Guide to Free/Reduced Price Admission for 2024 CT Summer Museums

We’ve all heard the news…Summer at the Museum is not coming back this year.

The good news? CT Libraries, the CT Art Trail, Membership Reciprocals, The Blue Star Museum, and Museums for all programs are ALL coming to the rescue to help families continue to access museums! There are 92 Museums on this list that offer free or reduced price admission- and we’ll keep updating as we learn of more.

Here are the big ways to score free admission:

I’ll talk more about them below, but these are the big categories to be aware of:

• Library Passes: 
  • Did you know you can typically check out library museum passes from ANY Connecticut Library using a card from your Home Library? It’s true- thanks to the CT Open Access Program! I like to look at the libraries in towns surrounding the museum I want to visit- chances are, they’ll have a pass. It’s always good to call ahead and check with individual library policy before heading out.
• Museums for All:
  • Anyone who has an EBT Card qualifies for Museums for All, which offers reduced price or free admission to participating museums!
• Blue Star Museums: 
  • Military Families receive free admission to participating museums from May 18-September 7.
• The Connecticut Art Trail: 
  • 24 Museums that you can access all year long using a $35 pass. They also have fun contests if you’d like to participate!
• Reciprocal Programs:
  • Many Museums belong to programs that allow you to gain access to partner museums at certain times. It’s a fantastic way to maximize membership benefits! (The Connecticut Science Center Membership is a great example here- it gives you access to Mystic Aquarium, Norwalk Aquarium, the Beardsley Zoo, and the Pequot Museum at different times of the year!)

Below, you’ll find a chart of which museums participate in which programs. Please note that this is an ongoing project, so let me know what is missing so it can be added.

In Photo: Mystic Seaport Museum

New London County Low Cost/Free Museum Options

Photo: CT River Museum

Middlesex County Low Cost/Free Museum Options

Awesome Museum Programs to Know About:

CT Art Trail Passport:

Gets holder into 24 Art Museums around CT for free.

Cost: $35/Pass

Included Museums:

• Slater Memorial Museum, Norwich
• Hartford Art School Galleries, University of Hartford
• Silvermine Arts Center, New Canaan
• Bruce Museum, Greenwich
• Center For Contemporary Printmaking, Norwalk
• Art Museum, University of Saint Joseph
• New Britain Museum of American Art
• Greenwich Historical Society / Bush-Holley House Museum 
• Five Points Gallery, Torrington
• Yale Center for British Art
• Lyme Art Association
• Mystic Museum of Art
• Eastern Art Gallery
• Fairfield University Art Museum
• Carousel Museum
• Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art
• Hill-Stead Museum
• Florence Griswold Museum
• Weir Farm National Historical Park
• Stamford Museum & Nature Center
• American Mural Project (AMP)
• MoCA Westport
• Yale University Art Gallery
• William Benton Museum of Art, University of CT
• Mattatuck Museum
• The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum  
• Lyman Allyn Art Museum
• The Housatonic Museum of Art

ACM Reciprocal Network:

Reduced Price Admission to the following:

• The Children’s Museum in West Hartford,
• EverWonder Children’s Museum
• KidsPlay Children’s Museum
• Lutz Children’s Museum
• Niantic Children’s Museum
• Stepping Stones Museum for Children

Museums that often have Library Passes:

Library Pass Note: Many libraries allow anyone with a Connecticut Library Card to Check out a Pass to any Connecticut Library with any library card. It’s worth looking around at different libraries to see what passes they offer!

• Lutz Museum:
• Connecticut River Museum: Free Admission
• CT Museum of Culture and History
• Mashantucket Pequot Museum & Research Center
• Florence Griswold Museum
• Mystic Seaport Museum
• New England Air Museum
• New Britain Museum of American Art
• Niantic Children’s Museum
• Dinosaur State Park
• Fort Trumbull State Park
• Gillette Castle State Park