Choose Your Own Adventure April

Life is an adventure, but where to begin? Join us at the Bridges Technical Assistance Center’s Helpdesk as we explore tools to support you as you Choose Your Own Adventure this April!

• April 4: Museums for All and More!
• April 11: AIRA Access Points and Be My Eyes Apps
• April 18: Public Transportation
• April 25: Paratransit/Call-a-ride

In this first installment of our “Choose Your Own Adventure April” series, we learn about a program that offers access to museums all across our nation for free or at greatly reduced admission fees. We also explore Maryland museums with free admission for all and the National Parks Access Pass.

What is Museums for All?

Museums for All is a program designed to encourage those with low income to visit more museums more frequently by reducing financial barriers to admission. Through Museums for All, individuals who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits receive reduced-price or free admission to museums whose admission fees might otherwise be too much to afford. The maximum per person admission fee under this program is three dollars ($3).

Am I Eligible to Use Museums for All?

Eligibility for Museums for All benefits is based on receiving SNAP benefits and displaying a SNAP EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) card. While some museums may offer reduced or free admission to individuals based on their receipt of other government benefits, such as WIC (Women, Infants, and Children), the Museums for All program guidelines are limited to the presentation of a SNAP EBT card. As noted on the Museums for All “For Visitors” web page: “Please check with the museum you wish to visit ahead of time, as we cannot guarantee that they will honor anything besides the SNAP EBT card.”

How Do I Get Free or Reduced-price Admission?

Just present your SNAP EBT card to a participating museum, and you will receive free or discounted museum admission (no more than $3 per person). Also, up to three (3) additional people in your party can receive free or reduced-price admission fees for each SNAP EBT card presented.

Can I Pay the Admission Fee with my SNAP EBT card?

No. SNAP EBT cards can only be used to purchase eligible food items. The card is only used as proof of eligibility for the Museums for All program.

Are There Limitations on Admission under Museums for All?

No. Museums for All has a “year-round open door policy,” so you may visit anytime during regular museum hours.

Museums for All Adventures Await!

What Museums are Included?

More than one thousand (1,000) museums across the United States participate in the Museums for All program. Check out the Museums for All Participating Museums web page for more information.

In Maryland alone, there are twenty-six (26) participating museums. The bulleted list below sets forth participating museums in Maryland includes hyperlinks for more information and shows the museum’s location in parentheses.

• American Visionary Art Museum (Baltimore)
• Annapolis Maritime Museum & Park (Annapolis)
• Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center (Solomons)
• Baltimore Museum of Industry (Baltimore)
• B&O Railroad Museum (Baltimore)
• Calvert Marine Museum (Solomons)
• Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum (St. Michaels)
• Chesapeake Children’s Museum (Annapolis)
• Greenbelt Museum (Greenbelt)
• Hammond-Harwood House Museum (Annapolis)
• Historic London Town & Gardens (Edgewater)
• Historic St. Mary’s City (St. Mary’s City)
• Historic Sotterley (Hollywood)
• Jewish Museum of Maryland (Baltimore)
• KID Museum (Bethesda)
• Maryland Center for History and Culture (Baltimore)
• Miller House Museum (Hagerstown)
• Museum of Historic Annapolis (Annapolis)
• Natural History Society of Maryland (Baltimore)
• The Patuxent River Naval Air Museum and Visitors Center (Lexington Park)
• Piney Point Lighthouse Museum & Historic Park (Piney Point)
• Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture (Baltimore)
• The Star-Spangled Banner Flag House (Baltimore)
• St. Clement’s Island Museum (Coltons Point)
• Stop Drop and Play Children’s Museum (Damascus)
• William Paca House and Garden (Annapolis)

Can I Use Museums for All Benefits Outside Maryland?

Yes! All participating Museums for All museums will accept a SNAP EBT card from any state. However, as noted above, you cannot pay any admission fees with your SNAP EBT card.

Free Museums in Maryland

As noted above, the Museums for All program focuses on providing free or reduced-price museum admission to individuals with low income. But even if you don’t qualify for Museums for All, there are free museum options in Maryland!

• The African Art Museum of Maryland (AAMM) (Columbia)
• Baltimore Museum of Art (Baltimore)
• Banneker-Douglass Museum (Baltimore)
• Chesapeake Legacy Museum (Chester)
• Deep Creek Lake State Park Discovery Center (Swanton)
• Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA) (Greenbelt)
• Massey Air Museum (Massey)
• Museum of Fine Arts of Washington County (Hagerstown)
• Richardson Maritime Museum (Cambridge) NOTE: The Museum is temporarily closed; a transitional museum display is expected to open to the public in early 2023.
• Skipjack Heritage Museum (Chance)
• Tilghman Watermen’s Museum (Tilghman)
• Upper Bay Museum (North East)
• U.S. Naval Academy Museum (Annapolis)
• The Walters Art Museum (Baltimore)

Admission to National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands

The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Access Pass, also called the Interagency Access Pass, is available to any citizen or permanent resident of the U.S. who has been medically determined to have a permanent disability, and Access Passes do not expire.

The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Access Pass is accepted for free or reduced-price admission (of up to four total adults per pass) at museums and other sites where Entrance or Standard Amenity Fees (Day use fees) are charged. Sites include those managed by the Forest Service, the National Park Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, USACE, and Bureau of Reclamation. In addition, the Tennessee Valley Authority may honor the Access Pass for entrance or camping discounts. From Access Pass Frequently Asked Questions web page.

Proof of permanent disability includes any of the following:

• A statement by a licensed physician (Statement must include that the individual has a PERMANENT disability, that it limits one or more aspects of their daily life, and the nature of those limitations.)
• A document issued by a federal agency such as the Veteran’s Administration, Social Security Disability Income, or Supplemental Security Income.
• A document issued by a state agency such as a vocational rehabilitation agency.

From America the Beautiful-The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Access Pass web page.

Contact us

Follow the Bridges Helpdesk Facebook page for more transition tips, and please contact the Bridge’s Technical Assistance Center’s Free Helpdesk for Maryland Blind/Low Vision Transition Students, Families, and Educators anytime using:

• Our Accessible web form
• Email: Helpdesk@IMAGEmd.org
• Text or Leave a Voice mail message: (410) 357-1546
• Bridges Helpdesk Facebook page or Facebook Messenger

This unique project is being coordinated through The IMAGE Center of Maryland, a center for independent living in Towson, and it is funded by a grant from the Maryland Department of Education Division of Special Education/Early Intervention Services.