It’s cherry blossom time in Washington, D.C., and while there are always crowds, this year is particularly nuts because it’s the first Cherry Blossom Festival since 2019. We went to the Tidal Basin at 8 a.m today (Sunday) and it was already packed. But there’s a place you can go to see DC cherry blossoms without the crowds: The National Arboretum.

The Tidal Basin is beautiful, of course, and if you show up for sunrise you may not have to deal with quite as many people, but the National Arborteum is great for a couple of reasons: It’s not as well known, so there are not as many people; the cherry blossom trees are more spread out and in multiple areas, so not everyone will be crowding the same small walkway; and they have a large variety of cherry blossom trees, so you have a longer time period in which to catch some sakura in bloom. It also has plenty of room for kids to run around and stretch their legs.

We went to see the cherry blossoms at the National Arboretum twice last year, about two weeks apart, (as you may be able to tell from these photos) and saw tons in bloom both times. So while we’re on the tail end of peak bloom for the Tidal Basin cherry blossom trees, you should be able to catch plenty of sakura at the National Arboretum for a few more weeks.

One thing I like about the National Arboretum that you may consider a drawback: There’s not a ton of parking, and it’s not Metro accessible. We didn’t have any problems parking when we went, though, and the park’s website says there are generally no parking issues at all during the week. The National Arboretum is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day, and they have a self-guided cherry blossom tour on their free app. Get more info here.

Looking for more info on how to see DC cherry blossoms without the crowds? Check out this Washington Post article with several options around the region.

Arabella’s kimono is from Etsy.