PAY-AS-YOU-WISH ADMISSION AT NEW YORK CITY MUSEUMS

Museums that receive public funds or free rent, such as the American Museum of Natural History and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, have a suggested admission fee. However the counter staff will not tell you that the recommended fee is just a suggestion and that you are not required to pay that amount. The machines that allow you to skip the lines take only credit cards, so you will have to pay the recommended fee, but you can still pay cash at the counter. It really is on the honor system, but these days they don't let you know that. The signs used to say (a long, long time ago) "You may pay what you like, but you must pay something. The suggested admission is___." But they took those signs down long ago. Today, they are a bit gruffer if you don't pay full price. 

The Metropolitan Museum of Art supposedly charges an admissions fee of $24 for adults. Don't pay it. They get tons of money from donations from people and from other organizations. Give them a dollar to get the little admissions pin and walk right in. Always check for the word 'suggested' before parting with your money. I hate the concept of having to pay to see historical and artistic works. The public should be allowed the right to such achievements.

For free museums and other free things to do in New York City, click here.


List from nyc.gov at the link below

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dycd/downloads/pdf/museum_deals.pdf


List from the Official Guide to New York, posted 12/31/2014

http://www.nycgo.com/articles/free-nyc-museums

These New York City museums are either always free, free on specific days of the week or free for select hours. Find one near you, and take advantage of their generosity.

Note that this takes into account general admission only; certain events and special exhibitions may still require a fee.

For hours and prices of more NYC museums and institutions, see our Schedules and Admissions page.


SOMETIMES FREE

The following museums typically require paid admission but open their doors for free on specific days or times—though again, some do charge for admission to specific events or sections. Be sure to consult their websites or call ahead if you hope to see a specific exhibition.

Mondays
Museum at Eldridge Street (10am to noon, tours)

Tuesdays
9/11 Museum (5pm to close)
The Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Morgan Library and Museum (McKim Rooms only, 3 to 5pm)
Wave Hill (9am to noon)

Wednesdays
Bronx Zoo (pay what you will for grounds access; does not include admission to special exhibitions like the Butterfly Garden, Congo Gorilla Forest and JungleWorld)
Museum of Jewish Heritage (4 to 8pm)
New York Botanical Garden (free grounds access; does not include entry to the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, special exhibitions like the Orchid Show and Holiday Train Show, Everett Children’s Adventure Garden, Rock and Native Plant Gardens or Tram Tour)
Queens Botanical Garden (April through October, 3 to 6pm; all day rest of year)
Staten Island Zoo (2 to 4:45pm)

Thursdays
Brooklyn Children's Museum (3 to 5pm)
Museum of Arts and Design (pay what you will, 6 to 9pm)
Museum of Chinese in America
New Museum (pay what you will, 7 to 9pm)

Fridays
Asia Society (September through June, 6 to 9pm)
Historic Richmond Town (1 to 5pm)
Japan Society (6 to 9pm)
Morgan Library and Museum (7 to 9pm)
Museum of Modern Art (4 to 8pm)
Museum of the Moving Image (4 to 8pm)
New York Aquarium (pay what you will, 3pm to close; 4pm to close in summer)
New York Hall of Science (September through June, 2 to 5pm)
The New-York Historical Society (pay what you will, 6 to 8pm)
Rubin Museum of Art (6 to 10pm)

First Friday of the Month
Children’s Museum of Manhattan (5 to 8pm)
Neue Galerie (6 to 8pm)
The Noguchi Museum

Saturdays
The Brooklyn Botanic Garden (10am to noon)
The Jewish Museum
Museum of American Finance
New York Botanical Garden (free grounds pass, 9 to 10am)
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (pay what you will, 5:45 to 7:45pm)
Wave Hill (9am to noon)

First Saturday of the Month
Brooklyn Museum (5 to 11pm)

Third Saturday of the Month
El Museo del Barrio

Sundays
Frick Collection (pay what you will, 11am to 1pm)
The Morgan Library and Museum (McKim Rooms only, 4 to 6pm)
New York Hall of Science (September through June, 10 to 11am)
Queens Botanical Garden (April through October, 4 to 6pm)
Studio Museum in Harlem

Seasonal
Brooklyn Botanic Garden (November through February, weekdays)
Queens Botanical Garden (November through March, Tuesday through Sunday)


PAY AS-YOU-WISH

List from gonyc.about.com

These New York City museums allow you to use your discretion when paying admission. You can pay what you can afford (or what you feel represents your visit to the museum) with the suggested admission policy. At most of these museums the full-price admission price is posted, but you can tell the cashier how much you want to pay and they will admit you. I've done this several times when I am just visiting a museum for a brief period of time.

Note: you can't purchase tickets online for less than the suggested admission.

• American Museum of Natural History
  The suggested adult admission at the American Museum of Natural History is $19, but you can make whatever contribution you see as appropriate to enter the museum (though you'll have to pay full price for planetarium shows, IMAX films and special exhibits).
  Address: Central Park West at West 79th Street | Phone: 212-769-5000
• Brooklyn Museum
  One of the oldest and largest art museums in the world, the Brooklyn Museum is housed in a beautiful Beaux-Arts building. The suggested admission is $12 to see not only the museum's permanent collection, but also a range of ever-changing exhibits that are often amazing.
  Address: 200 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn | Phone: 718-638-5000
• El Museo del Barrio
  Located in East Harlem, El Museo del Barrio collects and exhibits Caribbean, Latino, and Latin American art. The museum's suggested admission of $9 offers you the opportunity to explore both temporary exhibits, as well as displays from the museum's permanent collection.
  Address: 1230 Fifth Avenue (104th Street) | Phone: 212-831-7272
• Metropolitan Museum of Art & The Cloisters
  Although they raised the suggested admission to $25, you can pay what you can afford to see one of the greatest art museums in New York City.
  The Met - Address: 1000 Fifth Avenue | Phone: 212-535-7710
  The Cloisters - Address: 99 Margaret Corbin Drive, Fort Tryon Park | Phone: 212-923-3700
• MoMA PS1
  PS1 exhibits contemporary art in a former Public School in Long Island City, Queens. Suggested admission is $10, which gains you access to temporary exhibitions, as well as long-term exhibits at the museum. Admission is also free for MoMA ticket holders within 30 days.
  Address: 22-25 Jackson Ave. at 46th Ave., Long Island City | Phone: 718-784-2084
• Museum of the City of New York
  The Museum of the City of New York features a permanent collection and changing exhibits about the history of this fascinating city. They suggest visitors pay $10, and offer free admission to people who live or work above 103rd Street in East Harlem.
  Address: 1220 Fifth Avenue at 103rd Street | Phone: 212-534-1672
• Queens Museum
  The Queens Museum of Art collects and exhibits art reflecting the urban experience, with an emphasis on artists working and living in New York City and Queens. Suggested admission of $8 gives you a chance to see their most famous exhibit, The Panorama of the City of New York built by Robert Moses for the 1964 World's Fair.
  Address: New York City Building, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Queens | Phone: 718-592-9700
• Sculpture Center
  Founded in 1928, the Sculpture Center collects and commissions contemporary sculpture, and exhibits work by emerging and established sculptors. A donation of $5 is suggested for admission to this Queens museum open Thursday - Monday from 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.
  Address: 4419 Purves Street, Long Island City, Queens | Phone: 718-361-1750
• Staten Island Museum
  The Staten Island Museum prides itself on dynamic exhibits highlighting its multidisciplinary collection related to natural science, art, and history. Suggested admission is just $5.
  Address: 75 Stuyvesant Place, Staten Island | Phone: 718-727-1135
• The Studio Museum of Harlem
  The Studio Museum of Harlem asks for a $7 suggested donation to see their exhibits which focus on the works of local, national and international artists of African descent.
  Address: 144 West 125th Street | Phone: 212-864-4500
• Tibet House
  The Tibet House Cultural Center features exhibits of classical and contemporary Tibetan art, as well as art inspired by Tibetan culture. Admission is free, but there is a box to contribute your donation ($5 suggested).
  Address: 22 West 15th Street | Phone: 212-807-0565

March 19, 2013: Visitors to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York wait in line to buy admission tickets. (AP)

NYC art museum accused of duping visitors on admission fees

Associated Press

March 25, 2013

Before visitors to the Metropolitan Museum of Art can stroll past the Picassos, Renoirs, Rembrandts and other priceless works, they must first deal with the posted $25 adult admission and the meaning of the word in smaller type just beneath it: "recommended."

Confusion over what's required to enter one of the world's great museums, which draws more than 6 million visitors a year, is at the heart of a class-action lawsuit this month accusing the New York City institution of scheming to defraud the public into believing the fees are required.

The lawsuit contends that the museum uses misleading marketing and training of cashiers to violate an 1893 New York state law that mandates the public should be admitted for free at least five days and two evenings per week. In exchange, the museum gets annual grants from the city and free rent for its building and land along pricey Fifth Avenue in Central Park.

Met spokesman Harold Holzer denied any deception and said a policy of requiring visitors to pay at least something has been in place for more than four decades. 

"We are confident that the courts will see through this insupportable nuisance lawsuit."

The suit seeks compensation for museum members and visitors who paid by credit card over the past few years.

"The museum was designed to be open to everyone, without regard to their financial circumstances," said Arnold Weiss, one of two attorneys who filed the lawsuit on behalf of three museum-goers, a New Yorker and two tourists from the Czech Republic. "But instead, the museum has been converted into an elite tourist attraction."

Among the allegations are that third-party websites do not mention the recommended fee and that the museum sells memberships that carry the benefit of free admission, even though the public is already entitled to free admission.

The Metropolitan Museum is one of the world's richest cultural institutions, with a $2.58 billion investment portfolio, and isn't reliant on admissions fees to pay the majority of its bills. Only about 11 percent of the museum's operating expenses were covered by admissions charges in the 2012 fiscal year. As a nonprofit organization, the museum pays no income taxes.

The Met's Holzer said the basis for the lawsuit -- that admission is intended to be free -- is wrong because the state law the plaintiffs cited has been superseded many times and the city approved pay-what-you-wish admissions in 1970.

"The idea that the museum is free to everyone who doesn't wish to pay has not been in force for nearly 40 years," Holzer said, adding, "Yes, you do have to pay something."

New York City's Department of Cultural Affairs agreed to the museum's request in 1970 for a general admission as long as the amount was left up to individuals and that the signage reflected that.

Similar arrangements are in place for other cultural institutions that operate on city-owned land and property and receive support from the city. It's also a model that's been replicated in other cities.

Holzer also noted that in the past fiscal year, 41 percent of visitors to the Met paid the full recommended admission price -- $25 for adults, $17 for seniors and $12 for students.

A random sampling of visitors leaving the museum found that there was a general awareness that "recommended" implied you could pay less than the posted price.

But Dan Larson and his son Jake, visiting the museum last week from Minnesota, were unaware there was any room to negotiate the admission price. They paid the full $25 each for adult tickets.

"My understanding was you pay the recommended price," said Larson, 50. "That's clearly not displayed."

Alexander Kulessa, a 23-year-old university student from Germany, said friends tipped him off about the admission fee.

"They said, `Don't pay $25,"' said Kulessa. "They said it will be written everywhere to pay $25, but you don't have to pay that."

For Colette Leger, a tourist from Toronto, paying the full $25 was worth it.

"It's a beautiful museum, and I was happy to pay," she said.