Making the most out of UK National Art Pass - £75 per annum or £45 (Under 30)

The Art Pass does encourage going to museums and sites that one might not have been aware of, although my sense was that the discount was often just £1 or so off the regular price. My husband and I got a dual pass a few years ago, when we had several trips coming to the UK over a few months. We couldn’t get the appealing discounted price for the Pass with the Direct Debit offer, as we didn’t have a UK bank account. It did get used at several places, although I’m not certain whether we broke even. It certainly benefits the museum sector in the UK, and can be nice to have, although it really seems to be geared to UK citizens, who have a greater opportunity to utilize it over the course of a year. It seemed to primarily feature venues in smaller locations outside of London, helpful for visitors staying longer and going to more out-of-the-way places than most tourists venture. Worth considering getting the Art Pass, especially if you’re going to be there longer and venturing farther.

Like a Railpass, you just have to do the math, with the exception that at least with this National Art Pass, and the variations of the Heritage pass, your money at least in theory goes to a good cause, so you may consider it a donation if nothing else.

When I have looked at any number of options over the years, it really did come down to how many trips or how long will I be in the UK, and will I have a car, to make access to sites as easy as possible outside the larger cities. Sadly, my time available just did not make sense to purchase a pass.

Wordsworth House, Grasmere for instance is £14 normal price, so you only make a £2 saving there.

I wonder how you make timed bookings with this pass. That's a rumination of mine. It may be easy for all I know.

The admission fees listed above refer to what visitors have to pay otherwise.

Art pass holders, for example, can visit Shakespeare birthplace for free, which would otherwise cost £25.

Same for Wordsworth Grasmere. Art pass holder can save £12 or £14.

I tried to list out the most expensive and / or most prominent attractions, so that one exceed the magic number of 75.

It was an Excel table where you can work out the total costs of the attractions, but this forum interface doesn't support pasting a table.

I wonder how you make timed bookings with this pass. That's a rumination of mine. It may be easy for all I know.

Usually the Art Pass comes up on site booking engines as a concession where you pay the reduced amount (or nothing) for timed entry.