BY: KELLY MACKENZIE
We all have dreams of traveling. Some people want to explore more of Canada and some want to visit other countries (and have one or two in her five-year plan). Unfortunately, travel is expensive – airfare, gas, rental car, shelter, food, passports, time off work . . . as I said, expensive! But seeing new places and different cultures is a rewarding experience. Unfortunately, in addition to all the travel fees mentioned above, we also have to worry about admission fees. What is the fun of going to new places if you cannot experience their culture, visit their museums, and see the city?
Thankfully, many cities have developed programs that provide you with free admission to many of their museums for one flat fee! Simple on-line searches (ie. Ottawa museum card) will usually direct you to these programs. Today, we will be looking at the Ottawa program and comparing it to programs in Stockholm, Sweden and Barcelona, Spain.
Canada’s National Museum Passport - Ottawa, Canada
Ottawa is home to numerous museums and most of Canada’s national museums. Which can easily make your trip pretty expensive! The Canada’s National Museum Passport is available for $30.00 plus tax. This passport will cover general admission for three consecutive days to three national museums. The card can be purchased from the Capital Information Kiosk or any of the participating museums:
We all have dreams of traveling. Some people want to explore more of Canada and some want to visit other countries (and have one or two in her five-year plan). Unfortunately, travel is expensive – airfare, gas, rental car, shelter, food, passports, time off work . . . as I said, expensive! But seeing new places and different cultures is a rewarding experience. Unfortunately, in addition to all the travel fees mentioned above, we also have to worry about admission fees. What is the fun of going to new places if you cannot experience their culture, visit their museums, and see the city?
Thankfully, many cities have developed programs that provide you with free admission to many of their museums for one flat fee! Simple on-line searches (ie. Ottawa museum card) will usually direct you to these programs. Today, we will be looking at the Ottawa program and comparing it to programs in Stockholm, Sweden and Barcelona, Spain.
Canada’s National Museum Passport - Ottawa, Canada
Ottawa is home to numerous museums and most of Canada’s national museums. Which can easily make your trip pretty expensive! The Canada’s National Museum Passport is available for $30.00 plus tax. This passport will cover general admission for three consecutive days to three national museums. The card can be purchased from the Capital Information Kiosk or any of the participating museums:
Canada Agriculture and Food Museum
Canada Aviation and Space Museum
Canadian Museum of History
National Gallery of Canada
While this is a great program, how does it compare to other countries?
Stockholm Pass – Stockholm, Sweden
The Stockholm Pass by Destination Stockholm gives you access to over 60 attractions in Stockholm, including galleries, museums, tours, and more. With this pass, the visitor is able to choose how long they want their pass to last and whether or not they want it to include travel.
While these passes are a little more expensive, they cover much more and you only need to visit a few museums or galleries before the pass has paid for itself. This pass can also be bought on-line and comes with a guidebook to help you plan your trip.
Barcelona, Spain – Barcelona Card
The Barcelona Card provides free admission to some of their best museums, free public transportation, and deals and discounts on over 70 other attractions. Like the Stockholm Card, a free travel guide is provided to help you plan your trip.
The card can also be bought in person or online for 3, 4, or 5 days.
While I have only briefly looked at the travel cards available in Ottawa, Stockholm, and Barcelona, they are also available in Amsterdam, Helsinki, Florence, Japan, Cape Town, and many more! They all include museums!
These programs demonstrate that museum innovation is about more than any one individual museum. It is about coming together to support your community as a whole, from museums and galleries to public transit.
 |
| National Gallery of Canada (personal photo) |
While this is a great program, how does it compare to other countries?
Stockholm Pass – Stockholm, Sweden
The Stockholm Pass by Destination Stockholm gives you access to over 60 attractions in Stockholm, including galleries, museums, tours, and more. With this pass, the visitor is able to choose how long they want their pass to last and whether or not they want it to include travel.
 |
| The Vasa Ship at the Vasa Museum |
While these passes are a little more expensive, they cover much more and you only need to visit a few museums or galleries before the pass has paid for itself. This pass can also be bought on-line and comes with a guidebook to help you plan your trip.
 |
| I should, I really should. . . (source) |
Barcelona, Spain – Barcelona Card
The Barcelona Card provides free admission to some of their best museums, free public transportation, and deals and discounts on over 70 other attractions. Like the Stockholm Card, a free travel guide is provided to help you plan your trip.
 |
| Beautiful (source) |
The card can also be bought in person or online for 3, 4, or 5 days.
While I have only briefly looked at the travel cards available in Ottawa, Stockholm, and Barcelona, they are also available in Amsterdam, Helsinki, Florence, Japan, Cape Town, and many more! They all include museums!
 |
| Let's fly! (source) |
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.