New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill - 2:00 PM Pick
Granite State Scenic Railway - 4:30 PM Pick
Conway Scenic Railroad - 4:30 PM Pick
Cape Cod Central Railroad Depot - various times Pick
Cape Cod Central Railroad Depot - various times Pick
CambridgeSide - 9:00 AM
Harvard Museum of Natural History - 9:00 AM
Museum of Science - 9:00 AM
Cape Cod Central Railroad Depot - various times Pick
Harvard Museum of Natural History - 9:00 AM
CambridgeSide - 9:00 AM
Roger Williams Park Botanical Center - 9:00 AM
Museum of Science - 9:00 AM
Harvard Museum of Natural History - 9:00 AM
Conway Scenic Railroad - 4:30 PM Pick
Granite State Scenic Railway - 4:30 PM Pick
Cape Cod Central Railroad Depot - various times Pick
Granite State Scenic Railway - 4:30 PM Pick
Conway Scenic Railroad - 4:30 PM Pick
Cape Cod Central Railroad Depot - various times Pick
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Free Museums near Boston To Visit with Kids
Get your family out to one of the free museums near Boston, in the city and around New England. Boston is home to some of the best museums, zoos, and theme parks in America, but many of these incredible experiences come at a steep cost. Here's a secret: many museums and attractions in Massachusetts are free for little kids, and in some cases, all kids. Mommy Poppins has set out to uncover these freebies almost 50 of them, in fact! So what are you waiting for? Start your free museum adventures, and check off the list as you go. And take advantage of the kid-friendly rates for The “T”. Kids under 12 ride for free with an adult!
If you're working your way through our Boston Kids' 100 Things to Do bucket list, you may want to coordinate with the cut-off ages below; some of the museums you can catch on their free admission days, but several other attractions really drive home the bittersweet point that you're only young once. Don't miss our Boston Free Fun Guide for even more ideas for creating special experiences for kids without breaking the bank.
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Free Museums near Boston - Always Free
Some of Boston's best museums and attractions are free whenever your family visits!
- Arnold Arboretum
- Boston Fire Museum
- Bunker Hill Museum
- Fuller Craft Museum (donations encouraged)
- Longyear Museum
- Metropolitan Waterworks Museum
- Saugus Iron Works
- USS Constitution Museum (suggested donation $5-$15)
Free Museums near Boston - Attractions Free for Kids Under 1
These museums, zoos, and Boston attractions are free for the littlest of your little ones.
- Boston Children’s Museum
- Children's Museum of NH
- Discovery Museums
- The Children’s Museum of Easton
- Roger Williams Park Zoo
Visit Taco the baby sloth at the Stone Zoo, where kids under 2 are admitted for free. Photo courtesy of the Zoo
Free Museums near Boston - Places Free for Kids Under 2
Toddle on over to these museums, zoos, and more. Kids under two get in for free.
- Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum
- Drumlin Farm
- Ecotarium
- Franklin Park Zoo
- Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary
- South Shore Natural Science Center
- Southwick Zoo
- Stone Zoo
- Swan Boat Rides
Free Museums near Boston - Places Free for Kids Under 3
- Battleship Cove
- Charles Hayden Planetarium
- Harvard Museum of Natural History
- Museum of Science
- Mugar Omni Theater
- New England Aquarium
- Seacoast Science Center
- Simons IMAX Theatre at the Aquarium
- Springfield Museums (includes The Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum)
Free Museums near Boston - Museums and Gardens Free for Kids Under 5
See Boston's history retold in Colonial period costume. Photo courtesy of the Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum
Visit these museums (and more) fore free admission for children under five years old.
- Edaville Railroad (in-season)
- Fruitlands Museum
- Garden in the Woods
- Concord Museum
- MIT Museum
- Paul Revere House
- Spellman Museum of Stamps and Postal History
Free Museums near Boston - Free for Kids Under 6
Free Museums near Boston - Free for Kids Under 7
- Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) (17 & under are free after 3pm on weekdays; weekends; and public school holidays)
Free Museums near Boston - Free for Kids Under 12
Check out the DeCordova Museum, where kids under 12 can see art for free!
Walk through a garden of sculptures including Jim Dine's Two Bog Black Hearts any season. Photo courtesy of the DeCordova Sculpture Park and Museum
Free Museums near Boston - Free for Kids Under 13
Free Museums near Boston - Free for Kids Under 18
Look at the world from the inside out as it was in 1935. Photo Courtesy the Mapparium at the Mary Baker Eddy Library
- Peabody Essex Museum (under 17)
- Harvard Art Museums
- Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
- Mapparium
- ICA - Institute of Contemporary Art (18 & under)
Originally published 2015
Updated January 2023
