Are museum and city passes worth the money?
When we’re talking about visiting many of these great cities around the world, we sometimes mention that there is a city pass, or a museum pass or a transit pass available that may save you money.
These city passes will usually get you into many of the city’s museums or attractions. Sometimes they will be bundled with the city’s public transportation system. They may be for a group of museums only or for transport only.
In most cities these are available for different lengths of time like 1, 3, 5 or even 7 days. Sometimes they are actually offered by the city or the city’s museums or the city’s transit authority. Sometimes they are offered by a private company that has an agreement with the city or the attractions that are included.
So for instance in Madrid, you can buy a ticket to get into the Prado, the Reina Sofia Museum and the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum for less than the price you would pay if you bought all three admissions separately. The pass will also get you past the lines. This one can be purchased at any of the three museums. We thought it was a good deal.
The Carte Muses et Monuments in Paris gets you into 63 museums and monuments in Paris and the surrounding area. You get an unlimited number of visits and get to go in a special entrance so you can skip the lines. This is a great deal if you’re into museums… you can pop in and out of the Louvre and others and have time in between for a head clearing walk in the park.
Whenever you consider city passes or transit cards or museum cards… think if they will really save you money. We thought those mentioned above were good deals for us. We’ve evaluated others and chosen not to get them. If you’re only seeing one museum or taking one subway ride… just pay for the one… the “pass” will cost you too much. Madrid had a transit pass that was a good price, but we really liked walking the city, so we only planned to take the subway one time… one ticket was cheaper than a transit pass.
So when you’re planning a trip to visit cities with many museums and attractions, check into a city pass. You can find out about these on the CityPass site here.
You can almost always wait and buy them at one of the museums included or at a tourist information office. One way or the other, it’s good idea to have the information ahead and have time to think about it so you don’t have to waste time deciding when you are standing in front of the museum. These passes will be validated at the first attraction you visit, and your time will be calculated from that.
Look at the price of the city pass and which museums and attractions are included. Are you even interested in museums? Do you want to go to many of the attraction included, or are there many that just don’t interest you?
Will you have time to see them during the 1, 3, or 7 days that the city pass is valid? Will seeing that many places have you running around more than you would like? You have to travel the way you want.
Maybe you want to just sit in a sidewalk cafe and watch the world go by!
So think about it. You don’t want to pay for more than you will use, but many times, museum and city passes are well worth the investment.
For US travel, consider a CityPass®, which allows you to save up to 50% in the following cities: New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Southern California, Seattle, Houston, San Francisco, Toronto, Boston, Philadelphia, Hollywood
Another way to go is to purchase a Go Visitor Card or an Explorer Pass. All you need to do is purchase a Go Card for the area you are going to visit. (Locals can use them to save, too.) Then you get unlimited admission to top attractions, activities, and tours for one low price. You can get a Go Visitor Card in single and multiple day increments.
Explorer Passes are another great option. These give you the choice and flexibility to visit any 3 or 5 included attractions over the course of 30 calendar days.
Go Visitor Card/Explorer Pass products are currently available for the top U.S. vacation destinations: New York City, Boston, Chicago, Hawaii (Oahu), Los Angeles, Miami, Orlando, San Diego, San Francisco and Seattle. And they just added Go Maui Cards and Go Blue Ridge Cards, too.
Explorer Passes allow you to choose the number of attractions you want to see. Like the Go City Card products, you can save big vs. individual ticket prices (especially when you use the coupon codes here: GoCard Coupons and Explorer Pass Coupons