Your guide to using your National Art Pass

Setting out to make art, culture, and heritage accessible for all, the National Art Pass gives you free entry to more than 200 museums and galleries, as well as 50% off admission to a number of major exhibitions across the UK.

The Art Fund is an organisation that works closely with museums and exhibitions around the country and raises money to support the running of these museums. This includes buying and sharing with the public incredible art and artefacts that will educate and inspire future generations to come.

Now available as a part of Boundless Plus memberships, you can visit historic houses like the Royal Pavilion in Brighton and the Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum in Bournemouth for free with your National Art Pass, as well as many other museums, galleries, and heritage sites for free or with discounted admission prices.

Read our guide for more information on the National Art Pass and all the ways you can enjoy with your Boundless membership.

Credit: Janie Airey

What you can enjoy with the National Art Pass as part of Boundless Plus

Available to Boundless Plus members, your National Art Pass is your key to days filled with history and culture. With the National Art Pass in your backpocket, you’ll gain free entry to over 200 museums across all corners of the UK. It also entitles you to discounts on admission to major exhibitions (as well as gift shops!)

The breadth of access the National Art Pass can give you is wide and inspiring. From 50% off exhibitions at well known galleries like the Tate Modern to free entry at stately homes like Dyrham Park, which is filled with Dutch paintings and Delf ceramics.

Your National Art Pass doesn’t just gain you access to art either. Open the doors to stately homes and heritage sites, as well as museums spanning a variety of subject matters including Manchester’s National Football Museum, to the Fashion and Textile museum in London.

Credit: David Levene

The History of the Art Fund

For a long time art was only for the wealthy, hidden away in their homes and private galleries. Art Fund was first founded in 1903 with the aim of bringing pieces of art into the public domain so that people of all classes could experience world famous paintings and sculptures.

120 years on, Art Fund continues their work in bringing art and culture to museums so that all can enjoy and be enriched by it, with Art Fund believing strongly that “access to art is vital for a healthy society”.

In that time, it has grown to encompass more than 200 galleries, museums, and historic sites across all corners of the UK.

With the introduction of the National Art Pass, Art Fund continues to make art and culture accessible to all.

Now with 142,000+ members of the National Art Pass, as well as ensuring art is placed in public collections, Art Fund is able to continue to advocate for galleries and museums and their importance in bringing culture to all communities.

Credit: David Levene

Where can you use your National Art Pass?

As mentioned, your National Art Pass gains you free and half price entry to hundreds of places nationwide. Scroll down on the National Art Pass homepage and you can click on its interactive map to find out what’s on offer in the UK.

To get an indication on the wealth of culture at your fingertips with the National Art Pass, we’ve also listed some examples of the kinds of places you can visit with, too.

Where you can visit in London with the National Art Pass

In London, there are a total of 22 places and 25 exhibitions you can gain free or discounted entry to, including the Charles Dickens Museum, Chiswick House & Gardens, The Wallace Collection, and Van Gogh’s House.

Where you can visit in the South of the UK with the National Art Pass

From coast to coast, visit National Trust site Tyntesfield in Bristol down to Cornwall’s Museum and Art Gallery and across to the Roman Museum in Canterbury. There are 49 places to visit for free and 15 exhibitions you can save 50% on in the South of England.

Where you can visit in the East of the UK with the National Art Pass

Spanning Cambridge, Norwich, East Anglia and beyond, your National Art Pass gains you free entry to 39 places and 50% off 5 exhibitions. This includes Newstead Abbey Historic House in Ravenshead and the Time and Tide Museum in Great Yarmouth.

Credit: Janie Airey

Where you can visit in Central England with your National Art Pass

In the centre of the UK, check out Christ Church Picture Gallery in Oxford or Wightwick Manor in Wolverhampton. The MK Gallery in Milton Keynes is also a treat, as well as The National Museum of Computing. That’s just a small sample of the 37 places and 8 exhibitions you can experience with your National Art Pass.

Where you can visit in the North of England with the National Art Pass

There are 62 places you can gain free entry with using your National Art Pass across the North of England, including the Quaker Tapestry Museum in Kendal, Nunnington Hall in York, and Lancaster City Museum in, you guessed it, Lancaster. You can also save 50% on 10 exhibitions, including at the Science and Industry Museum in Manchester.

Where you can visit in Scotland with the National Art Pass

With locations across Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, Perth, and other areas of Scotland, the National Art Pass unlocks 13 exhibitions and 21 places. This includes stunning locations like the New Lanark World Heritage Site and a snoop around a pristine Georgian townhouse in Edinburgh.

Where you can visit in Northern Ireland with your National Art Pass

In Northern Ireland, you can use your National Art Pass to visit HMS Caroline, Florence Court, the Ulster Transport Museum, and save 50% on exhibitions at Milford House, with a total of 8 places you can visit for free.

Enrich your life with free entry to over 200 museums, galleries, and historic houses with your National Art Pass

The National Art Pass now comes with all Boundless Plus memberships, allowing you free entry to all the venues mentioned above and more, as well as saving on the cost of exhibitions, with other benefits also including savings at gift shops and cafés.

Sign up or upgrade to Boundless Plus today to get your National Art Pass included in your membership.

Do more with Boundless

If you're working in or retired from the public sector or civil service, Boundless has two great membership options to choose from: Boundless and Boundless Plus.

With Boundless, you get unlimited access or discounted entry to many of the UK’s top attractions including Kew Gardens and Wakehurst and WWT centres across the UK, as well as year-round deals on restaurants, holidays, shopping and much more. With Boundless Plus, you can enjoy additional benefits, including unlimited access to Historic Royal Palaces sites, National Trust for Scotland places, access to the Ramblers' extensive group walks and routes, and peace of mind with roadside assistance and local recovery by Britannia Rescue.