DC Cherry Blossoms Without Crowds
I’ve lived in DC since 2007, and every year with the blooming of the cherry blossoms in DC, it’s a fight between the two sides of my personality: the side that gets true joy out of flowers, and the side who hates crowds.
When people think of cherry blossoms in DC, they think of the iconic clouds of pink surrounding the Tidal Basin with views of the Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial. The reality is that going to the Tidal Basin at peak bloom is very crowded, and most locals avoid the area due to the crowds and traffic.
In this post, I’ll share the best places to see the cherry blossoms in DC without a lot of people, the different benefits of each place, what to expect in terms of cherry blossoms, and anything to watch out for.
Read more:
- Looking for more details on cherry blossoms in DC? Check out my full guide.
- Learn about my favorite peak blooms in DC
Note: Some of the links in this article may be affiliate links, for which I earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
Table of Contents
What is Peak Bloom?
In this post, you’ll see references to peak bloom. The Tidal Basin is what all other cherry blossoms are judged from. 70% of the cherry blossoms around the Tidal Basin are the Yoshino variety.
“Peak bloom” in DC refers to when the Yoshino cherry blossom trees around the Tidal Basin are blooming the most. Peak bloom timing varies every year and depends on the weather.
However, DC has plenty of different varieties of cherry blossoms that bloom at different times. The most common are Okame, Yoshino, and Kwanzan.
Okame
Vibrant pink flowers with small petals. Usually bloom about 2 weeks before Yoshino.
When the Okame are starting to wind down (and before the Yoshino bloom), you can also see the saucer magnolias in bloom around DC.
Yoshino
Most common at Tidal Basin. White flowers with pale pink tone.
Many people are surprised that these are not bright pink. This photo is a screen grab from a video taken on my iPhone, and has not been edited. Many photos that you see of the cherry blossoms at the Tidal Basin have been edited to give it a brighter pink, closer to the Kwanzan cherry blossom colors. However, they are mostly white with pale pink accents.
Kwanzan
Thick, double flowering with cotton-candy pink petals. Bloom 2-3 weeks after Yoshino.
Tidal Basin on Weekday Mornings
As pretty as all the other locations are, the cherry blossoms at the Tidal Basin are the undeniable best display of cherry blossom blooms in the city. It’s central location makes it one of the sights that makes DC so walkable.
The local secret to see the cherry blossoms without crowds is to go to the Tidal Basin on weekday mornings from sunrise (7:20 AM-ish) until about 10:00 AM. In my video above, you can see the crowds on a Sunday at 1:00 PM and the lack of crowds the next day on Monday at 9:00 AM.
Many locals will stop by before work or take their morning run through the Tidal Basin in order to experience the cherry blossoms in a much more peaceful setting.
You get an unbeatable experience: you can leisurely walk through them without the rush of the crowds, get all of the photos you want without people walking through or standing in front of what you’re looking at, and you can sit on a bench or a blanket underneath a canopy of the fluffy pink blooms.
Location: Tidal Basin
Getting there: Even though it isn’t crowded, it’s still recommended that you take the metro instead of driving. The Smithsonian station is the closest and about a 15 minute walk to the Tidal Basin. L’Enfant Plaza station isn’t much further, but the exits are very confusing and I do not recommend that tourists use it to get to the Tidal Basin, the Smithsonian stop is a clearer (and prettier) path. If you want to try your luck at parking, East Potomac Park is your best bet.
Vibes: Peaceful, tranquil
Varieties and Timing: 70% Yoshino cherry blossoms. When you hear peak bloom, it’s talking about these trees in this location.
Learn more about the cherry blossoms & festival, and the history of how the land used to be underwater.
Congressional Cemetery
Congressional Cemetery is located about 1.5 miles southeast of the US Capitol. It is the resting place of many members of Congress, Senators, and American historical figures, as well as local community members and beloved pets.
Inside Congressional Cemetery near the chapel, there is a pathway with a natural archway made of cherry blossom trees. It is beautiful and gives that sense of being surrounded by the cherry blossoms, with petals falling around you.
In the center of the cherry blossom pathway are Okame cherry blossoms, and on the ends of it are the Kwanzan cherry blossoms. This means that you have a longer time frame to get over and enjoy the cherry blossoms, both before DC peak bloom and after.
It is never as busy as the Tidal Basin, but you’ll usually find people taking photos here during cherry blossom season. If you’re looking for cherry blossom-themed photos for your dog, this is a good option, since they allow dogs off leash here.
While you’re there, check out some of the famous gravesites. John Philip Sousa, composer of many well known military marches, is buried right by the cherry blossoms. Early photography pioneer Matthew Brady is buried here, and a memorial featuring his work is near his gravesite.
It is also accessible, with brick walkways and no steps between the entrance and the cherry blossoms.
Location: Entrance is at 18th & E Streets SE
Getting there: Limited street parking is available, with no parking garages nearby. It’s a 6 minute walk from the Stadium-Armory station if you take the metro.
Vibes: Peaceful during the weekdays, more lively on weekends. Dogs are allowed off leash, and Sundays are busy with people and their dogs enjoying the space.
Varieties and Timing: Half Okame, half Kwanzan. Expect blooms 2-3 weeks before DC peak bloom, and 2-3 weeks after DC peak bloom.
The Congressional Cemetery allows dogs off leash at most times, so expect to see some furry friends while you’re there. If you want to bring your dog, there is a $15 fee per dog, and it must be during their allowed hours.
LeDroit Park Arch
The wrought iron sign at the small park at the entrance of the LeDroit Park neighborhood is extra beautiful in spring when the Okame cherry blossoms surrounding it are in bloom. With the beautiful brick homes around it, it’s a sight to see.
This has been a great place to take photos in years past, but I don’t think it will be as pretty going forward. The arch only had two cherry blossom trees, with one on each side. They were mature trees and really did take up the space, but in 2025, the tree on the right side of the arch was cut down.
DC takes its cherry blossom trees pretty seriously and I imagine that they will be replanting one here, but it will take many years for it to grow to be as magical as the mature tree that once stood there.
It also is on a very busy street (it’s right on Florida Avenue near U Street), and is not at all peaceful. I have never seen anyone hanging out in the little triangle of a park, because it’s not a place to relax with the constant traffic on the 4-lane road. So you will probably have it to yourself, but you won’t feel alone.
But, I think that even with one half of the trees gone, it will still be a very pretty place to take photos.
Location: 6th & Florida Avenue NW
Getting there: Extremely limited street parking is available, with limited parking garages nearby. It’s a 5 minute walk from the Shaw station, and taking the metro is recommended.
Vibes: Traffic, loud noises, feels very exposed. Walk through the LeDroit Park neighborhood afterwards for a more peaceful vibe.
Varieties and Timing: Okame. Expect blooms 2-3 weeks before DC peak bloom.
Dumbarton Oaks
Dumbarton Oaks is an old estate that has beautiful gardens. Known locally for their cascading wisteria, it also has Cherry Hill, where a mix of different cherry species are planted.
When Robert Woods Bliss and his wife Mildred Barnes Bliss purchased the estate in 1920, they began extensive renovations, including terraced gardens and planned wilderness designed by Beatrix Farrand. The wilderness portion of the gardens was gifted to the National Park Service and is today Dumbarton Oaks Park. The terraced gardens that contain the cherry blossoms remain a part of Dumbarton Oaks.
Cherry Hill gives you that feeling of being surrounded by cherry blossom trees, with paths taking you through the beautiful sight. While it does have different varieties of cherry trees, they were selected to give a more unified display than the National Arboretum’s groves of cherry blossoms.
The setting is also a bit more naturalistic. When coming upon the cherry blossoms, you see the more wild Dumbarton Oaks Park behind it, with the cherry blossoms contrasted with the forest behind it. The branches of the cherry blossoms form a canopy of beautiful pink petals falling down. It’s a spot where you feel more surrounded by nature than other places in the city.
Dumbarton Oaks is the only place on the list with an admission fee. From November 1 through the end of February, admission is free. However, starting March 1, you will need to reserve a pass before your visit–there are no sales at the gardens. During the peak blooms, tickets can be hard to come by, so you do want to purchase them ahead of time.
The benefit of tickets is that it’s never as crowded as the Tidal Basin. However, it’s still a popular location, with people taking lots of photos.
Location: 31st Street & R Street NW
Getting there: Limited street parking is available during weekdays, with extremely limited parking on weekends. There are parking garages a few blocks away on Wisconsin Avenue. The metro does not service Georgetown, but the 31 and 33 buses stop nearby.
Vibes: Peaceful and serene (as long as it’s not too busy)
Varieties and Timing: Different types: Autumnalis cherry, weeping cherry, Cornelian cherry, and sour cherry. Expect blooms some time in March.
Stanton Park
Stanton Park is located 4-5 blocks from both the US Capitol and Union Station, and islike a square traffic circle. The park is about the size of a city block, and has pathways through it, along with a playground. It also has cherry blossom trees lining the walkways, making it a popular place to visit during cherry blossom season.
The trees on the east side of the park are the most beautiful, fully creating a canopy over the walkway and benches. You can sit under the trees with petals falling while taking in the view of the Capitol building.
Photos can be a little more difficult here because of the playground. It’s very popular in a family-friendly neighborhood, so you frequently have to wait for kids to get out of frame as they’re walking to the playground, or being taken out of the playground for time out. Still, it’s a nice setting and it’s fun to hear the kids playing and having the time of their lives.
It’s a great place to take a book and read. It’s easy to get to and a very DC vibe. I wouldn’t say it’s tranquil with all the traffic, but it’s peaceful in a city living kind of way.
Location: 5th & C Streets NE
Getting there: Limited street parking is available, with the parking garage at Union Station nearby. It’s a 15 minute walk from Union Station, and taking the metro is recommended.
Vibes: City living with traffic, loud noises, and kids playing. Proximity to the Capitol means it has a very DC feel.
Varieties and Timing: Blooms when Yoshino cherry blossoms do (peak bloom)
Hains Point (East Potomac Park)
Colloquially, all of East Potomac Park is often called Hains Point, though it technically refers to the tip of East Potomac Park. East Potomac Park is the peninsula to the southeast of the Tidal Basin and the Jefferson Memorial.
Hains Point has Kwanzan cherry blossom trees, with thick, fluffy blooms that are a pepto bismol pink. They are planted along the water on both sides so that the pink flowers reflect off the Potomac River and Washington Channel. These bloom later than the Tidal Basin, so might be an option if you just missed the cherry blossoms at the Tidal Basin.
East Potomac Park doesn’t have the density that will make you feel like you are enveloped by the blossoms. The trees are planted further apart, so you don’t get the canopy effect that you do other places. With the National Park Service’s funding problems, it’s also not as well maintained as the Tidal Basin. Be careful along the shoreline as the seawall needs repair.
That being said, it’s still worth visiting. It’s a lovely walk, especially the closer you get to Hains Point (and the further you get from the Tidal Basin and people looking for parking). There’s plenty of space for a picnic, and is a popular spot for local families to get together to celebrate a birthday.
Usually people will drive to one part of it and walk around there. If you want to do a loop of the entire park, it’s about 4.3 miles–and that does not account for the distance from the metro. If you’re going to focus on just one area of the park, I would go to Hains Point at the tip of the peninsula.
A road circles the peninsula, and the trees line the road, so it’s also easy to enjoy the cherry blossoms from your car.
Location: East Potomac Park, Ohio Drive Southwest
Getting there: You can get off at Smithsonian metro station and walk, but it will be about a 5.6 mile round trip if you’re walking the entire peninsula. If you’re taking the metro, focus on the northern part of the park that’s just south of the Jefferson Memorial. If you’re driving, I recommend you try to find parking closer to Hains Point.
Vibes: Lively
Varieties and Timing: Kwanzan. Expect blooms 2-3 weeks after DC peak bloom.
Cherry Blossoms by Boat
Another option to enjoy the cherry blossoms at Hains Point is by boat. There are cherry blossom boat tours along the Washington Channel departing from The Wharf, Georgetown, and Alexandria.
It really is a pretty vantage point. When you’re on the ground with the cherry blossom trees, they seem far apart, but from a boat, they blend together better for a cascade of delicate pink clouds. You can see them a bit from The Wharf as well, but it’s better from a boat.
There are a number of options available that I recommend.
Water Taxi
The water taxi is the most cost effective boat tour to see the cherry blossoms and monuments at about $20 per person. The water taxi has a few routes, including the Wharf to Old Town Alexandria and Georgetown to the Wharf. Audio tours are only on the monuments routes.
If you’re like my mom and love being on the water, you can get a two day water taxi pass as well so you can try out the Wharf water taxi and the monuments tour.
Most of the tours that include a boat tour are on the water taxi, so if you prefer to travel on your own, this is a good option for you. If you enjoy walking tours, I recommend this combination boat tour and walking tour of Georgetown that includes a taste of DC’s best cupcake at Baked & Wired.
Party Boat
If you want something more lively, Boomerang offers a party cruise that departs from Georgetown and takes you past the monuments and cherry blossoms. Their party cruises and buses are popular among those in their 20s and early 30s. They’re not high end, but they’re fun if you’re young with friends.
Private Charter
If you want something more private, you can charter a private boat tour. There are a few options:
- A boat holding up to 6 people
- A boat for up to 10 guests
- A boat for up to 12 (no alcohol allowed)
Oxon Run Park
Oxon Run Park is the largest park run by DC’s Parks and Rec, and it has become the best place to see cherry blossoms in southeast DC. It’s home to the largest number of Legacy Cherry Blossom trees outside of the Tidal Basin. Legacy Cherry Blossoms are clones of the original cherry blossom trees gifted from Tokyo.
The Cherry Blossom Festival holds events here each year to take in the beautiful blooms. Even though it’s a part of the official festivities, it’s still a less crowded place to see the cherry blossoms in DC.
The park is large and narrow, covering 128 acres and following the length of the Oxon Run creek in DC for 3 miles. There are certain areas where groves of cherry blossoms have been planted, so you’ll want to make sure you’re in the right spot. There are different varieties planted throughout so you can get blossoms for many weeks.
Key areas with clusters of cherry blossoms are:
- Valley Avenue SE between 9th & 13th Streets SE
- Around the gazebo next to the Oxon Run Pool
- Valley Avenue & 4th Street SE
- Livingston Road SE near the basketball courts
- 1st Street SE between Danbury and Elmira Streets SE
This isn’t a tourist destination, it’s a popular spot for people in the neighborhood to have cookouts with family and let their kids play. It’s in a neighborhood that unfortunately has not had a lot of investment in it historically, and it’s a place to experience peace and tranquility. You’ll find some cherry blossoms planted in the Mother’s Peace Garden here, dedicated to the children lost to gun violence.
It’s a slice of nature in the city. There’s a lot of wildlife to be seen in the mornings, and parts of the park feel like you are in the woods. In others, you have more open space. The cherry blossoms are in more of the open space parts.
While you’re here, check out the magnolia bog near Southern Avenue. Unique to the DC area, this rare ecosystem is one of the few remaining. They’re damp, with the floors covered in ferns.
Location: Throughout Oxon Run Park
Getting there: Parking is mainly on the street, with some parking lots around Southeast Tennis & Learning Center. Because it is so spread out, you’ll want to drive there to see the different spots. Congress Heights is the closest metro station, and about a 15 minute walk to the clusters on Valley Avenue between 9th & 13th Streets SE, but it’s far from the other locations. Buses go along the park.
Vibes: City living where the cherry blossom are, more peaceful and naturalistic in other areas of the park. Popular for neighborhood cookouts.
Varieties and Timing: Many, including Okame, Yoshino, and Kwanzan. You’ll be able to find a grove of some blooms somewhere in the park during cherry blossom season.
National Arboretum
The National Arboretum is a 451-acre public garden and plant research facility of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) located in northeast DC. They are best known for having the original columns of the US Capitol, the bonsai museum, and their azalea collection, but they also have beautiful cherry blossoms.
They have the most varieties of cherry blossom trees in the DC area, including a dedicated cherry blossom grove. The variety of cherry blossoms speaks to the arboretum’s research focus. Outside of the grove, cherry blossoms are dispersed throughout the arboretum, and there is a self-guided tour of the cherry blossom trees.
The grove has its pros and cons. On the positive side, the different varieties mean that you can see blossoms for a longer time frame in this one location. On the negative side, you don’t really get the feeling of being fully enveloped by cherry blossoms because there are bare trees interspersed.
The National Arboretum does have parking lots throughout, but the ones at specific groves (also known as collections) tend to only hold ~5 cars at a time. There are larger parking lots near the entrances, and if you don’t have mobility issues, I suggest you park in one of those.
For those with mobility issues, the arboretum is very car friendly and most of the cherry blossoms planted outside of the grove are close to the road so you can view from your car. Even the grove itself is close to the road.
If you are there to see the cherry blossoms, don’t miss the magnolia grove. The saucer magnolias have a similar blooming time as the cherry blossoms, and I think this grove is more impressive than the cherry blossom grove.
Location: The cherry blossom grove is close to the New York Avenue entrance & parking lot
Getting there: Use the New York Avenue entrance, accessed from New York Avenue NE eastbound after you pass Bladensburg Road NE. There is no metro station nearby, and with the size, a car is recommended.
Vibes: Energizing
Varieties and Timing: Lots of different types with different timings, but expect mid-March to mid-April. These photos were from when the Tidal Basin were in peak bloom, and it was a bit sparse.
Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens
I love Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens for their lotus flowers. They do also have some cherry blossom trees.
The number of cherry blossoms they have is limited, and mainly behind the visitor’s center and between the parking lot and the ponds. Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens is an off-the-beaten-path place that is truly a hidden gem (a term I don’t use lightly). This time of year, the park will be pretty quiet and empty.
The ones between the parking lot and the ponds are my favorite. They are large so you can get under them and have the effect of petals falling over you.
It does have a smaller number of cherry blossom trees, so if enough people get the same idea as you, you may not be able to grab one of the picnic benches with the views of the cherry blossoms. I think that’s okay, though, because it’s such a unique park. It’s the only national park dedicated to aquatic plants, and has the largest remaining marshlands in DC (don’t miss seeing those).
If you have a dog, the park is very dog friendly and offers a B.A.R.K. Ranger badge.
Location: 1550 Anacostia Ave NE
Getting there: Parking lot in March will likely have plenty of parking, but if it does get full, there is street parking in the neighborhood. It is also a 14 minute walk from the Deanwood metro station. The walk from the metro station is more industrial and may feel isolated, taking you past construction sites and over a highway as well as through the neighborhoods.
Vibes: Peaceful and tranquil
Varieties and Timing: Blooms when Yoshino cherry blossoms do (peak bloom)
DC Neighborhoods
For those of us who live in DC, we are lucky to have cherry blossoms throughout the city. Residents have really leaned into the love of cherry blossoms and you’ll frequently see cherry blossoms planted in front yards, bringing the season to life.
The DC city government also takes its cherry blossoms very seriously. Washington DC has been known as the “City of Trees” for over 100 years. From Pierre L’Enfant’s initial plans of the city, trees have were an important part of making a beautiful, habitable city. In the 1872, city council member Alexander “Boss” Shepherd nearly bankrupted the city when he ordered the installation of close to 60,000 street trees.
Today, the Urban Forestry Division maintains roughly 170,000 public trees throughout the city, including the more than 10,000 cherry blossom trees planted along streets. Many of those trees are outside of the core of the city.
Casey Trees has created an interactive map where you can see the cherry blossoms throughout the city. While it doesn’t have every tree (many of the ones listed in this guide are not included on the map), it is the best resource available to find cherry blossom trees near you in DC.
Wander around DC’s neighborhoods and parks, and you’ll see how much this city loves cherry blossom trees!
Read more:
- Looking for more details on cherry blossoms in DC? Check out my full guide.
- Learn about my favorite peak blooms in DC
