The Best Apple Picking Farms And Orchards In New York

Now that fall is here, New Yorkers will leave their condos and apartments to head to more rural surroundings to pick apples. Farms and orchards are a lot closer to the city than you’d think! Here are our top choices for the best places to go apple picking, all located within two hours of New York City.

1. Wilkens Fruit and Fir Farm

Natural Feature

Wilkens Fruit & Fir Farm provides more bang for pickers’ buck by offering pick-your-own apples, pumpkins and peaches. The farm’s 13 apple varieties are particularly worth the 80-minute journey from the city, especially in the forms of apple cider and fresh-baked pie at Wilkens’s three markets. After picking, relax with a glass of wine at the farm’s on-site winery. Tip: Keep Wilkens in mind come Christmastime when the farm rolls out its cut-your-own Christmas tree service.

2. Apple Dave’s Orchards

Natural Feature

Apple Dave’s Orchards is an ideal destination for family outings and charming day dates alike. Founder David Hull had a reputation for giving. His many contributions included vending machines stocked with fresh apples in local schools. His Warwick, New York, orchard honors his legacy by offering perks like live music and convenient parking free of charge. At Apple Dave’s, you only pay for the apples you pick, though its award-winning cider sweetened with fresh honey is worth purchasing, too.

3. Stuart’s Fruit Farm

Natural Feature

This farm has 190 years of experience growing superb apples. Family-run Stuart’s Fruit Farm’s 18 apple varieties include winesap, honeycrisp and other uncommon types. Its nontraditional pick-your-own selection isn’t limited to just apples; Indian corn and corn stalks are also available each fall. Best of all, these rarities can all be found just an hour outside New York City.

5. Harvest Moon Farm and Orchard

Natural Feature

Pickers should time their visit to this North Salem spot for a weekend when Harvest Moon Farm and Orchard hosts its famous Fall Festival. Hayrides and farm animals cater to young visitors, while older guests won’t want to leave without firing Harvest Moon’s custom-made apple cannons. The orchard’s hard cider and popular apple cider donuts, not to mention its picking bags holding a whopping 25 pounds of apples, make weekday visits feel festive, too.

6. Apple Ridge Orchards

Natural Feature

Apple Ridge Orchards specializes in rustic fall fun. Riding on tractor-pulled hay wagons and exploring corn fields work up an appetite for fresh-pressed apple cider, apple cider donuts and the farm stand’s other classic autumn treats. Pickers should save some energy to pick their own apples, pumpkins and peaches.

7. Masker Orchard

Natural Feature, Park

Come hungry to Masker Orchard, a Hudson Valley attraction welcoming picnics, tailgating and sampling its supply. The 200-acre orchard is a picker’s smorgasbord, offering 14 different apple varieties that guests are encouraged to taste as they please. Of course, no autumn meal is complete without cider, which is why Masker sells jugs of its own ‘legendary’ version of the drink.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.