Boston Public Library Museum Passes

After my harangue about getting out and doing stuff, I have to admit that today was more of a preparatory day.  As mentioned before, money is still a little tight, and I am still perfecting my methods of finding cheap/free things to do in Boston.  BUT, I wanted to let everyone know about the museum pass program at the Boston Public Library, which is possibly one of the best things ever.

I love the BPL and foresee many a post on all the things it has to offer.  One of their newer programs involved setting up a "library" of museum passes.  I was shocked to see how many people were unaware of this fantastic deal, so here's the lowdown.  Basically, as long as you have a BPL library card, you can check out passes to Boston/Cambridge museums in the same way that you can check out a book.  You pick up the pass at a designated location, have a blast, and then return it.  Some of the passes offer discounted entry (which is still a pretty good deal), but a ton of passes actually get you and your guests into the museum for absolutely free.

For Example, my sister is visiting in a couple of weeks, and we have always wanted to go to the New England Aquarium.  Now, admission to just the aquarium is $25 for an adult ticket, which always meant a choice between going to the aquarium or eating that day.  Through the BPL pass program, we get in for FREE.  That saves us $50.  But that's not even the best part.  The aquarium pass admits up to 4 people.  That's a $100 day-long trip for nothin'.

The only downside (if you can even call it that) to the program is that there are not unlimited passes, which means that the more popular museums can run out fairly quickly.  You can reserve a pass up to 60 days ahead of time, and if you can plan that far in advance, I'd recommend doing it.  If you can't, I would only suggest not dillydallying and reserving a pass as soon as you know that you'll need one.

So, if you have a BPL card, look into getting a museum pass!  If you don't have a card, GET ONE NOW!  Because libraries are cool.  Here's a link to the program's webpage, which lets you reserve a pass and gives a list of all the museums that participate in the program:

http://www.bpl.org/general/circulation/museum_passes.php

I've rented a pass to the JFK museum before, and everything when swimmingly.  Has anyone else rented one?  How did it work out?