Where is the best fall color at Acadia National Park right now?

On Nov 10 the park is leaves down. The last band to peak was -250 to 0 feet, around Oct 15.

How long does peak last at Acadia National Park?

About four days at the top, Oct 13 to 16, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across the park's elevations the color moves over about 3 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 7 days.

Is Acadia National Park past peak?

Yes. Peak was around Oct 14, and on Nov 10 it's leaves down.

Back to the map

National Park·Maine·37,791 acres

Acadia National Park

Forecast issued Nov 10, 7:57am ET

Photograph: More Than Just Parks

Peak colorOct 14Aim for Oct 13 to 16

In the park today, Nov 10Leaves down

Roadsides and wetland edges turn first, and the woods behind them run a few days later.

Weather Hard frost Wednesday night. Peak may come early and go fast.

15 reports came in from Hancock County this week, 10 of them still green and 2 of them at peak. Our date held. See the county on the map.

Still greenStartingNearly peakPeakPast peakNo fall canopy we forecastInside the line, each band of elevation is painted on its own date.

Around Acadia National Park Nearly all of the park is in Hancock County, which is leaves down today. Knox County, to the west, is 1 day behind.

When is peak fall foliage at Acadia National Park in 2026?

Our forecast puts peak color at Acadia National Park around Oct 14, and the four days to aim for are Oct 13 to 16.

The park runs from about -7 to 609 feet, and the color comes downhill over about 3 days: the high stands around Oct 14, the low ground around Oct 15.

Acadia, fall color week by week, 2026
Week	In the park	Elevation at peak
Sep 28 to Oct 4	Starting to turn
Oct 5 to Oct 11	Nearly peak
Oct 12 to Oct 18	Peak color	-250 to 0 ft, 0 to 250 ft, 250 to 500 ft
Oct 19 to Oct 25	Just past peak

By elevation The park runs from about -7 to 609 feet. That’s 3 days of season between the top and the bottom: the high stands peak around Oct 14, the low ground holds until about Oct 15, and the color comes downhill in between. The date at the top of this page is the 250 to 500 foot band.

250–500 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 1412%
0–250 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 1558%
-250–0 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 1524%

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.

The place

Cadillac Mountain is only 1,530 feet tall, which sounds modest until you realize there is nothing taller on the entire US Atlantic coast. From October through March, this is the first place in the country to catch sunrise. You stand up there in the dark with your coffee going cold, and then the light hits the granite and the ocean at the same time and you understand why people keep coming back to 49,000 acres of rocky Maine coastline.

Established 1919. About 4 million/year visitors.

Plan this trip

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.

ArrivingLeaving

Tuesday, October 13 to Wednesday, October 14

You’ll find it peak color.

That's the day our forecast puts peak color here.

250–500 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 14
0–250 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 15
-250–0 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 15

Where to drive: Park Loop Road, about 5 miles
What turns: sugar maple, red maple, paper birch, yellow birch, American beech
Entrance: $35

What turns, and when

sugar maple27%
red maple23%
paper birch18%
yellow birch9%
American beech9%
quaking aspen9%

Also named across Maine, outside what the canopy read measures here: White Birch, Red Oak.

Maine's fall is defined by the contrast of scarlet maples and golden birches against dark spruce, with the rocky coast adding a blue backdrop that makes every color more vivid.

Questions people ask about Acadia National Park

When is peak fall foliage at Acadia National Park?: Our forecast puts peak color at Acadia National Park around Oct 14, and the four days to aim for are Oct 13 to 16.
Where is the best fall color at Acadia National Park right now?: On Nov 10 the park is leaves down. The last band to peak was -250 to 0 feet, around Oct 15.
How long does peak last at Acadia National Park?: About four days at the top, Oct 13 to 16, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across the park's elevations the color moves over about 3 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 7 days.
Is Acadia National Park past peak?: Yes. Peak was around Oct 14, and on Nov 10 it's leaves down.
What trees turn color at Acadia National Park?: Sugar Maple, Red Maple, White Birch, American Beech, Red Oak. Maine's fall is defined by the contrast of scarlet maples and golden birches against dark spruce, with the rocky coast adding a blue backdrop that makes every color more vivid.
Is there an entrance fee at Acadia National Park?: Entrance fee $35.

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 27 long-running forest cameras: two dates in three land within 10 days of the camera’s own peak. How this map is made

All of Maine

Nearby, and when they turn

Rachel Carson National Wildlife RefugeME · about 129 miles
Peak Oct 15 best Oct 14 to 17
Caribou-Speckled Mountain WildernessME · about 131 miles
Peak Oct 10 best Oct 9 to 12
Wild River WildernessNH · about 140 miles
Peak Oct 15 best Oct 14 to 17
Presidential Range-Dry River WildernessNH · about 150 miles
Peak Oct 15 best Oct 14 to 17
White Mountain National ForestME, NH · about 155 miles
Peak Oct 18 best Oct 17 to 20
Lincoln Woods Scenic AreaNH · about 158 miles
Peak Oct 18 best Oct 17 to 20

Fall color roads near Acadia National Park

Nearest first. Distances are straight-line from the park, so allow more by road.

Park Loop Road · about 5 miles, ME · 27 miles of road
Acadia's one-way loop pairs ocean views with maple and birch color. Best in the second and third weeks of October.