The short answer
For mild weather, go between October and May, which the park calls its busy season. Spring brings the wildflowers and the biggest crowds, especially over spring break from March to mid-April. Fall is warm by day and cool at night. Winter is cool by day and cold at night.
Summer is hot. The park says highs are typically over 100°F, so in June, July and August the park is for early mornings and evenings, with the middle of the day somewhere cool.
Is Joshua Tree open?
Yes. The park is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year, and no reservation is needed to get in. You do need an entrance pass, sold online at Recreation.gov and at the entrance stations.
Roads and trails sometimes close for a while after storms and flash floods. Check the alerts at nps.gov/jotr before you go.
How to read the months
The temperatures below are the 1991 to 2020 averages from the weather station in Twentynine Palms, near the park's North Entrance at about 2,000 feet. The Joshua tree forests along Park Boulevard sit between 3,000 and 5,000 feet, and the park says conditions vary a lot with where you are in it, so expect it cooler up high.
January
Average high 63°F, low 42°F. Cool days and cold nights, near or below freezing up high. The park usually sees its first wildflowers at the lowest elevations, around Cottonwood, in January or February. The sun sets before 6 PM.
February
Average high 67°F, low 44°F. The days lengthen, the low desert flowers build in a wet year, and Joshua trees can start to bloom from mid-February. Presidents' Day weekend is busy.
March
Average high 74°F, low 49°F. The start of peak season. Wildflowers spread up to the Joshua tree forests between 3,000 and 5,000 feet from early March, and spring break crowds arrive, so weekends are full and the popular trailheads fill early. Clocks spring forward mid-month, and by the end of March the sun sets after 7 PM.
April
Average high 81°F, low 55°F. Spring break runs to mid-April, the middle elevations are still in flower into early May, and the highest parts of the park start to bloom. Afternoons warm up, and the park notes temperatures can top 85°F from April to September, so hike in the morning.
May
Average high 90°F, low 63°F. The last month of the busy season, with flowers at the highest elevations, above 5,000 feet, from April into June. Hot afternoons are back, and Memorial Day weekend is busy. May and June are the peak months for the Milky Way, the park says.
June
Average high 99°F, low 71°F. Hot and dry. Walk at first light and be off the trails by late morning. A few of the park's campgrounds close for the summer. The sun sets close to 8 PM, the latest of the year, and the moonless nights are the best of the year for the Milky Way.
July
Average high 104°F, low 77°F, the hottest month. Summer storms can bring lightning, wind and hail, and the park says flash floods are most common from July to October, even on sunny days. Carry far more water than you think you need.
August
Average high 103°F, low 76°F, and the wettest month on average in Twentynine Palms, from summer storms. Flash flood season continues. The Perseid meteor shower peaks in mid-August.
September
Average high 97°F, low 69°F. Still hot early in the month and cooling toward the end. From September the park's campgrounds are usually full on weekends, and an early storm this month or next can set up a big spring bloom.
October
Average high 85°F, low 58°F, and the busy season begins. Warm days and cool nights make it one of the easiest months to hike, and from now until May the weekends are busy.
November
Average high 72°F, low 47°F. Mild days and cold nights, and a few late season flowers in some years. The sun sets before 6 PM, so start early. Weekends are busy, and so is Thanksgiving weekend, like every holiday.
December
Average high 62°F, low 40°F, with the shortest days of the year and the sun down before 5 PM early in the month. It occasionally snows up high. The holidays are busy, and the park is open on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. More in our guide to Joshua Tree in winter.
When the wildflowers bloom
The park's flowers bloom from the bottom up. The lowest elevations, around Cottonwood, flower from January to mid-April. The middle elevations, between 3,000 and 5,000 feet, including the Joshua tree forests on Park Boulevard, flower from early March to early May. The highest, above 5,000 feet near Black Rock, flower from April through June.
How good a year it is depends on rain. Seeds need half an inch or more in a single storm, early storms in September or October set up the big years, and the rain has to keep coming through the winter. Some years there is almost nothing. Joshua trees themselves usually bloom between mid-February and April, and only after timely rain and a cold winter. Check the park's bloom report before you plan around flowers.
Kaleidoscope Desert, any month
Our sanctuary is in Morongo Valley, 15 minutes from the town of Joshua Tree and 20 minutes from Palm Springs. More than 100 rescued animals roam free among the art, Rubs the zebra, mini horses, mini cows, goats, pigs and giant tortoises among them, and they come over to meet you.
The Sanctuary Tour is a guided walk with someone who knows every resident by name, about 90 minutes, and it runs daily. The Gamelatron is one full hour of fifteen bronze gongs played by robotic mallets, with sessions on the hour from 1 to 7 PM. The Day Pass is the whole afternoon, 12 to 6 PM, with the tour, a Gamelatron session, the pool and the hot tub. Every visit is for adults, 18 and over.
In the hot months the park is best early and late, and the Day Pass is the afternoon in between, by the pool and the hot tub. In the cold months, the Gamelatron is a full hour indoors in the Center.
100% of proceeds go to the animals: their rescue, their care, and the sanctuary they live in. Kaleidoscope Desert Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
Before you go
- You need an entrance pass. Buy it ahead on Recreation.gov and save it to your phone, or pay at the entrance station by card. Check the park's site for the current fee.
- No reservation is needed to enter, and the park is open 24 hours a day, every day of the year.
- There is no gas, food or drinking water inside the park. Fill the tank before you go in and carry at least a gallon of water per person for the day.
- Cell service in the park is very limited. Download offline maps before you leave town.
- The park is busiest on weekends and holidays from October to May and over spring break. On those days, get to the trailheads early.
- Check the park's current alerts at nps.gov/jotr for roads or trails closed after a storm.