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Your family can enjoy some of New York's most popular museums for free with a library card. Photo by Lisa Mancuso

Take a FREE Pass

Most libraries on Long Island allow cardholders to access free museum passes, usually up to four passes at a time. From admiring art or learning about science and history to exploring a different culture, bringing your children to a museum lets them discover new things and perhaps unleash a passion or two. 

Museums are located throughout Long Island, from Nassau to Suffolk, with a few on the East End. New York City’s most popular museums are also represented. Here’s a sampling of museums that participate in the library pass program. While some passes must be picked up at the library (and returned there), passes for select museums can be printed at home. Note: Library offerings differ and there are restrictions, so be sure to check specific websites for details.

RELATED: Great Family-Friendly Museums on Long Island

Kids can take flight at the Cradle of Aviation Museum. Photo by the author

Nassau County Museums with Library Perks

• Cradle of Aviation Museum
• Garvies Point Museum & Preserve 
• Hofstra University Museum of Art 
• Holocaust Memorial & Tolerance Center of Nassau County
• Long Island Children’s Museum
• Nassau County Firefighters Museum
• Nassau County Museum of Art
• Old Bethpage Village Restoration
• Planting Fields Arboretum
• Old Westbury Gardens

Learn about aquaculture at the Cold Spring Harbor Fish Hatchery. Photo by the author

Suffolk County Museums with Library Perks

• American Airpower Museum
• Cold Spring Harbor Fire House Museum
• Cold Spring Harbor Fish Hatchery & Aquarium
• Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society
• Heckscher Museum of Art
• Long Island Maritime Museum
• Long Island Museum
• Suffolk County Vanderbilt Mansion Museum and Planetarium
• Walt Whitman Birthplace State Historic Site
• Whaling Museum and Education Center in Cold Spring Harbor

East End Museums with Library Perks

• The Parrish Art Museum
• South Fork Natural History Museum

Museums in New York City, including Brooklyn, with Library Perks

• Brooklyn Botanic Gardens
• Cooper Hewitt
• The Frick Collection
• Guggenheim Museum,
• Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
• Jewish Museum
• Museum of Modern Art
• Museum of the City of New York
• New-York Historical Society Museum and Library
• New York Transit Museum

RELATED: The Best in Museums and Arts for Long Island Kids

Kids can explore their creative side at Merrick Library's digital media center. Photo courtesy of Merrick Library

More Perks to Be Had

You might not be able to physically borrow it from the library, but at Merrick Library’s Walter Mintz Makerspace a 3D printer is available for kids to use while exploring their creative side. Other communities whose libraries boast high-tech gadgets include Smithtown (also located in Commack, Kings Park and Nesconset), Sachem Public Library in Holbrook, and Middle Country Public Library in Centereach/Selden, which also boasts a nature explorium, an awesome outdoor learning space for kids. Curious about your roots? At many libraries, including Huntington, you can now access ancestry databases.

Toys and dolls, including American Girl dolls and accessories, can be borrowed from the Brentwood library. Libraries in Port Washington and Harborfields offer games, and Lindenhurst and Massapequa libraries have tablets for children, all of which can be checked out simply by handing the librarian a card. Snowed in? No worries. Digital books, music, and more are available to download from the comfort of your home via your library’s website.

Books, free museum passes, and much more…Your public library has it all and it’s all FREE.

This post is updated annually.