Durban Natural Science Museum is FREE to enter.
Never underestimate the amount of FREE sightseeing you can do. Did you know that there are FREE museums all over the place, you just need to do your research beforehand. I used to go to museums a lot more than I do now, so these days I basically only go to FREE museums unless I have a major interest in a museum that you have to pay into. So my tips for visiting museums are a simple 3 step plan:
1. Every time you visit a new town or city, do a search for what museums there are there.
2. Find out which ones are free museums to visit.
3. Visit the free museums.
You might want to know exactly what museums are FREE, but this is always changing so follow the three step guide and you’ll find them. I’m just giving you a top 5 free museums from my travels, there are tons and tons more…
1. The British Museum, London, England
The UK, and London in particular is a good place for FREE museums. A lot of the funding comes from the government and the National Trust and to this day the British Museum is still free of charge. Voluntary donations are welcomed. British Museum.
FREE Museums: London in England has a load of free museums…
2. The Durban Natural Science Museum, Durban, South Africa
I loved the Durban Natural Science Museum in South Africa, not only because it was FREE but because the building itself looks like the City Hall in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Photo opportunities aside, it’s an excellent museum and totally free.
FREE Museums: My message signing the book in the Durban Natural Science Museum.
3. Te Papa Museum, Wellington, New Zealand
You could lose yourself for a full day in this smashing free museum in the New Zealand capital. I couldn’t make it to all the floors but took in my fair share of Maori and NZ history when I visited back in 2010. Te Papa Museum.
FREE Museums: The Te Papa Museum in Wellington New Zealand is excellent.
4. Australian War Memorial, Canberra, Australia
This is probably my favourite of the free museums. I loved Canberra in Australia and almost ALL the museums there are free to enter, including the fantastic War Memorial. It’s just incredible. It covers every major war in the world and doesn’t even just focus on Australian soldiers. We ended up spending hours walking round. I left a donation, bit it’s free.
FREE Museums: At the Australian War Memorial Museum in Canberra, Australia.
5. Zhejiang Provincial Museum, Hangzhou, China
In and around the West Lake of Hangzhou, all museums are free entry. Despite being mostly in Chinese, I still loved the idea of a free museum on an island on a lake, so in we went!
FREE Museums: Inside the Zhejiang Provincial Museum in Hangzhou, China. FREE.
On a final note guys, I really had to limit this post down to just 5 museums. If I wanted to count them, I’d estimate I’ve been to over 100 museums on my travels, of which about 30 were free entry, so please keep your eyes peeled for FREE museums on your travels. That’s today’s Monday’s Money Saving Tips.
And they’re usually air conditioned / heated and many have free wifi.
They also don’t object if you just sit quietly for a while, read a book or catch up online/offline
The worst that can happen is you learn something new while there. 😀
Great idea Jonny and thanks for reminding me!
Maria recently posted…Wordless Wednesday – Peru
Good tips Maria – I didn’t even know about free wi-fi or take into consideration air conditioning but you’re totally right and it’s all free knowledge too!! Jonny