Mercier Orchards Guide: Hours, U-Pick Seasons, Cider & Fried Pies

Mercier Orchards is on our own list of things to do in Blue Ridge, and it's a family farm with a market, a bakery, a candy kitchen, a hard cider tasting room, and u-pick fields. Here's what to know before you go, with every hour and price taken from Mercier's own website or the Blue Ridge Mountains Chamber.

#Mercier Orchards at a glance

Sources: Mercier homepage, u-pick, and hard cider & winery.

#What are Mercier Orchards' hours?

The farm is open Monday through Thursday from 9 AM to 5 PM and Friday through Sunday from 9 AM to 6 PM (Mercier).

Mercier says it's closed on Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday, Christmas Day, New Year's Day, and Easter (Mercier). In 2026, that means Thursday, Nov. 26 and Friday, Nov. 27 are both closed days over the Thanksgiving weekend. Our Thanksgiving in Blue Ridge guide covers the rest of that weekend.

#Where is it?

Mercier is at 8660 Blue Ridge Dr. in Blue Ridge. The Chamber puts it "about an 8-minute drive north along Blue Ridge Drive" from downtown (Chamber). From our cabin, it's about 10 minutes.

#When is u-pick season at Mercier?

Mercier's u-pick page lists these months:

• Strawberries: May
• Blueberries and blackberries: June and July
• Apples: August, September, and October

The apple page adds that "apple season usually falls between August and October" and that the timing depends on the weather (apple u-pick). Blossom tours "generally begin around April," depending on "when the trees decide to bloom" (blossom tours).

As of today, the apple u-pick page lists Rome Beauty, Braburn (as the site spells it), Topaz, Fuji & Evercrisp as the varieties being picked. The site doesn't post an end date for this year's apple season, so if you're aiming for late October, call ahead. For the other months, our best time to visit Blue Ridge guide lays out the whole year.

#How much does u-pick cost?

General admission is $8 per person, and children 4 and under are free. It includes a tractor tour through the orchard. For apples, you add a bag (u-pick):

A few rules from the same page:

• Tickets are sold on-site only. "U-Pick Admission can only be purchased on-site here at Mercier Orchards," first come, first served, and only while there's fruit in the fields. The page doesn't mention reservations.
• Weather can cancel it. Tickets aren't offered in "lousy weather," and u-pick and tractor tours are cancelled then.
• Hours are shorter than the market's: Monday to Thursday 10 AM to 4 PM, and Friday to Sunday 9 AM to 5 PM, "Subject to Availability & Weather."

The Chamber's tip for busy weekends is to "Arrive early in the day during peak weekends to beat the crowds" (Chamber).

#Can you visit when nothing is in season?

Yes. Mercier says it "typically offer[s] tractor tours when there is no ripe fruit in the fields," and that tours run "throughout spring, summer, and fall" (tractor tours). It doesn't list a schedule, so check before you go.

There's also free catch-and-release fishing in the pond, "available every day of the week during market hours." The pond has "bass, bream, and carp," and the rules are no swimming and kids must be with an adult at all times (fishing).

#What's at the bakery and market?

The bakery says it has been making fresh fried pies "for decades," with rotating seasonal flavors "such as peach, blackberry, strawberry, and more." The apple cider donuts come three ways: cinnamon sugar, powdered sugar, and old fashioned cake. There are also cookies, apple fritters, and whole pies, either ready to eat or ready to bake. If you're stocking up, the Chamber notes the pies "freeze well" (Chamber).

The market sells fresh cider (with seasonal sparkling flavors like "blueberry, blackberry, peach, strawberry, muscadine & more"), apple and fruit butters, a honey wall, jams, jellies, and pantry staples, plus apparel and souvenirs. The candy kitchen lists "candied apples, candied nuts, fudge, ice cream, or homemade apple brittle."

For Christmas, Mercier offers holiday bakery trays, and the page's "Call Now" button goes to 706-946-1275. The page doesn't list 2026 deadlines or prices (holiday bakery orders).

#Mercier hard cider: tasting room hours and what to try

Mercier's homepage calls it the only apple orchard in Georgia to "grow, press, ferment, and can" its own hard cider (Mercier). Its hard cider page puts it a little differently, as "one of the first orchards in Georgia to grow, press, ferment, and bottle" its own ciders. That page says there are "more than a dozen hard ciders," naming Grumpy Granny as a classic and Jalapeacho as a seasonal flavor.

The tasting room needs no reservation. Pouring hours are:

• Monday to Thursday: 11 AM to 4:45 PM
• Friday and Saturday: 11 AM to 5:45 PM
• Sunday: 12:30 to 5:45 PM

It also pours house-made apple, blackberry, and strawberry fruit wines, along with wines from local vineyards, and a wine flight is $15. Bring an ID: "IDs are required to purchase alcohol at any time," and on Sundays alcohol "can only be purchased after 12:30 pm."

#Can you bring your dog?

Partly. Mercier says "Pets are not permitted in the orchard or the market" (u-pick), but pets are welcome on the Hard Cider deck and by the pond (hard cider & winery). Service dogs are welcome in the market and orchard. Emotional support animals aren't allowed inside, in the orchard, or in the cafe.

#A little history

In 1943, Bill and Adele Mercier "purchased a 27-acre orchard," and Adele "would sit in the apple house and sell apples to all who passed by." That original apple house is one "that you can still see from the parking lot today" (Our Roots). It's now a fourth-generation family farm with "over 40 varieties of apples" (Mercier), and the Chamber describes it as a "300-acre property" (Chamber).

#Mercier events coming up

• Santa at the Farm: Saturday, December 12, 2026, from 10 AM to 3 PM. Mercier lists photos with Santa, a cookie decorating station, holiday tractor tours, Albert's Boiled Peanuts, a petting zoo, "and other fun festivities." It suggests you "Bring your biggest smiles, your cameras, and your Christmas lists." The page doesn't list a price or say whether you need to reserve (Santa at the Farm). Our Christmas events guide has the rest of the season.
• Spiked Apple 5K: Saturday, March 27, 2027, at 10:30 AM (Mercier).

See the events calendar for everything else on during your dates.

#Where to stay near Mercier Orchards

The Black Ember is a modern A-frame about 10 minutes from Mercier Orchards and 10 minutes from downtown Blue Ridge. It sleeps up to five, with a barrel sauna, a private hot tub, and a fire pit for the evening after a day of picking (and a kitchen for that ready-to-bake pie). Read more about our cabin with a sauna.