boston and massachusetts museums, attractions

Free is good, right?

This summer, thanks to a local, family-run foundation, residents and tourists can have free admission to top museums and attractions on ten free Fridays.

The program begins June 25 and runs through Labor Day weekend, when it expands to Friday and Saturday and covers more Massachusetts cities outside Boston.

The first free Friday provides admission to the Boston Children’s Museum [www.bostonchildrensmuseum.org] at 300 Congress St. The popular attraction for kids and families is by the landmark giant Hood milk bottle and is an easy walk from the South Station transportation hub.

No tickets are needed; the doors will be open on the designated Fridays.

“We keep it as simple as we can, said Blake Jordan, executive director of the Highland Foundation.

“We started free Fridays last summer and it was so successful that we expanded this year. It begins on the first Friday afternoon that schools are out.”

Last year’s program cost some $300,000, he said. The average increase in attendance was about 300 per cent.

”Part of it was recognition of the economic times. And it was our 20th anniversary and we wanted to support the non profits. We never realized that nine out of the ten [institutions] had their highest attendance. More than 75,000 participated last summer.”

Other places in the free-Friday program include the Museum of Fine Arts (7/30) Franklin Park Zoo (7/9), Plimoth Plantation (6/2),  Museum of Science (8/27), Institute of Contemporary Art (8/20), Cape Cod Museum (9/3), JFK Library and Museum(7/23), Sports Museum at Boston Garden (9/3) and the USS. Constitution Museum (9/4).

There’s a full menu of free Friday museums and attractions, with links to each, at www.highlandstreet.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=35&Itemid=40 
 
The Highland Street foundation, founded in 1989, works to provide access to children and families in Massachusetts and California. The family of founder David McGrath and the foundation have donated more thans $80 million to groups in Massachusetts alone.

- by Dan Sheridan, Boston Reporter for HelloMetro  (Click to leave a message)

Dan Sheridan

Dan Sheridan is an editor, reporter and media specialist with a background in newspapers, magazines and publishing. He has reported from Tokyo, Singapore and Bangkok and wrote Access Boston, the popular guidebook, from 2002 to 2008.