September is the kick off of fall and nothing screams autumn quite like apples, apple cider, apple pie, apple butter…you get where we’re going. The first week of September is kicking off with a cidered bang in Hendersonville with the Annual North Carolina Apple Festival. The four day event will bring a host of apple and autumn related festivities and vendors to the town, celebrating everything we love about the upcoming season.
Presented by the Community Foundation of Henderson County, the apple festival draws a big crowd from the surrounding Western North Carolina towns as well as our area in the greater Upstate region of South Carolina. Apples are a big part of the local area. In fact, according to NCAppleFestival.org, Hendersonville is the top apple producer in North Carolina and 7th in the entire nation! That’s a lot of apples! Let’s take a look at what’s planned this year:
- Street Fair
- Over 200 vendors are participating across arts & crafts, food, and more.
- Family Friendly Parade
- Sidewalk Sales
- Throughout the course of the event weekend, you can expect to see numerous sidewalk sales from shops that line the downtown streets.
- Children’s Events such as carnival rides, bouncy houses, and more
- 5k & 8k races, along with Bike Races
- Educational booths & events
- Live music each day
The festival is located throughout the Downtown Area. Parking can be limited and costs are controlled by each individual lot, so plan accordingly! The events will take place largely all day with breakfasts starting as early as 7am and the live music running till 8:30-9:00pm. Be sure to check the daily schedule at the Festival’s homepage to see what times the breakfasts or road races start! Hendersonville is about 1 and 20 minutes from the southern edge of Lake Keowee (Clemson area) and an hour from Greenville.
If you want to skip the drive and make a nice weekend of the festival, there are a lot of beautiful places to stay around Hendersonville. Here are our favorites:
- 1898 Waverly Inn: This hotel has very high ratings by users and is right in the heart of Hendersonville.
- The Charleston Inn is another back-in-time looking establishment. Also on Main Street, it’s a great option for a slower-pace getaway for the festival or any time of year!
- The Melange Inn is wonderfully styled and feels like a real retreat.
Happy apple picking!
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