2016 Update: This is an old post. Please visit the CuriOdyssey website for current prices as they have changed.
Last year we purchased a family membership at the McKinley Museum here in Canton, Ohio for about $49. Doing so not only got us into McKinley for free but since McKinley is part of the ASTC reciprocal program we could get free or discounted admission into many other science museums around the US and the world as well. But then I started learning about memberships in other places that included zoo and science museum reciprocal privileges.
The two I learned about were Boonshoft near or in the Dayton, Ohio area (family membership $79) and CuriOdyssey formerly known as Coyote Point Museum in California ($65).
Several weeks ago I purchased our new family membership from Coyote Point now known as CuriOdyssey. Now, we don’t have any plans on ever going to California (though I was born there) but the price was better.
How to buy the best zoo/science museum membership plan for your family.
Today we broke-in our new Coyote membership by visiting the Akron Zoo for free but paid $2 in parking. My favorite exhibit was the jellyfish and the touch pool /kids play area near the jellyfish.
*UPDATE: As of at least Summer 2011 Akron Zoo stopped allowing CuriOdyssey members Free Admission to their zoo. Also, CuriOdyssey’s family membership has gone up in price to $75 I think.
Do you have or know of a membership to anywhere special that the Hall of Fame Moms readers would benefit from knowing of? Please share in the comment section.
Now we can get into a variety of science museums AND zoos for FREE or discounted admission! Since I’m homeschooling now, this is a great thing 😉
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Angela, regarding the 90 mile rule, you need to call whatever place you want to visit and ask this if they waive that rule. For instance (not sure if I’m repeating myself as I am replying straight from your comment) – we bought a science museum membership once from the McKinley Museum in Canton and found out that the Cleveland Museum of Natural History had waived the distance rule so that McKinley members could get in free.
On the side, our CuriOdyssey dual membership has expired and we did not go to the zoos much – probably b/c Akron changed their rules and was charging us half price to get in. We will likely go back to buying a McKinley Museum membership and just stick with the science museums. We really don’t go to the zoos very much so I’m not sure buying a membership to them would be of much use to us.
I live in Columbus Ohio and was recently snubbed by the Columbus Zoo about a membership issue. For a 2 person family, I was going to have my adult daughter and I instead of my husband because I knew she would go more than he would especially since she has a little one. I was told I couldn’t just because I was married. I told them, I had only got married and had I bought this a month earlier, it wouldn’t have even been an issue. My question to Meg is, do you live in the columbus area also and how did you learn that COSI and the zoo don’t have the 90 mile rule.
Please realize that memberships are often fundraiser for zoo’s and museums and that being frugal with your finances doesn’t always help those facilities’ bottom lines. They do what they can to provide your famiies with a great experience. Please support your local offerings rather than export your financial support to other cities or states.
Thank you very much! We have loved this membership in the NY area.
Thanks for the info on CuriOdyssey…50% off to Columbus zoo in Ohio but free to COSI no matter where u live..they dont have the 90 mile rule..awesome.
Thank you!!!