The 29 best places to go apple picking near Boston, according to readers

Community

Table of Contents

Toggle

Your apple picking destination isn’t far away.

Apple picking enthusiasts looking to escape the city this fall don’t have to travel far.

When we asked Boston.com readers for their favorite place to pick apples in Massachusetts, they named 29 farms within an hour of Boston.

Honey Pot Hill Orchards in Stow was the clear favorite, with the most votes out of 45 farms named by more than 200 readers. The farm offers nearly 200 acres of orchards, as well as mazes, hayrides, and farm animals.

“Great selection, fun extras, great apple cider donuts, cute animals, and our family has been going there for 17 years,” wrote @one.trick.peony about Honey Pot Hill Orchards.

But there are other local farms topping orchard-goers’ lists. Cider Hill Farm in Amesbury was recently named the No. 1 apple picking spot in the U.S. by Yelp. And Tougas Family Farm in Northborough was just named among the 10 best apple orchards in America by USA Today readers.

Below are 29 apple orchards within an hour of Boston named as reader favorites and how far they are from the city, according to Google Maps.

29 best places to go apple picking near Boston, according to readers

• Barker’s Farm, North Andover (29.8 miles)
• Belkin Family Lookout Farm in Natick (20 miles)
• Berlin Orchards, Berlin (41.4 miles)
• Big Apple Farm, Wrentham (41.2 miles)
• Bolton Spring Farms, Bolton (44.9 miles)
• Brooksby Farm, Peabody (22.8 miles)
• Carlson Orchards, Harvard (44 miles)
• Cider Hill Farm, Amesbury (48.2 miles)
• C.N. Smith Farm, East Bridgewater (35.4 miles)
• Connemara House Farm, Topsfield (26.2 miles)
• Connors Farm, Danvers (28 miles)
• Doe Orchards, Harvard (44.7 miles)
• Dowse Orchards, Sherborn (25.1)
• Fairmount Fruit Farm, Franklin (36 miles)
• Farmer Dave’s, Dracut (30.2 miles)
• Honey Pot Hill Orchards, Stow (30.6 miles)
• Ingaldsby Farm, Boxford (30.4 miles)
• Mann Orchards, Methuen (30.2 miles)
• Nashoba Valley Winery, Bolton (44.8 miles)
• Old Frog Pond Farm, Harvard (44.9 miles)
• Outpost Farm, Holliston (33.8 miles)
• Parlee Farms, Tyngsboro (37.1 miles)
• Russell Orchards, Ipswich (35 miles)
• Shelburne Farm, Stow (29 miles)
• Smolak Farm, North Andover (27.8 miles)
• Stowe Farm, Millbury (47.1 miles)
• Tangerini’s Farm, Millis (32.1 miles)
• Tougas Family Farm, Northborough (45.1 miles)
• Westward Orchards, Harvard (43.5 miles)

What readers are saying:

“Cider donuts are unreal,” wrote @johnryanoneill about Tougas Family Farm in Northborough.

“Apple cider donuts like you read about. And a drive like you dream about,” wrote @damonquin about Honey Pot Hill Orchards in Stow.

“It’s family run, tons of apple varieties, and the staff is super friendly!!” wrote @merisa.kouvo about Shelburne Farm in Stow.

“The best apples in the state,” wrote @jtsaragosa about Parlee Farms in Tyngsboro. “Orchards are clean, organized and the apples are huge and high quality.”

“Great variety of apples, lots of pumpkins and the cider donuts are to die for,” wrote a reader about Cider Hill Farm in Amesbury. “Lots of fun activities for the kids, including a petting zoo, animal themed swings, hayrides and a haystack obstacle course. They also have a great variety of products from food to gifts. It’s an awesome take on a beautiful late summer or fall weekend day.”

Farms located more than an hour from Boston named by Boston.com readers: Apex Orchards in Shelburne; Bartlett’s Orchard in Richmond; Brookfield Orchards in North Brookfield; Echo Hill Orchards & Winery in Monson; Fern Valley Farms in Wilbraham; Hilltop Orchards in Richmond; Hollis Hills Farm in Fitchburg; Jaeschke Orchards in Adams; Keith’s Farm in Acushnet; Lanni Orchards in Lunenberg; Outlook Farm Barn & Eatery in Westhampton; Phoenix Fruit Farm in Belchertown; Quonquont Farm in Whately; Red Apple Farm in Phillipston; Sholan Farms in Leominster; and Windy Hill Farm in Great Barrington.