By Iris Seaton for the Asheville Citizen Times as appearing in the Hendersonville Times-News
A tasty Hendersonville tradition was recognized in a top 10 list of America’s favorite Labor Day events.
The rankings from personalized photo gift website Mixbook were assigned through an online survey of 3,000, using a two-step process to ensure representativeness of various demographics.
In total, three North Carolina celebrations made the list of 100 best Labor Day events – but the NC Apple Festival in Hendersonville made it into the top 10.
Here’s what Mixbook said about the festival, and what else to know about the event with only a few days until the 2024 start date.
What is the NC Apple Festival?
Mixbook praised Hendersonville’s Apple Festival for its street fair, live entertainment and apple-themed treats. Also mentioned were the parade, and children’s activities available making it perfect for a family-friendly weekend.
The festival is a long tradition, with over 70 years of history behind it. The NC Apple Festival website says Henderson County celebrates apples with the festival for their role as one of the most important agricultural crops grown in the county.
During a normal year, the site said apples bring in an average income of $30 million or more for Henderson. The crop has been a part of the county’s heritage since the mid 1700s. Now, Henderson grows 80% of apples from N.C., which is No. 7 in the country for apple production.
NC Apple Festival 2024 schedule
The Apple Festival begins Friday, Aug. 30, at 10 a.m. From Friday-Sunday, the entire festival is open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
Monday, Sept. 2, the food court area and some crafters and vendors will remain at the festival from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with a break at 2:30 p.m. for the yearly King Apple Parade.
See full schedules for each day on the festival’s website.
Top Labor Day events in the US
Here are Mixbook’s full top 10 rankings:
- Los Angeles Labor Day Parade, Los Angeles, California.
- Great Smoky Mountains Labor Day Weekend Events, Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
- Labor Day Wine Tasting Weekend, Napa Valley, California.
- Colorado State Fair, Pueblo, Colorado.
- Labor Day Weekend Oceanfront Concert Series, Virginia Beach, Virginia.
- North Carolina Apple Festival, Hendersonville, North Carolina.
- Oregon State Fair, Salem, Oregon.
- Grand Canyon Music Festival, Grand Canyon, Arizona.
- Pittsburgh Rib Fest, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
- 10 Santa Fe Fiesta, Santa Fe, New Mexico.
The preceding article originally appeared on August 28, 2024 at the Hendersonville Times-News website and is made available here for educational purposes only. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 106A-117 of the U.S. Copyright Law.
