Masker Orchards

Before going here, I never had gone apple picking, so to say the least, this was a good first experience.
I walked around and there were plenty of apples to choose from. My whole family was here as well and the kids had the time of their lives picking out apples. There is also a small shop that sells all sorts of pastries made from apples. Those were absolutely amazing.
In short, this place is good for family trips where kids can have fun.

My second year coming to Masker Orchards for Apple picking. This place is huge and has several selection of apples to choose from. You could even drive to where you want to pick your apples instead of walking. My fiancé and I choose to walk, because we feel we will explore this place better that way. We always stop by the apple store for Apple pies and can’t ever forget about the apple cider donuts. Delicious! The slice of apple pie with a scoop of ice cream is good too. When you leave, you pay for apples by the bag. A little pricey for one bag, but hey, it was fun! Would I come again? Yes! The scenery is beautiful too.

Huge Orchard. Kids had a ball riding ponies and having face painted. Seems to have an endless supply off apples unlike other local Orchards. Lots and lots of walking while carrying bags of Apples so be prepared.

Pros: They have loads of apple trees to pick from. They sell pies, donuts, cider, hot dogs, pizza. They had pony rides, face painting and a haunted house.
Cons: A full bag of apples hand picked costs $ 26.95!!! That’s pretty steep. The bags are a decent size but still. You can drive you car through the tree orchard but the roads are not paved. Its full of rocks and gravel which could be damaging to your car/​tires. The indoor bathrooms are disgusting.

Love, love, love this place! Though a lot of the reviews complain about being able to drive around instead of park and walk, this is one of the reasons we pick here. Apples get heavy to carry around and this place is huge, couldn’t imagine walking around here long distance and carrying the apples. This orchard has the best variety of apples. We will continue making this orchard part of our apple picking tradition!

We go apple picking at least twice a year and usually one of those times is to Maskers. I am giving them 3 stars because it was VERY crowded. Imagine yourself in Times Square on New Years Eve… A line for EVERYTHING. Waited on line to buy donuts and apple cider. Waited on line for the bathrooms. Refused to wait on the line for hot dogs.
There were thousands of cars in the orchard and at least 5,000 people if I were to guess. It was not a relaxing Saturday in the country.
Leaving was a bit of a wait.

I’ve never been apple picking before so I have nothing to compare this place to! However, our family very much enjoyed our time together this past Sunday morning. We arrived by 10am and didn’t have any issues with lines or too many cars. No entrance or parking fee. The apples were perfect ripe and so bountiful that they pulled the branches all the way to the ground. I wish there had been more variety of apples, but I did appreciate how they labeled the types of trees and also whether or not they were ripe yet.
We walked around and filled up two of the plastic bags (of the 4) they gave us. I liked that they print a map of the orchard on each bag. I was confused why people were filling up the bag so full until I realized that you pay per bag and not per pound (around $ 30/​bag). It’s not really a bargain for apples, but you’re paying for the entire experience.
We purchased apple cider donuts, apple pie, and apple blossom as our mid-​morning snack. Everything was tasty and not too sweet. My favorite was the apple blossom (pastry) which was served warm. Our 10 mo old son enjoyed looking at the pigs, goats, chickens, bunnies, etc. You couldn’t pet them, but they were a nice attraction. They pony rides were about $ 6/​pop and great if you have a young elementary aged child. We got our little photo op in the pumpkin patch (without having to make a purchase). At the gift store we purchased some preserves, which I don’t think are actually made on premises.
At the end of the day you drive you car out and just self report the number of bags of apples you have. You can also purchase last minute cider. They accept credit cards in addition to cash. Nice, family run place. Great day trip. Bring a picnic and enjoy the scenery!

First time here and couldn’t wait to pick apples. We were impressed with the variety of apples and how beautiful and tasty they were. Poison ivy was everywhere though so be careful. I would say the biggest reason I only gave three stars is the cars everywhere in the orchards. I think a parking lot and a tractor ride to the trees would be better. Way too many people to fully enjoy it.

It was apple picking and then some. Just park under a tree and set up your picnic right there. Besides the various types of apples in the orchard you can be guided with by the map on the plastic bags given, there are must-​try apple cider donuts, apple cider, homemade vanilla ice cream and other products locally made that are for sale. Particularly fun for kids because they also have a petting zoo and pony rides. They even have live music played in between picking and eating apples. Just about an hour and 40 minutes drive from the city, it’s a nice break from the hustle and bustle. We stayed only for a couple hours or so and was already done. Take lots of photos between the lush apple trees. I was a little surprised at how one one full bag of apples were $ 20 each. Maybe I’m cheap, but I thought it’d be less than that. The check out happens as you exit and staff check your boot for apples and you pay at the registers set up there. I must admit though, it was a refreshing day trip.

Great fun for the whole family, their apples are amazing with many different types to pick.
Just one word for caution, watch for poison ivy around the base of some of the trees and dont bother to wash your car before you come, expect dust.

I had never been apple picking before so I have nothing to compare to this. I went last weekend in October and was nervous about crowds but was pleasantly surprised to find things people had complained about where not a concern. This is probably because it was so late in the session and many of the trees had no apples.
One thing that did bother us was the signage on all the trees was not clear hence we did not always know the apples that we were picking. In addition I wish that credit cards were allowed and there was a pumpkin patch nearby.
Great first experience.

I visited this orchard on a Saturday last week of October. This was my first visit here. This was one of the few places which claimed to have apples for picking this late in October.
We decided to walk since there seemed to be no apples seen on trees when we drove. The trees closer to the entrance were clean of apples. Around the middle of the orchard we saw a large number of rotten apples on the trees. However the end of the orchard had many apples to be picked. Few trees had apples which looked good but when eaten had a very bad taste.
However we were able to find trees with good apples. And there were plenty of them.
Place was was crowded around the afternoon time. The stores were full and the pies, donuts and hot cider was amazing.
It was a good experience.

I visited this orchard early one Saturday morning this October 2014 with a friend.
After reading so many Unilocal reviews about the crowds I insisted that we start out early. We arrived about 10 am and was shocked to see no crowds and the kids ushering us in said that we were early. The staff was very friendly and helpful but mostly very young kids-​shockingly. We had our pick of parking spots and many trees to pick from. The majority of the apples available were the red delicious kind which tasted great right off the tree. However, for other types of apples you will have to go to the outer areas of the orchard. Sadly, I discovered that they had no Fuji apples at all.
Some people drove through the orchard to pick but we chose to walk. Thankfully, we did because we were able to spot apples that the drivers missed. I was asked repeatedly where’d I get the various types of apples I had in my bag. Honestly, it took a lot of walking, a keen eye and some climbing to get at those apples. The orchard was pretty much picked clean out side of the red delicious apple areas. But I was able to get a few rome, courtlandt and enough granny smith apples to make a delicious pie-​yum!
But at about 12pm the crowds started to arrive and the amount of people in the orchard steadly grew. That was when we made a stop a the country store then looked around and exited. On a Saturday during picking season, my advise is to get there early and get out when you see the amount of cars increasing.

I’m sure this place is beautiful in the early morning, on a weekday. But like me, you’re probably trying to go on a weekend in September or October.
One star is for the apples, which are plentiful and great. You are also able to picnic in the orchard which is a lovely idea. The problem is, I could not WAIT to get out of there.
The CROWDS were insane. The bathroom line was horrible. Forget buying a snack or a souvenir that isn’t a bag of apples because there were so many people crammed into their facilities you couldn’t move around let alone pay. The snack bar line had to be an hour deep. There were just too too too many people for this places own good.
Parking is terrible because hey, you’re in an orchard. Getting in and out is organized as best they can but with population 408 349 623 you can’t really streamline that any better.
This isn’t the apple picking you’re wishing for trust me. Find a less «famous» spot.

Dear Masker Orchards,
It’s not you, it’s us. You’ve given us 9 good years of apple-​picking tradition. We will always treasure all the good times we’ve had together.
But what can I say? Nothing lasts forever. Change is inevitable. In this world nothing can be certain, except death and taxes.
You see, Masker, we’ve outgrown you. Actually, you’ve outgrown us. Nine years ago, you were a great little orchard with a tiny country store and some farm animals, maybe a pony or two. Now, you’ve become this massively crowded outdoor fairground-​like area, complete with food stalls, hot dog stand, gift shop, arts and crafts areas for children, Build-​A-​Bear, and an ATM. An ATM! That’s expansion there, my friends.
We came up here to escape the crowds and take in the beautiful views, fresh air, and peaceful atmosphere. Now, roads are congested, the orchard is packed with people, and we can’t find a quiet spot anywhere. People picnic here and hold parties. With tables and balloons. Parking is a struggle. Getting out of the orchard is even harder. Our last trip set us back nearly two hours just waiting to exit. Fail.
We loved your apples and looked forward to getting a lovely variety. Now, it’s a challenge finding trees that haven’t been picked over, and the apples remaining are small, brown-​spotted, and decaying. Our last trip yielded us only small red apples. What happened here?
So you see Masker, it’s time for us to move on to another orchard. We plan to carry on this tradition for as long as we can, and you are just not part of that vision anymore.
Like I said, it’s not you, it’s us.
Wait no. Actually, it is you. My bad.

I have many fond memories of this place from my childhood. Unfortunately, we opted to visit on Warwick, NY’s «Apple Fest» weekend and ended up sharing the orchard with tons (I mean TONS) of people.
This place has apples, crowds and limited bathroom facilities. The check out and exit from the orchard is semi-​organized pandemonium. Apples are $ 26.95 a bushel, traffic getting to and leaving the orchard felt like Woodbury Commons before Christmas.
No thanks, this doesn’t feel like a trip to the country anymore. Instead, it’s a stressful traffic jam of madness.
Thanks anyway Maskers, but I’ll stick to my favorite family owned orchard in north west NJ and will avoid Warwick, NY like I’m avoiding Dallas, TX after an Ebola outbreak.

Got off at exit 15A on the NYS Thru way, made the left. Ah what beautiful scenery, oh look a fire house asking for donations that’s pretty cool. Oooo Look at the pretty houses. «You have reached you’re final destination». Wait is this the McDonald’s of orchards? PACKED. Drove up through the fields and couldn’t find parking at all.
Legit we pulled off to the side and into a little open field and parked it right there on Strudel lane. So after that we hiked down to the shop area before we went apple picking and let me tell you this was a damn nightmare.
The shop smelled like sweaty humans. The stuff the have for sale is really nice. But even that was fu fu. The pumpkin and apple butters were «Made for Maskers» I was like what the hell, you can’t even make you’re own apple butters?
After that I figured I’d get a hot dog. This was about a 30 minute wait. I didn’t care I was starving. After that I had taken my son to the maze which he enjoyed. But the maze is just fences put up. He didn’t care so I figured it’s fine.
The mens bathroom was horrible. It smelled of ammonia and sweat and you had to go in this sink looking thing. It was horrible.
After the shops from hell town, we got to apple picking. They have an alright assortment of apples and a ton of trees. I really have no complaints as far as picking apples.
Maybe people sitting in the car and blasting music and cars being littered through out the place might be an issue. And yes at the exit they do search your trunk to make sure you’re not running a apple smuggling ring. But I didn’t mind, I’m not a Mott’s covert.
Had this place not have been a mob scene it probably would have been nice. Maybe later in the year? But as of yesterday, I’ll probably never go back. But hey, the apples do taste good.

It’s no mistake that there are several recent 1-​star reviews. This place is terrible. I’d give it zero stars if I could.
It’s the checkout system that makes it bad. You take your apples in your car, get in a terrible line of cars, and wait there for 90 minutes. After that, you’re greeted by immature, apathetic, unprofessional staff. Customers in the line were justifiably furious.
Do yourself a big favor. Do not go here.

Came during mid week and it was quite empty. It is early in the season, but some were ripe. $ 27 per bag. Another tradition of ours. Prices have steadily gone up over the years. We usually try to visit various apple orchards in the region. This will be difficult to get to during prime season, so get there bright and early. With narrow car paths within this farm, it will be difficult to maneuver the car when it gets busy.

No, I will not share any tips on how to sneak apples. So skip this review if you’re searching on how to smuggle a few apples.
My most vivid childhood memories include venturing out with my family during «apple season,» as we’d like to call it, to Upstate. Shamefully, I still have photos of me tossing around pumpkins with my cousins. Poor things.
There was one particular orchard farm we’d use to go to and realizing how it got packed in a matter of minutes, we set out for the next best thing, in terms of gigantic, juicy apples and most of all, peace.
It’s kind of funny how you have to get here from the city — through the Jersey Turnpike (hey!) and through North Jersey. Worth the whole trip because you get to see all these nice towns and Warwick is beautiful, it’ll make you think twice about whether you want to spend your whole life in the city or a nice suburb like Warwick. The apples here are not cheap, so if you’re wary about your spending on apples, you should not go apple picking. This is mostly an experience and excuse for New Yorkers to get out of the city on weekends and experience the quietness. Yes, the place is hyped – so hyped that there are a lot of people on weekends and the roads are extremely rocky to hard to drive through; it’s like driving in wet mud.
Sure, the grounds are dirty, worm-​infested and wet, but the view from the hill is mesmerizing and serene. Be sure to stop by the shops down the road for homemade baked goods and all kinds of apple products… yum! I got the much-​hyped apple cider donuts. no apple taste, whatsoever! The shop is a must, though some of the imported stuff is a little overpriced, I recommend getting the homemade foods Masker makes, like apple butter and other preserves. One thing that always lingers in my mind is why there are always young teens (and I mean barely-​adolescent) working there.
3 $ 30 bags of apples, TSA staff searching our car and lots of apple products later, our wallets were ransacked. I guess that’s why it’s only a yearly thing.