Quick Guide To Free Museum Days
Visiting Chicago's museums is an enriching experience, but it can be prohibitively expensive. Most area museums schedule free days each year, and Illinois residents can take advantage of extra discounts. Read on for a round up of free days for the rest of 2011 - now you'll know where to go the next time you have an unexpected day off.
Adler Planetarium
1300 South Lake Shore Drive
Chicago, IL 60605-2403
(312) 922-7827
Hours: Weekdays, 10 am – 4 pm; Weekends 10 am – 4:30 pm
www.adlerplanetarium.org
Free days for Illinois residents: October 4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19, 25, 26
Art Institute of Chicago
111 South Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60603
(312) 443-3600
Hours: Mon – Wed 10:30 am – 5 pm; Thurs 10:30 am – 8 pm; Fri – Sun 10:30 am – 5 pm
www.artic.edu
Free days for Illinois residents: First and second Wednesdays
Chicago Children's Museum
700 East Grand Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611-3428
(312) 527-1000
Hours: Open daily, 10 am – 5 pm
www.chicagochildrensmuseum.org
Free days: Thursdays 5-8 p.m.; first Sunday of the month
DuSable Museum of African American History
740 East 56th Place
Chicago, IL 60637
(773) 947-0600
Hours: Tue – Sat, 10 am – 5 pm; Sun, noon – 5 pm
www.dusablemuseum.org
Free day: Sunday
The Field Museum
1400 S. Lake Shore Dr.
Chicago, IL 60605
(312) 922-9410
Hours: Daily, 9 am – 5 pm
www.fieldmuseum.org
Free days for Illinois residents: October 2, 4, 11, 26, 31; November 1, 3, 7, 20, 28, 29; December 4, 5, 7
Museum of Contemporary Art
220 East Chicago Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 280-2660
Hours: Mon, closed; Tue, 10 am – 8 pm; Wed – Sun, 10 am – 5 pm
www.mcachicago.org
Free day for Illinois residents: Tuesday
Museum of Science and Industry
57th Street and Lake Shore Drive
Chicago, IL 60637
(773) 684-1414
Hours: Daily, 9:30 am – 4 pm
www.msichicago.org
Free day: October 31
Chicago residents: Save $2 on regular admission
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum
2430 N. Cannon Drive
Chicago, IL 60614
(773) 755-5100
Hours: Mon – Fri, 9 am – 5 pm; Sat – Sun, 10 am – 5 pm
www.naturemuseum.org
Free day for Illinois residents: Thursday
Shedd Aquarium
1200 South Lake Shore Drive
Chicago, IL
(312) 939-2438
Hours: Mon – Fri 9 am – 5 pm; Sat – Sun 9 am – 6 pm
www.sheddaquarium.org
Free days for Illinois residents: October 3, 4, 10, 11, 17, 18, 24, 25, 31
Free days for visitors with a Bank of America/Merrill Lynch card: October 1, 2; November 5, 6; December 3,4
Chicago residents: Save $3 on regular admission
Want more free museums? These local spots are always free:
Museum of Contemporary Photography
Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art
National Museum of Mexican Art
Jane Addams Hull-House Museum
