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Library Museum Passes Near Boston: Rules by Town

Booking rules for library museum passes in Melrose, Malden, Medford, Stoneham, Wakefield, Lynn, Salem and Somerville.

Boston Neighbor staffPublished 7 min read
The Museum of Science on the Charles River in Boston, with its planetarium dome beyond
Photo: Daderot / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain

Malden lends one pass per family per week to residents; Salem’s card works through four different pass types; Somerville lets you borrow one pass a day. Each library runs its program differently, so this page goes through the rules for eight of them, as posted on their own pages.

How library museum passes work

A library buys or is given a limited number of passes to each museum (often just one pass per museum per day) and lends them to cardholders. A few things are nearly universal:

  • You reserve a specific date online, by phone or at the desk, usually within about a month of the visit.
  • The pass is a discount, not always free. The museum typically charges a small co-pay per person at the door. A pass often covers up to a set number of people, and special exhibits can cost extra.
  • The pass comes in one of several forms: a link emailed to you (digital), a printed coupon, a discount code, or a physical plastic or paper pass you pick up at the library and sometimes return.
  • A library pass does not guarantee a spot. Many museums now use timed tickets, so you may also need to book an entry time with the museum itself.
  • Your card has to be in good standing, and each town has its own residency rule.

Melrose

The Melrose Public Library says a household can reserve one pass per day and that some venues allow only two per month. You can reserve up to 28 days ahead. Museums collect a co-pay, and special exhibits may cost extra.

Most Melrose passes are digital: you get a confirmation email with an “Access Pass” link. If you do not use email, you can pick up a printed confirmation at the Main Desk. A handful of passes need to be picked up in person during library hours: Harvard Museums of Science & Culture, Historic New England, the Paul Revere House, Trustees of Reservations and Zoo New England. The Paul Revere House pass must be returned to the library before the museum opens the next day.

The page warns that many museums require timed tickets and that a pass is not a reservation on its own. For questions, the Main Desk is at 781-665-2313.

Malden

The Malden Public Library restricts the program to Malden residents with an adult library card in good standing. The rule is one pass per family per 7-day period. You reserve online: choose the museum, pick a visit day, enter your card number and select an available pass.

Physical passes must be picked up by noon on the reserved day, or by 5:30 pm the day before if the library is closed that day, or they are forfeited. Some passes are due back by 10 am the next day, with a $5 late fee. State park passes follow their own pickup window.

The page lists 17 passes, including non-museum options such as Massachusetts State Parks, along with the Museum of Science, Museum of Fine Arts, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, New England Aquarium and Franklin Park Zoo. For the JFK Library and Museum, the page says cardholders get 50 percent off with a physical library card (each attendee needs a card for the discount) and children under 12 are free.

Salem

The Salem Public Library offers passes to Boston and North Shore museums. You need a NOBLE library card, must be at least 16 and cannot have $50 or more in fines. Reserve online, in person at the Reference Desk, or at (978) 744-0860, up to a month ahead.

Salem sorts its passes into four types, which is a handy way to understand the whole system:

  • Plastic, returnable passes (same-day pickup at the second-floor Reference Desk): Lynn Museum, Salem Witch Museum, Historic New England, Wenham Museum and Massachusetts State Parks. They are due back 48 hours after use, and late returns cost $2 a day plus a 14-day reservation restriction.
  • Coupon passes (pick up before the visit): House of the Seven Gables, Zoo New England, North Shore Children’s Museum, Mass Audubon and Harvard Museums of Science & Culture.
  • Discount codes (given by phone): Peabody Essex Museum and Museum of Fine Arts.
  • Digital passes (emailed): New England Aquarium, Boston Children’s Museum, Museum of Science, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and USS Constitution.

Salem gets one pass per museum per day. If its pass is booked, the library says you can try another NOBLE library. Cancel what you will not use: failing to pick up two reserved passes within 30 days can block advance reservations for 30 days.

Somerville

Somerville calls its program Cultural Passes. They are available to adults with a valid Minuteman library card, and you can borrow one pass per day and each pass once per month. Most are picked up at any library branch with no appointment, and some are virtual and emailed to you. For help booking, the Reference Desk is at (617) 623-5000 x2955. Some institutions require a preselected entry time or advance tickets, so check after you reserve.

Medford

The Medford Public Library runs an online pass calendar: you pick a museum, click Details/Reserve and choose a pass. It lists about 22 institutions, including Boston Children’s Museum, the Museum of Science, Museum of Fine Arts, New England Aquarium, Peabody Essex Museum, the Gardner, the ICA, the Griffin Museum of Photography in Winchester, Sandmagination in Peabody, Zoo New England and Massachusetts State Parks. The calendar does not state limits or pickup rules, so ask at 781-395-7950 or [email protected].

Stoneham

The Stoneham Public Library lends passes to users 18 and older with a library card in good standing. You can choose a date up to 90 days ahead, and your card is required. Its list includes Boston Children’s Museum, the Aquarium, Museum of Fine Arts, the Gardner, Peabody Essex Museum, Salem Witch Museum, the House of the Seven Gables, the JFK Library and Zoo New England. The page warns that many museums still require timed tickets. Phone: 781-438-1324.

Wakefield

Wakefield’s Lucius Beebe Memorial Library lets you check out three passes a month, and each museum is limited to one pass per week per patron. The Friends of Beebe Library donate the passes. Phone: (781) 246‑6334.

Lynn

The Lynn Public Library limits passes to Lynn residents 18 or older with an account in good standing. You can reserve 10 discount passes within 30 days, two per day at most, up to 60 days ahead, with a NOBLE card. Coupon passes can be picked up from the library up to a week before the visit. The Salem Witch Museum pass is picked up the day before or the day of the visit and returned by 11 a.m. the next business day. Cancel passes you will not use: failing to cancel brings a 30-day ban from reserving.

Which museums usually participate?

Across these libraries, the same names come up again and again: the Museum of Science, Museum of Fine Arts, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, New England Aquarium, Boston Children’s Museum, Peabody Essex Museum, USS Constitution, Zoo New England (Franklin Park and Stone zoos), Mass Audubon sanctuaries, Historic New England properties, Harvard Museums of Science & Culture and the JFK Library. Local favorites like the Wenham Museum, Lynn Museum and North Shore Children’s Museum show up on North Shore libraries’ lists. Which ones your library has is up to your library, so check its list.

How to get the most from a pass

  1. Reserve the day you decide, not the day you go. Popular museums have one pass per day.
  2. Know the pickup rule before you book. A physical pass picked up by noon is useless if you cannot get to the library.
  3. Bring your card. Some libraries (Salem, and Malden for JFK) require the physical card.
  4. Ask a neighboring library. If yours is out, a library in a different town may allow you to borrow from it. Salem says so explicitly for other NOBLE libraries, and rules vary elsewhere.
  5. Return plastic passes on time. The fees are small, but they come with reservation restrictions.
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Sources

Details such as dates, hours and prices come from the sources above and can change. Check with the organizer before you go.

How we report: every date, price and address comes from a linked source.

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