Landing.

Take A Stroll Through Capitol Hill

Capitol Hill is full of all kinds of colorful trees waiting to show up in your Instagram stories. We like to start off at Cal Anderson Park and then walk up to Volunteer Park to take in all the beauty along the way.

Walk From The Ballard Locks To Golden Gardens

Take a walk through Ballard and along the Burke Gillman Trail before the leaves fall to catch some of the vibrant colors of fall. The Ballard Locks is a great spot to take a stroll as well, but it is currently closed due to COVID, but that might change soon.

Walk Around Green Lake

Green Lake is a great spot to wander and enjoy the fall foliage. Within the 2 + mile area, there is a plentiful resource of colorful trees to help you forget about the troubles of the world for a couple of minutes.

MLK Memorial Park

Take a walk through Martin Luther King Jr Memorial Park and take in the fall colors along the walkways that wrap around this unique area.

More spots we plan on checking out this season

Get Out Of Seattle For Fall Colors

If you want to see even more fall colors in some beautiful locations the Snoqualmie area is always one of our favorite areas and we have a special guide about that HERE. We also have a few other great destinations below.

More spots outside of Seattle:

If you are looking to learn more about photography check out some of the upcoming classes at Glazer's Camera and take a look at our Guide To Iconic Photo Spots in Seattle.

Seattle Fall Color Spots Map

Did we leave out any of your favorite spots? Send us a message at [email protected]!

*Updated September 5 2024