‘Tis the season for some Honey Crisps and Ida Reds.
We uncovered the best apple picking near NYC for your impending day trips.
Trust us when we say these orchards offer the most wholesome autumn experience you could possibly imagine.
From PYO (pick-your-own) activities to farmstand goodies — looking at you, apple cider doughnuts — these destinations top our list of the best things to do in the fall.
Take a little trip outside of the city — we promise these spots are not terribly far — and come home with fresh produce that’s begging to be made into an apple pie.
1. Fishkill Farms: Hopewell Junction, NY
Fishkill Farms‘ apple picking season has officially begun! But be mindful that PYO activities are reservation-only. The family-owned 270-acre farm is beloved for its variety of eco-certified and organic apples. Offerings like annual fall harvest festivals, wagon rides, and bites from the Treasury Cider Bar keep visitors coming back for more.
📍 9 Fishkill Farm Rd, Hopewell Junction, NY
🚗 1 hour 45 minutes
2. Hanks Pumpkintown: Water Mill, NY
The fun at Hanks Pumpkintown kicks off on Saturday, September 14th, 2024.
With an ever-changing variety of available apples, you’ll certainly be pleased with the goods you bring home. Prices list $32 a peck (approximately 10 pounds) of apples with a maximum of four people per bag. Make sure to find your way out of the maze and refuel with an apple cider slushie before heading home. (Yes, please!)
📍240 Montauk Hwy, Water Mill, NY
🚗 2 hours 25 minutes / 2-and-a-half hours by train (LIRR Montauk Branch) + five minute cab ride
3. Pennings Orchard & Cidery: Warwick, NY
This 50-acre orchard in Warwick, NY is currently open for the season and has lots of fun options after you’ve picked your bushels of apples. Enjoy a cidery with fresh, crisp, hard ciders, a wood-fired pizza truck, and a market with farm-fresh items and baked goods like delicious apple cider doughnuts.
📍 169 NY-94, Warwick, NY
🚗 2 hours/ 1 hour 40 min by bus from Port Authority (#196 bus) + five minute cab ride
4. Harbes Orchard: Riverhead, NY
The orchard offers 27 different apple varieties, and growing their assortment with a special trellis system, this orchard ensures that all heights are able to reach for their own perfect apple. This is especially great when bringing along young children, particularly thanks to the corn maze and hayrides.
If you really have your heart set on something scary, the Spooky Night Maze should be right up your alley. (Explore our favorite Halloween events in NYC while you’re at it!)
📍 5698 Sound Ave, Riverhead, NY
🚗 2 hours 30 minutes / 2 hour 20 minutes by train (LIRR) + eight minute ride
5. Milk Pail Farm: Water Mill, NY
You-pick activities, a nursery, and a market. What more could you want from a farm visit?
If you’re keen on securing your own fruit, PYO apples takes place over the weekends from 10am-5:30pm.
📍 50 Horsemill Lane, Water Mill, NY
🚗 2 hours 40 minutes by car / 2 and 40 minutes by train (LIRR Montauk Branch) + seven minute cab ride
6. Wightman Farms: Morristown, NJ
PYO activities are part of a ticketed fall festival ($25/person) that includes a walk through the orchards, hayrides, various mazes, and more.
📍 1111 Mt Kemble Ave, Morristown, NJ
🚗 1 hour / 1 hour and 20 minute train ride from Penn Station (Morris & Essex Line on NJ Transit) + 10 minute cab ride
7. Wilkens Fruit & Fir Farm: Yorktown Heights, NY
Once you receive your bags and picking poles upon arrival, you’re ready to begin! When you’re not on the hunt for apples, enjoy a number of homemade treats, including pressed apple cider to freshly baked pies and famous apple cider donuts.
Wilkens Farm is open Wednesdays through Mondays, and PYO is from 10am-4:30pm.
📍 1335 White Hill Rd, Yorktown Heights, NY
🚗 1 hour 20 minutes / 2 hours 20 minutes by train (Metro North Peekskill line), plus five minute cab ride
8. Battleview Orchards: Freehold, NJ
Battleview Orchards offers plenty of variety when it comes time to PYO, so study up to find the apple of your eye. Don’t leave without a trip to the Country Store for freshly-baked pies.
📍 91 Wemrock Rd, Freehold, NJ
🚗 1 hour 20 minutes / 2 hours 20 minute by bus (NJ Transit)
9. Eastmont Orchards: Colts Neck, NJ
At Eastmont Orchards, apple picking is currently open however it varies greatly depending on the type of apple, so make sure to check their variety guide and timeline on their website alongside their posted tips and techniques to help you pick apples. They’re open Monday – Friday 9 am – 4:30 pm, and Saturday – Sunday 9 am – 5:30 pm. Learn more here.
📍 321 County Rd 537, Colts Neck, NJ
🚗 1 hour 15 minute drive / 2 hours 30 minutes by NJ Transit (New Jersey Coast line) + five minute walk
10. Dr. Davies Farm: Congers, NY
You can use Dr. Davies’s online booking system to reserve your spot for picking, which is officially open for the season.
Walk-ins are accepted but reservations are highly suggested. Across 65 acres, this orchards offers 27 different varieties of apples from over 5,000 trees.
Pickers are able to choose either a 1/2 peck bag of apples for one person ($17) or a 1/2 bushel bag for up to 6 people ($62).
📍 306 NY-304, Congers, NY
🚗 1 hour 15 minutes
11. Beak and Skiff Apple Orchards
Should you be up for an epic fall getaway, we suggest a ride to Beak and Skiff Apple Orchards. Though it might feel like a trek, it’ll be worth the effort. The fifth generation business has 15+ rotating varieties of apple trees producing bushels of Honeycrisps, Fujis, Galas, Ginger Golds, Ida Reds, and many more during their pick-your-own season, which typically runs from late August through late October. Beyond their apple orchards the campus is also home to a general store–selling fresh or hard cider, their famous homemade fudge, cold brew coffee, CBD, local art, and more–tasting room and tavern, distillery, bakery, and playground.
Oh, and did we mention it was just named the best apple farm in the country?
If you left the farms without a freshly baked treat, don’t worry: we round up the best pies in NYC to satiate your sweet tooth once you get back to the city.
With contributions from: Danielle Valente