Your nature year
Virginia Beach, Virginiathrough the year
Also for Chesapeake, VA, Norfolk, VA, Hampton, VA, Portsmouth, VA: the same nearby places.
When do frost, green-up and fall color come to Virginia Beach?
At roughly 12 feet, Virginia Beach is about as low as towns get. The USA-NPN spring index puts first leaf here around Feb 16 and first bloom around Mar 28.
Spring takes about 6 weeks to go from leaf to bloom. Frost usually lets go around Mar 29 and comes back around Nov 12, according to the nearest NOAA station, Oceana Nas: roughly 228 days without it. For a day trip, Great Dismal Swamp Refuge is 27 miles off; its fall foliage is Oct 21–31 (local timing). We follow 3 places within 150 miles of Virginia Beach; the nearest lies 27 miles to the southwest. Statewide, Virginia's fall color is usually well under way by late October.
Updated Sep 28. Sources: US Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer (places) ↗ (opens in a new tab), US Census Bureau, city and town population estimates, 2024 ↗ (opens in a new tab), NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (annual/seasonal) ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Virginia Beach's year at a glance
- Frost possible
- Frost-free, ~Mar 29 to ~Nov 12
- First leaf ~Feb 16
- First bloom ~Mar 28
- Fall color under way ~Oct 25 (VA)
- Today
Near Virginia Beach right now
- Fall color is usually well under way by late October in VirginiaStatewide · USA-NPN volunteer observations, 2020–2025 · not a forecast~4 weeks
- First fall frost usually around Nov 12 · last spring frost around Mar 29NOAA 1991–2020 normals, Oceana Nas (2.6 mi, 50% dates)~6 weeks
- Fall foliage · Great Dismal Swamp Refuge · 27 miLocal timing: Oct 21–31~3 weeks
Virginia Beach's nature year
- Spring green-upFeb
- Last spring frostMar
- Fall color (VA)Oct
- First fall frostNov
Nearby, season by season
Fall foliage
- Great Dismal Swamp Refuge · 27 miLocal timing: Oct 21–31~3 weeks
- Blackwater Refuge · 115 miLocal timing: Oct 1–Dec 31~3 days
- Occoquan Bay Refuge · 143 miLocal timing: Oct 21–31~3 weeks
Frost and green-up
Last spring frost
Mar 29
Average (50% date)
First fall frost
Nov 12
About 228 days without frost between
Spring green-up
Feb 16
First bloom around Mar 28
Frost: NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals at Oceana Nas (2.6 mi from Virginia Beach), the day a 32 °F night is as likely as not. Green-up: the USA-NPN Spring Index, 1991–2020 average at the town.
Questions people ask
When is the first frost in Virginia Beach?
On average around Nov 12, and the last spring frost around Mar 29: about 228 days without frost between. These are NOAA's 1991–2020 normals at Oceana Nas, 2.6 miles away (the day a 32 °F night is as likely as not).
When does spring green-up reach Virginia Beach?
The USA-NPN Spring Index puts first leaf around Feb 16 and first bloom around Mar 28, on average for 1991–2020 at the town.
Where can I see fall foliage near Virginia Beach?
Great Dismal Swamp Refuge, 27 miles (local timing: Oct 21–31); Blackwater Refuge, 115 miles (local timing: Oct 1–Dec 31); Occoquan Bay Refuge, 143 miles (local timing: Oct 21–31). Distances are straight-line.
How we know
US Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer (places) (opens in a new tab) (Sep 27) · US Census Bureau, city and town population estimates, 2024 (opens in a new tab) (Sep 27) · NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (annual/seasonal) (opens in a new tab) (Sep 27) · USA National Phenology Network, Spring Index 1991–2020 averages (opens in a new tab) (Sep 27) · USA National Phenology Network, colored leaves observations (opens in a new tab) (Sep 28)