10 Amazing Free Museums in the U.S.

a statue of an elephant in a museumIt’s safe to say that just about all of us in the miles and points hobby love a great deal. And the best price (of course!) is always free.

When traveling, the costs from museum admission fees can add up really fast, especially when travelling with a family. However, there are lots of museums which will let you in for free.

Smarter Travel came up with a slideshow featuring “10 Amazing Free Museums in the United States“.

Here is the list:

  1. Smithsonian Institution– Washington D.C.
  2. Cleveland Museum of Art– Cleveland, OH
  3. Bronx Museum– Bronx, NYC
  4. The Getty Center– Los Angeles, CA
  5. The Baltimore Museum of Art– Baltimore, MD
  6. Olympic Sculpture Park– Seattle, WA
  7. The Menil Collection– Houston, TX
  8. The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art– Kansas City, MO
  9. Frye Art Museum– Seattle, WA
  10. The Museum at F.I.T.– New York City

From Smarter Travel’s list we’ve ony been to one of the ten.

The Smithsonian Institution is made up of 19 museums, galleries and the National Zoo. I’ve been to a bunch of these museums and would recommend visiting the Museum of the American Indian, which is my favorite (the NY location is also very good), the Air and Space Museum and American History Museum.

We’re planning to stop by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art this week since we are currently in Kansas City.

Have you been to any of the free museums from this list? If so, which did you visit and how did you like it?

If you have any other free museums to suggest, please share with us in the comments below.

Find out more about each of the 10 Amazing Free Museums from Smarter Travel HERE.

5 thoughts on “10 Amazing Free Museums in the U.S.

  1. Naser- While it is officially free they do expect a donation which is rather pricey.

    DaninSTL- We were on the fence about visiting the WWI museum but will definitely try to go now!

    PSL- Thanks for the info!

    Denise- Good to hear! Hopefully we’ll make it to Nelson-Adkins during the last day of our visit.

  2. Went to the Nelson-Adkins for the first time last year and was really impressed. It reminded a little of the British Museum but on a smaller scale. Good variety and selection. Make sure to eat at their cafe. Very good and the prices are reasonable. They even do dinner on a couple of nights (Thurs and Fri I think). You’ll enjoy it!

  3. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, while technically cannot charge admission because it sits on city-owned property and does not pay rent, does have a rather steep recommended donation of $25 for adults, $17 for seniors, and $12 for students. There was a lawsuit last year by visitors who claimed they were misled into thinking that this is a mandatory fee. Not sure what happened there, but keep in mind that even if you pay the full fare, if you want an audio guide it costs $7 and that is not a negotiable price.

  4. Although not free if you are visiting KC don’t miss the WW1 museum at the Liberty Memorial. It’s very very good.

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