Did you know you can get FREE family museum passes from the Lancaster County libraries? It’s as simple as visiting your local Lancaster County library website, calling them, or visiting them! You can request to be put on a waiting list to use circulating family passes to several local museums (and sometimes there isn’t even a waiting list!).
Each pass usually admits 4 people per family. Read on to find out more . . .
What is the Library System of Lancaster County Museum Pass Program?
The Library System of Lancaster County partners with museums in Lancaster County to promote educational and cultural learning opportunities for children and their families residing in the County.
There are currently almost a dozen different museum passes available for loan to any adult with a valid Lancaster County public library card.
The museum passes are located at the circulation desk and may be placed on hold from other libraries in the System, including the Bookmobile. Museum passes are not valid during special events or events that require registration.
Family Museum Passes are available at all 17 public libraries and the Bookmobile.
Which museum passes are included?
- 1719 Hans Herr House & Museum Family Museum Pass. Admits up to 4 people and circulates for 1 week. Museum closed from December-March. To read more about the Hans Herr House visit their website at http://www.hansherr.org/
- Ephrata Cloister Family Museum Pass. Admits up to 4 people and circulates for 1 week.
- Lancaster Science Factory Family Museum Pass. Admits up to 4 people and circulates for 1 week.
- Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum Family Museum Pass. Admits up to 4 people and circulates for 1 week.
- National Toy Train Museum Family Museum Pass. Admits up to 4 people and circulates for 2 weeks. Museum closed from January-March.
- National Watch and Clock Museum Family Museum Pass. Admits up to 6 people and circulates for 1 week.
- North Museum of Natural History and Science Family Museum Pass. Admits up to 4 people and circulates for 1 week. Pass does not include planetarium.
- Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania Family Museum Pass. Admits up to 4 people and circulates for 1 week.
- LancasterHistory.org and James Buchanon’s Wheatland. To read more about the LancasterHistrory, visit their website at http://www.lancasterhistory.org/
- Rockford Plantation. For more information about The Rock Ford Plantation, visit: http://www.rockfordplantation.org/
How to Reserve Your FREE Pass
Click on the link above for the pass you are interested in, or visit the Lancaster County Library Guides page, or search for the museum name just as if you would search for a book in their Library Catalog System.
When you find the pass, it will show you a list of all the passes available at the local libraries.
Click the Request Button near the top left of the menu.
And that’s it! The library will email you when your pass is ready to be picked up.
FREE Museum Pass Guidelines
The Museum pass is loaned to any Lancaster County adult with a valid public library card, and are available at all 17 public libraries, as well as the Bookmobile.
- adult checkout only
- one week circulation
- reserves allowed from any library, including bookmobile
- overdue fines of $1.00/day (up to $5)
- replacement cost of $7.00 for lost or damaged case
- not eligible for renewal
Conditions of Use
There are some conditions of use that pass holders must follow.
- Valid during regular museum hours and Second Sunday events.
- Not valid for any special event that requires a reservation.
- Does not apply to group rates.
- Designated for use by immediate family residing together within the same household, at least one of whom must be a supervising adult.
- Pass can only be used once during the one week checkout period.
- Museum pass may not be used for commercial or for-profit purposes.
I would love to hear about your experience with the family museum passes. I shared about one of our favorite museums in my post on 5 secrets for rainy days. Several other museums on this list would be excellent ideas for rainy days too!
