Oh The Places You'll Go ... With Library Passes!

Although the economy is taking some small steps upward, many families are still feeling the crunch. As a bargain shopper and mother of three, finding deals is a daily part of my life.  Like most families we take advantage of our two wonderful town libraries, including using their museum passes. 

It’s worth exploring the places you can visit with these passes some at a significant savings. Why not plan a few day trips this summer with your kids by booking passes in advance? A little planning ahead and you can hit some of the coolest places around for very little money.

The website has an entire page dedicated to their museum passes. Passes are provided by the Friends of the Framingham Library Association and other supporters. They can be reserved online or by calling the Reference Desk at 508-532-5570 ext 4361. Some passes require a $5 refundable deposit and details on each pass are provided on the library website. All passes are handled through the Framingham Main Branch Library.

Below is the most current list of passes available at the Framingham Library:

The Boston Children’s Museum

The New England Aquarium

The Danforth Museum

The Discovery Museums in Acton

Higgins Armory Museum

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

The Museum of Science

The Museum of Fine Arts

Spellman Museum of Stamps and Postal History

Franklin Park Zoo

Stone Zoo

Tower Hill Botanic Garden

Massachusetts State Parks

Another benefit of being card carrying member of the Minuteman Library Network is that you have access to museum passes from all Network libraries listed here: http://www.mln.lib.ma.us/info/index.htm. Passes can differ from town-to-town and you must travel to that town’s specific library to borrow their pass, as they are not sent via mail or inter-library request. Some communities also have placed a resident only restriction on some passes.

For an example of the savings, if you’d like to visit Drumlin Farm in Lincoln (which is a favorite of the preschool set) you can visit for $1 per person with a museum pass from the Wayland Public Library. Regular Drumlin Farm admission for non-Audubon members is $6 for adults and $4 for kids 2-12. For my family of five, admission would normally cost us $24 but with the pass it’s only $5.

The savings are endless.  A friend recently took her boys to the Higgins Armory Museum and had a blast. What would have cost her $31 in admission was FREE thanks to the library. She came back raving about the place and plans a return trip with a pass of course.

Unrelated to museum passes, but just as money saving, is the ability to request materials from other Network libraries. If there’s a book you want but it’s in Acton you can go online, make a request and when it becomes available it’s sent to either the or (whichever you choose) free of charge.

So stock up on some great reads and check out some of the area’s best museums, zoos and more this summer all thanks to the Library!