National Park·Arkansas·4,919 acres
Hot Springs National Park
Forecast issued Nov 10, 7:57am ET
white oak and black oak
shagbark hickory and sugar maple, peak Nov 2
Peak color should arrive around Nov 2 for the shagbark hickory and sugar maple, and around Nov 11 for the white oak and black oak.
Roadsides and wetland edges turn first, and the woods behind them run a few days later.
No new reports from the ground here this week.
When is peak fall foliage at Hot Springs National Park in 2026?
Our forecast puts peak color at Hot Springs National Park around Nov 9, and the four days to aim for are Nov 8 to 11. shagbark hickory and sugar maple peak later, around Nov 2.
That's 6 days later than our model alone would say, because this September has been running warm.
| Week | In the park | Elevation at peak |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 19 to Oct 25 | Starting to turn | |
| Oct 26 to Nov 1 | Nearly peak | |
| Nov 2 to Nov 8 | Peak color | 1,000 to 1,250 ft |
| Nov 9 to Nov 15 this week | Peak color | 500 to 750 ft, 750 to 1,000 ft |
| Nov 16 to Nov 22 | Just past peak |
- 1,000–1,250 ftPeak colorpeak Nov 816%
- 750–1,000 ftPeak colorpeak Nov 940%
- 500–750 ftPeak colorpeak Nov 944%
Height off 3DEP inside the park’s own boundary; each band carries the date our model gives that elevation, corrections and all. The percentage is how much of the park stands in it.
That’s 6 days later than our model alone would say. This September has been running warm, which shifts peak color.
The place
Hot Springs is the weird one. Protected in 1832, forty years before Yellowstone, it spent a century as a government-run spa town before anyone thought to call it a national park in 1921. Forty-seven thermal springs still pump out 700,000 gallons of 143-degree water every day, most of it piped into bathhouses along a single downtown street in Arkansas.
Established 1921. About 2.5 million/year visitors.
If you can only come on certain days
Set the days you can be here. Everything under them answers for those days, not for peak.
Sunday, November 8 to Monday, November 9
You’ll find it peak color.
That's the day our forecast puts peak color here.
- 1,000–1,250 ftPeak colorpeak Nov 8
- 750–1,000 ftPeak colorpeak Nov 9
- 500–750 ftPeak colorpeak Nov 9
- Where to drive
- Pig Trail Scenic Byway (Route 23), about 90 miles · Talimena National Scenic Byway, about 91 miles · Route 7 Scenic Byway, about 92 miles
- What turns
- white oak, black oak, shagbark hickory, sugar maple
- Entrance
- No entrance fee
What turns, and when
- white oak44%
- black oak29%
- shagbark hickory14%
- sugar maple14%
Also named across Arkansas, outside what the canopy read measures here: Red Maple, Sweetgum, Blackgum.
The Ozark Mountains produce a warm-toned fall of gold oaks, bronze hickories, crimson blackgums, and the occasional sweetgum burning purple and red along the creek bottoms.
Questions people ask about Hot Springs National Park
- When is peak fall foliage at Hot Springs National Park?
Our forecast puts peak color at Hot Springs National Park around Nov 9, and the four days to aim for are Nov 8 to 11. shagbark hickory and sugar maple peak later, around Nov 2.
- Where is the best fall color at Hot Springs National Park right now?
On Nov 10 the park is peak color. By elevation, the color is at peak at 500 to 750 feet, 750 to 1,000 feet and 1,000 to 1,250 feet.
- How long does peak last at Hot Springs National Park?
About four days at the top, Nov 8 to 11, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive.
- Is Hot Springs National Park past peak?
No. It's at peak now, on Nov 10, and the four days to aim for are Nov 8 to 11.
- What trees turn color at Hot Springs National Park?
Red Maple, White Oak, Hickory, Sweetgum, Blackgum. The Ozark Mountains produce a warm-toned fall of gold oaks, bronze hickories, crimson blackgums, and the occasional sweetgum burning purple and red along the creek bottoms.
- Is there an entrance fee at Hot Springs National Park?
Entrance fee Free.
This forecast is built from the species that stand here, their elevation and this September’s weather, and corrected in season by cameras, foresters and our own crew. We score it here against 7 long-running forest cameras: two dates in three land within 13 days of the camera’s own peak. How this map is made
Nearby, and when they turn
Ouachita is on the map above, with its own date.
- Peak Nov 5 best Nov 4 to 7
- Peak Nov 6 best Nov 5 to 8
- Peak Nov 4 best Nov 3 to 6
- Peak Nov 6 best Nov 5 to 8
- Peak Nov 4 best Nov 3 to 6
Fall color roads near Hot Springs National Park
Nearest first. Distances are straight-line from the park, so allow more by road.
- Pig Trail Scenic Byway (Route 23)
Twists through the Ozark National Forest between Ozark and Brashears. Tight switchbacks through dense hardwood canopy. Best in late October.
- Talimena National Scenic Byway
Runs the ridge of the Ouachita Mountains from Talihina, OK to Mena, AR. Ridgetop views of color-covered mountains in every direction. Peaks late October to early November.
- Route 7 Scenic Byway
Often called the most scenic drive in Arkansas. The section between Jasper and Harrison through the Buffalo River valley is the highlight.