National Free Museum & Park Days

This program has changed recently. Details below are from the official pages as of 2026-10-26.

A roundup of the U.S. programs that give free entry on certain days or seasons: National Park Service fee-free days, Blue Star Museums for active-duty military families, and Smithsonian Museum Day. The Smithsonian's own museums are free year-round.

When

National Park Service fee-free days remaining in 2026 are October 27 (Theodore Roosevelt's birthday) and November 11 (Veterans Day). The full 2026 list was February 16, May 25, June 14, July 3-5, August 25, September 17, October 27 and November 11. The NPS has not posted 2027 dates. Blue Star Museums ran from May 16 (Armed Forces Day) to September 7 (Labor Day) in 2026 and has ended for the year. It runs every year from Armed Forces Day in May to Labor Day in September, and 2027 details are not out yet. Smithsonian magazine's Museum Day has no 2026 date announced.

Ages

Not age-limited on NPS fee-free days. Blue Star Museums covers the military ID holder plus up to five family members, and children under 10 without a military ID may come in with a parent who has one.

Cost

Free entry on the listed days. On NPS fee-free days only the entrance fee is waived. Reservation, timed-entry and other fees can still apply. Starting in 2026, NPS free entry is for U.S. citizens and residents only. Smithsonian museums are free every day except Cooper Hewitt in New York City.

Sign-up

None for NPS fee-free days, except where a park separately requires a reservation or timed entry. For Blue Star Museums, show a CAC, DD Form 1173 or DD Form 1173-1 ID at a participating museum; there are no tickets from the National Endowment for the Arts, which suggests contacting the museum first. Smithsonian museums are free to enter.