Natural History Museum - New York
 

Pretty sure some of you will have been recently !
Am I right in thinking that admission is actually free of charge ?
The website says tickets are $19 and this is a "Suggested General Admission".....
Thanks.

Carl.

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

I think you are correct. I went there about a year ago, and gave them a $20 donation, but I think that technically you can give as much or as little as you choose.

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

Yes, The Museum of Natural History (believe this is the one you are referring to) is not "free". There is a suggested general admission just as there is for most of the other museums in Manhattan along Museum Mile.

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

I was there a year ago with my children and blanched at the admission price. For a family of five it would be out of our budget. However I did feel very guilty and uncomfortable 'suggesting' how much I was willing to donate, as they charge you full admission unless you say otherwise.

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

Thanks for the quick replies..... I'll purchase tickets online at the "Suggested" price ($19) and thereby avoid queuing for tickets on the day.
Pretty sure my 13 & 16 year olds will get my moneys worth out of the visit !

Carl.

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

I haven't been there recently, and I don't even remember what we paid years ago. But I can tell you this, you can spend ALL DAY there and still not see everything!! It's most definitely worth $19 admission!

Rene

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

It's a wonderful museum. There's also an IMAX theater and a planetarium. Enjoy!

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

There are so many museums that are outrageously expensive aren't they.

We've made full use of the reciprocal program from being a member to our local museum which happens to be pretty cheap compared to a lot of the others. We would never have been able to afford checking out so many of the places we did on our road trip other wise.

It's the cost of kids entrance that's most startling and how young they kick in. Some places only under 12 months were free, others it was 2 years, which is a bit of a joke.

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

We were there 10 days ago. Our friends (who live in NY) suggested to offer a $1 per person or more if we could afford it (apparently that's the norm for the locals :unsure:). There was hardly any queue, we went after lunch, although spent minimal time there as it was such a nice day (it was forecast to rain all day) and we knew we would be going to the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in DC a few days later (which we did).

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

That's why we didn't go up to the top of the Empire State Building when in NY as it would have cost us $200 for the 5 of us!!!! We were relieved when we moved onto DC where most were free.

We are about to get a family annual pass for our local Science Museum (eldest 2 daughters are obsessed with Science :D ) and it's 'only' $135 :thumbsup:

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

Suggested General Admission, which supports the Museum's scientific and educational endeavors, includes admission to all 45 Museum halls and the Rose Center for Earth and Space. Should you wish to pay less than the suggested admission, you may do so by purchasing tickets at any admissions desk at the Museum.

You don't have to pay $19. I wouldn't by the tickets in advance. Wibblypig is right. Locals rarely pay the suggested price.

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

It's odd that annual memberships are usually set fairly low compared to the price of admission. A couple of years ago we visited the Brooklyn Museum, and found it to be one of the nicest and most interesting museums and art galleries we'd ever visited so we actually went two days in a row and probably spent over six hours there in total. We almost bought the annual membership as it was not much more than twice the entrance fee ... even though we live about 350 miles from Brooklyn.

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

Many people buy the annual membership to places like this and end up going once or twice. I know I've done that over the years when buying annual memberships to places such as the National Aquarium in Baltimore or the Baltimore Zoo. If members go more often, the facility is usually happy just to get the extra money they spend on food, souvenirs, parking, etc.

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

I used to live across the street from the Brooklyn Museum. It is a very good museum though I don't think I had a membership. We did get membership to the Botanic Gardens though.

We have membership to the Desert Botanic Gardens here in Phx which is ridiculously cheap. Along with guest passes which my folks used when they visited I think we were well ahead by our second visit.

Re: Natural History Museum - New York
 

Even though I'm a native New Yorker I've never been to the Brooklyn Museum. Brooklyn has changed so much over the past few years. It has great restaurants and now the rent unfortunately can be just as much as Manhattan. I'll have to check it out.