Blue Star Museums free for military families

The Blue Star Museum program offers military families free admission to over 2,000 museums around the country. Participating organizations cover a huge range of subjects, including art, history, children’s, horticultural, aquatic, country, aviation, culture, industrial and government museums. Blue Star Museums is a partnership between the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense, and participating museums. This is the seventh summer of the Blue Star Museums program.

Eligible patrons include currently serving active duty, National Guard, reservists, U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps members, and NOAA Commissioned Corps members, and their respective families. Eligible persons need to have a military common access card or a dependent ID card. An eligible person may bring up to five family members, defined as a spouse, child, aunt, uncle, or grandparents. The active duty member does not have to be present.

The program runs from Memorial Day, Monday, 30 May 2016 through Labor Day, Monday, 5 September 2016. Individual museum hours will vary by location, and not all museums are open seven days a week. Check with the individual museum for more details on opening days and times.

All kinds of museums participate in this program. An interactive map can be found at the National Endowment for the Arts Blue Star Museums webpage, www.arts.gov/national/blue-star-museums