SF Bay Area - Visit Museums for Free

[WD]

I just found out about a program offered by a bunch of Bay Area Libraries called Discover and Go. If you have a library card for any of the following libraries, you can get free tickets or discounted tickets to many Bay Area museums:

Alameda County Library
Berkeley Public Library
Burlingame Public Library
Contra Costa Library
Daly City Library
Marin Public Library
Menlo Park Public Library
Redwood City Public Library
San Bruno Public Library
San Jose Public Library
San Mateo Public Library
South San Francisco Library

Just google "discover and go" and the city for which you have a card for. I've saved a couple hundred dollars in free museum visits. I hope you guys are as stoked as I was when I found out about this program.

[momo]

Nice.  Thanks for sharing.  In SF if you are resident there are free days for most of the museums, days sometimes vary based on zip code or other factors.  Best to check with the specific museum you want to visit for details.  Good luck!  Cheers!

[WD]

Nice.  Thanks for sharing.  In SF if you are resident there are free days for most of the museums, days sometimes vary based on zip code or other factors.  Best to check with the specific museum you want to visit for details.  Good luck!  Cheers!

I had checked on those free days a while back, but many of the free days they offer is once a month on a weekday. Since I work, it makes it difficult to make it to the free day. Plus it's generally crowded on the one free day a month. Discover and go is kind of nice in that you can choose any day you want to go.

Thanks for the tip though. Since I haven't checked in a while, it may be that they have changed how the one free day works.

[ultros1234]

+1 on Discover and Go. This program is amazing.

I can log into Discover and Go and find free tickets basically any day. My family and I have gone to the Academy of Sciences, the Oakland Museum of California, and a bunch more on this program. You can even do the local Shakespeare company! WAY better situation than the monthly free days, which are great, but tend to be crowded.

[Unionville]

I've used that too!  Hard to believe.  I guess all those expensive Berkeley taxes pay off (kinda)

[Unionville]

The discover and go is a great deal. I've used it because you can select a day to go when it isn't busy.

[reginna]

Wow! Thanks so much. Didn't know about this.

[momo]

Another resource ours friends shared with us involve Chase Private Clients.  If you are one usually six figures worth of assets with the bank, they give you a card which is honored by many of the cultural exhibits/resources in the Bay Area.  This includes currently:  California Academy of Sciences, SF Symphony, SF Museum of Modern Art, SJ Tech Museum, just to name a few and others that escape our memory.  Are any mustachians members of the Private Clients?  Can you share your experiences using the cultural passes?  Thanks.

[dragoncar]

If you have a Bank of America credit card, there are free weekends (not just the Bay Area).

http://museums.bankofamerica.com/

similarly, if you have a visa signature card, you can get free tastings at a lot of wineries:

http://www.sonomawine.com/visa-signature-perks/vs-winery-guide

(renewed for 2014... some places are more generous with their "tastings" than others)

edit: actually it looks like they removed this from the official website, despite it appearing earlier this year.

[sobezen]

Love museums especially in SF and in DC!  Does anyone know about more promotions or alternative ways of getting in for free? :D  Thanks!

[carozy]

If you live in San Francisco, there are free days and some weekends for SF museums.  It is done by zip code.  You have to google to find out more.

Here is a list of free museum days in SF (you do not have to live in SF for many of these):

http://freemuseumday.org/sf.html

[mandy_2002]

As a part of Discover and Go, you can currently get free BART cards to use for your visit. I just booked a museum in SF through the Contra Costa library, and I requested the BART card at the same time (up to 3 $10 card, not a need based system, just to encourage use of public transit). It came in the mail a week later. I couldn't believe it.