• long running

Reciprocal Entry to Science Museums Worldwide through Perth Scitech or Canberra Questacon Membership (via ASTC Passport Program)

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Just found out that Membership to Questacon Canberra or SciTech Perth gives you free entry to other Science museums worldwide as per the ASTC Travel Passport program.

https://www.astc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Standard-Pas…

Basically, if you are traveling to the US or other countries you can get access to hundreds of science museums in the USA and Canada, with an additional 17 museums in 11 other countries around the world for free simply by taking membership to Questacon or the Perth Science museum.

You don't need to be an ACT or WA resident to become a member of these two however if you are within 200 km of the Melbourne museum or Sydney museum they can refuse you entry as you did not take a membership to your local museum. If your goal is to get access to the US museums then this is perfect.

The best part is even if you are a family and visit just 2 museums in different cities or visit NASA, this deal will make it way cheaper to get the basic entry into the museums, you have to then pay extra for the special shows / Planetarium etc.

Full list of the participating museums is included in the PDF.

Membership prices vary based on if you are single or family.

This is the link to buy and see the prices of the the Scitech membership

https://www.scitech.org.au/members/

Scitech is probably the better membership in this case because they have a completely online process whereas Questacon require you to email them get a form and apply for membership.

When you pay Scitech will immediately send you a QR code and membership cards in the mail. Even if you are From Non WA state it makes sense to get scitech if your goal is to get into the US museums

Related Stores

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Comments

  • +2

    Can I suggest updating title to Scitech Perth, as current title suggests membership to Perth Museum will get you in.

    Perth Museum is different to Perth Scitech, which is more of a kids science and technology play centre.

  • Agreed and updated

  • +1

    The highlight for me was getting into Intrepid for free, and we also skipped the massive queue since there was a separate (empty) queue for "members".

  • +3

    the link is for 2020-2021 museums - not sure there is much change, but there is an updated list for 1 Nov 2022 - 30 April 2023 at this link

    https://www.astc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Standard-Pas…

    • Thanks Updated

      • +2

        up to 50 countries

        Op, there aren't that many countries by a long shot, the webpage you copied from is exaggerating.

        A more accurate description is "hundreds of science museums in the USA and Canada, with an additional 17 museums in 11 other countries around the world."

        • +1

          Updated

  • Does anyone know how to get free entry to Questscon?

    • +1

      You can get free reciprocal entry into Questacon if you are a paid member of the Australian Museum in Sydney, provided that you meet the residency requirements.

  • What is the residency restriction?
    If you live within 90 miles of a participating science center or museum, but have an out-of-area membership, there is the possibility of not receiving free admission because, essentially, you haven’t traveled far enough to receive the benefit.
    Restrictions based on residency were introduced in 2006 to close the following loophole: People discovered that they could search online for the ASTC member museum that offered the cheapest membership with Travel Passport benefits, then join that museum and visit their local institutions for free. Venues requesting proof of residence are marked by (IDs) on the Passport Program participants’ list.

    • Yes

      People

    • You'll be ok if you are Aussie resident and visit USA and overseas museums, but may have difficulty with getting them to honour Questacon/SciTech memberships, be prepared to wait…

      • +1

        We went to atleast 10 museusms in the US and had no difficulty, they didn't even ask for Membership cards, just the membership email was enough.

  • +1

    FYI - Children's Museum in USA are just like fancy play centres. They've got heaps of activities and the toilets are really clean, unlike our $10 play centres in Australia. Then again, in USA, you'd be paying around US$30 per adult for the entry fee.

    If you're in NYC, IMO, there's nothing better than American Museum of Natural History. I usually pay $1 for the whole family (price for NY residents).

    • Agreed the AMNH was amazing, can't wait to get back there. Everything was brilliant.

    • Yes, agree, just returned from CA trip & visited Kidspace Children's Museum while there & it was a lovely play space but very expensive given the conversion… Our child attended free with two adult admissions.

  • Sweet thanks OP !

  • How much is a Perth SciTech or Canberra Questacon membership?

    • Yes, cost?!

      • +1

        $60 for perth scitech gives you free entry to perth scitech and science museums all over the world, $113 for questacon canberra gives you free entry to museums all over australia and the world. Children have different prices. Check their website…

      • Depends on if you're single or family

        2 adults 2 kids = 160$

  • Can confirm that you can get entry into Singapore Science Centre with Questacon membership no problem, did it several times pre-COVID. They have enough Canberra visitors! I think we even got free coffee

  • What do they mean with "proof of residence required"? Only for people who live in Perth/Canberra? What documents do they accept to prove that? Something like bank statement? Or address on your driving licence?

    • A driving license is typically acceptable in the US.

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