Discount admission with Explore More Illinois

I was looking for ways for suburban residents can get discount admission to area attractions and museums and I discovered the Explore More Illinois website. Unfortunately the Chicago Public Library does not participate in this program. I emailed them to find out why and no one responded.

What is Explore More Illinois?

Explore More Illinois is a free service, offered by your suburban library, that provides online access to free and discounted tickets to museums, science centers, sporting events, zoos, park districts, theatres, and other cultural venues. Unfortunately I don’t have a suburban library card so I couldn’t look at the offers. I emailed Explore More Illinois for more info and no one responded.

Suburban library patrons have access

To get access you must have a library card from one of the participating libraries. There’s a drop down list of participating libraries. You will need your library card number and password (if applicable) to search for offers at attractions around the state. Your suburban library website should have a link to the website possibly listed as Services, Museum Passes. You can also go directly to the Explore More Illinois website.

The options are fairly limited at this time. Per the tutorial below some institutions have dropped out due to Covid. Also some have changed their discounts due to financial difficulty. Some good deals are the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield where admission is $15, Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park $18.

Watch this short video about Explore More Illinois

Watch this video tutorial

Discount admission with Explore More Illinois – Current Attractions Participating Attractions

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum / Springfield
Edwards Place / Springfield
Ernest Heminway Foundation of Oak Park / Oak Park
Galesburg Parks & Recreation Lake Storey Beach Boats / Galesburg
Galesburg Parks & Recreation Lakeside Recreation Facility / Galesburg
Galesburg Parks & Recreation Lakeside Water Park / Galesburg

Harris Theater / Chicago (Note: Harris Theater is not yet open to the public, but the HT Virtual Stage allows you to stream free performances to watch at home. Look for Harris Theater offers later in 2021.)
Illinois Holocaust Museum / Skokie
Kankakee County Museum / Kankakee
Lincoln Heritage Museum / Lincoln
Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary Art / Oak Brook

Love’s Sweet Arrow / Tinley Park
Museum of Contemporary Photography at Columbia College / Chicago
Peoria Park District Golf Learning Center & Academy / Peoria
Peoria Park District Owens Recreation Center Ice Arena / Peoria
Peoria Riverfront Museum / Peoria
Raupp Museum / Buffalo Grove

Springfield Art Association / Springfield
Vermilion County Museum / Danville

This list was last updated on June 17, 2021. The list of participating and attractions and their offers are subject to change. Not all attractions will be available to all libraries. Please log into Explore More Illinois to see the most current offerings.