NPS forecasts DC cherry blossom peak bloom within March 29, April 1

By Alvin Wu
Domestic Affairs
NPS forecasts DC cherry blossom peak bloom within March 29, April 1

Tourists clamor for photos of cherry blossoms during peak bloom on March 29, 2025, at the Tidal Basin, overlooked by the Washington Monument. ZFJ/Alvin Wu

WASHINGTON, March 14 (ZFJ) — The National Park Service (NPS) predicts that the cherry blossoms around the Tidal Basin and National Mall will reach peak bloom between March 29 to April 1, with exact timing dependent on actual weather conditions.

Peak bloom is defined as the day when 70% of the cherry blossoms are open. According to the federal announcement on March 5, the blossoms typically remain on the trees for 7-10 days.

NPS National Mall reported that the trees reached florets visible—stage 2 of 6—on March 13.

New for this year is the completion of the Tidal Basin and West Potomac Park seawall restoration project. The seawall has been updated to be more resilient to sea-level rise and stronger storms.

The National Cherry Blossom Festival will take place from March 20 to April 12. Metro will debut specially-wrapped vehicles—one train, three buses, and one Metro Access vehicle—and stock over 20,000 limited edition SmarTrip cards in seven stations on March 20.

Metro vehicles with the cherry blossom wrap. WMATA/Handout Metro vehicles with the cherry blossom wrap. WMATA/Handout

Limited edition cherry blossom SmarTrip card. WMATA/Handout Limited edition cherry blossom SmarTrip card. WMATA/Handout

The closest Metro station to the Tidal Basin is Smithsonian, which is a ten minute walk. Sightseers seeking to avoid crowding can also use L’Enfant Plaza and Federal Triangle stations, which have 20 minute walks to the Tidal Basin. Metro Bus is free with a transfer to and from rail.

Smithsonian, L’Enfant Plaza, and Federal Triangle are accessible via the Blue, Orange, and Silver lines. L’Enfant Plaza is accessible via the Green and Yellow lines.

For anyone seeking to avoid the impending mob of D.C. tourists, NPS predicts that the cherry trees at Fort McHenry in Baltimore will reach peak bloom between April 3-5.

References