millstone creek orchards

As one of the family owners here at the orchard I want to thank our guests for their comments (both good & bad). As we grow...mistakes are made and we don't always do everything right BUT WE DO LISTEN TO YOUR FEEDBACK AND CHANGES ARE MADE! Please continue to visit with your families and give us the opportunity to provide you with exceptional service and memories to last a lifetime.

Our large homeschooling group of 60+ visited the orchard in September on a weekday. After a 2 hour drive, the large yard area with tire swings, hills to climb, and a sound activity area were a welcome site to restless little people. We also took that opportunity to have a picnic lunch in the shaded area provided. Restrooms are available (yay! no portapotty). The tour guides gave a demonstration of the different apples commonly sold and allowed the children to sample. She described the cider process and then the children were involved in making their own cider. Every child was given the opportunity to press apples with the machine and then sample the results. We enjoyed this part of the field trip the most. The hayride followed and was a nice and relaxing ride through the farm. It would have been better if the guide had narrated a bit through the ride. Afterwards, each paying ticket may pick 3 apples from the roped off area open to picking. My toddler and preteen loved scoping out the "perfect" apple and picking it. Browsing through the orchard's store was worth the time because they sell items like apple slushies, butter, cider, and various types of preserves. We purchased the apple cider and it was delicious. This field trip is beneficial for children to see where their food comes from, the labor involved behind farming, and to learn about the cider process. It was wholesome and educational fun. I felt that I received my money's worth. Note: they have a military discount.

Oh my goodness! Where to begin. We drove 3 hours to go apple picking at this farm. When we arrived we were told to pay $3 per person for the privilege of picking apples. Then we were told we had to ride the hay wagons to and from the farm as it was 'dangerous' to walk , and that we would be stoping at the gourd and pumpkin patch on the way back for an 'opportunity' to pick those....hmmmm , seems more like a way to make sure they control the crowd and cash flow, but ok. After being loaded we bumped along our hay ride and given more instructions. We were told there were 3 varieties of apples for us to pick, under no circumstances were we to eat any apples before paying and absolutely NO picking apples that had been roped off....like the Pink Ladies....because 'something' might have been sprayed around there and it was 'dangerous'. There's that word again. Well, they had just opened the Gold-(something) apples recently so those trees had apples but as for the Winesap and the Granny Smith, those trees were mostly bare except for a few at the top ( which couldn't be reached unless you were over 6 ft) or rotting apples laying at the base of the trees. Also the few you could get to ( because my husband is 6 ft 3) were very small. Since we could not taste them I was reluctant to get any thinking they would be sour. When arriving at the pumpkin patch i elected to wait on board rather than pick. After all i came for apples not pumpkins, but I was told by other customers that only small ones were left in the field. No medium or large sizes. How disappointing to come all that way for so very little ( size and variety) to choose from. It's a shame they were not forthcoming on their website what they were allowing people to pick. Then there was a 45 minute wait in line to purchase the 8 gold-something apples I had picked. To make things absolutely positively the worst Apple picking experience we've ever had....when I tried to explain my disappointment to Nick, the farm owner he said and I quote : "If you don't like it then get off my property and never come back". Wow, no problem there, why would I ? In fact why would anyone? Look for another apple farm folks, one that actually is interested in pleasing the customer and not just trying to separate people from their money.

We usually visit about 3 times a year to gather peaches and apples. Our favorites are the contender peach and the Honeycrisp apples(They make the best apple sauce!). We all ways love going because the people there knew us by our third visit and they treat you like family, not just another customer. It is a great way to get out doors and away from the city. It is also a good place to take children to learn about where their food comes from.

We invited friends and family to join us for a trip to Millstone to pick apples. We all had a great time picking the apples, playing in difference areas, having a picnic and drinking apple cider slushees. I believe more people came than they expected, so the lines were pretty bad, but you could tell that they were trying to make things work as smoothly as possible. Next time we will go on a day where there is not a special event planned. Great fun for the whole family!

If you like homemade things this is your kind of place. Jams and jellies, ice cream and fresh fruit! Really great people and awesome prices. Very family friendly.

We stopped on out way to the zoo and signed up a few days before for the family day. The owner and his daughter were very entertaining, they included the kids in each activity. the hayride was nice but I felt like a sardine with how close we had to sit beside our neighbor. I was disappointed that instead of picking one of the 3 varieties of apples we tasted that they make their cider with, we went to another section to pick apples we've never heard of before. they said that certain orchard was just opened to the public that day but man, the rotten apples around the trees really helped my kids along with picking their 3 apple limit for the tour. wish they had cider to serve like they do cider frozen icys but I guess paying 6 bucks for a half gallon of cider is how they make their money and wish they had cheaper dessert items, donuts would've been perfect!. either way, none of these nit picky items listed above will stop us from going again-unless I find one closer or one that has the cider and donuts.

This orchard is on the way back from the NC Zoo to the Raleigh area. There are several other berry farms on the same road but I have to recommend this one. The wife is a cheerful sales person who will dazzle you in the "Apple Barn" with samples of her homemade treats such as apple or strawberry juice slushies and wine cake made by the grandmother. Delicious. Great retail establishment that is the beginning and end point for your fruit picking. Be careful not to over pick as we did during blueberry and blackberry season. It is so thrilling to pick the luscious fruit that you may end up with more that you know what to do with. I ended up making three dozen berry muffins and a gorgeous blackberry pie because we overzealously purchased $40 worth of berries. Great experience; the kids will love it and always remember the scent of ripe fruit in the orchards.