Passing Through

Did you get to Holiday CircleFest a couple of weeks ago? If so, maybe you visited some of the museums on Sunday, when they all offered free admission.

Whether you got there or not, I’ll bet there are things at each museum you haven’t seen. If you don’t want to wait until next year’s Holiday CircleFest or pay full admission before that, the Circle Pass might be for you.

The Circle Pass covers admission to Cleveland Botanical Garden, the Cleveland History Center, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History (which includes the Perkins Wildlife Center, where you will find beautiful creatures such as this one) and the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland (MOCA). The Cleveland Museum of Art is not included, because it doesn’t charge admission. The passes are valid for 10 days after first use and save you more than 25 percent off full admission.

Still, I recommend doing some math (Sorry!) before you buy. The Circle Pass is $35 for anyone 13 or older and $19.50 for kids ages 3-12. Figure out whether it would be a bargain for you. Full admission to all four museums would total $48.50, so the pass would save one adult $13.50.

Some things to consider, especially if kids are involved. The pass covers one admission to each place. So if your 4-year-old gets worn out before you’ve seen all the dinosaurs and such at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, you can’t use your pass to go back another time. Also, the pass covers general admission only; the planetarium show is extra ($6).

Regular admission ranges from $17 to $14 with anyone younger than 3 admitted free. The museum offers a flat-rate admission of $8 after 5 p.m. Wednesdays. Members get perks including free admission.

MOCA is free for kids younger than 18 every day and free for everyone the first Saturday of the month. MOCA also has a reduced admission fee of $5 for everyone after 5 p.m. Fridays and benefits exclusive to members. Regular admission ranges from $9.50 to $5.

Admission to Cleveland Botanical Garden is $12 for adults, $8 for kids 3-12 and free for anyone younger than 3 and for members. Active military and veterans with ID and their immediate families also are admitted free. This applies to one adult admission and two child admissions.

The botanical garden is the region’s first participant in Museums for All, a national program aimed at giving every child and family access to high-quality museums. I just learned about the program while working on this post. Cleveland Botanical Garden and Holden Arboretum in Kirtland offer $1 admission to the holder of an EBT card (what some people mistakenly refer to as food stamps) and their immediate family. The rate applies to up to four people per EBT card.

Admission to the Cleveland History Center ranges from $10 to $5, with children 2 and younger, active military and museum members admitted free.

Uptown Friday Night

A weekend of events right up CLE on the Cheap’s alley is about to begin. You’ve already read about Holiday Circlefest. Some of University Circle’s neighbors are welcoming visitors with free and discounted events of their own.

Little Italy’s Holiday Art Walk is tonight through Sunday. You can check out the shops and galleries for free, but maybe you’ll find something to buy as well. The restaurants also will be open. If you can walk through that neighborhood without stopping for Italian food, you are a stronger person than I.

As locals know, parking is a challenge in Little Italy. Don’t forget there’s an RTA stop on Mayfield Road. Take the Red Line from west or east, and put the “walk” in Holiday Art Walk if you’re up to it. Turn left on Mayfield from the station, and let the enticing aroma lead the way. The Circle Link is another option for getting around University Circle, Little Italy, Uptown and Coventry.

There is a visitors center at 12010 Mayfield, where you can get directions and pick up maps and brochures. There also is one at 11330 Euclid Ave., not far from the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland and the Cleveland Institute of Art in the Uptown neighborhood. MOCA and CIA are part of the weekend celebration, too. MOCA will have free admission Saturday, as it does the first Saturday of every month. It also offers a discounted admission of $5 after 5 p.m. every Friday, and free admission every day for kids younger than 18. And this weekend there will be free admission on Sunday, too. Just a couple of blocks away, CIA is having its Student Holiday Sale Friday night and Saturday.

Now, don’t try to tell me there’s nothing to do around here.

Talk About Free!

CLE on the Cheap loves free things, including being free. Today is Election Day in the United States. Please exercise your right to vote if you haven’t already. Voting won’t cost you a thing, but not voting might.

It’s not too late to vote if you’re registered. Find out what’s on your ballot and where your polling place is here.

If you’re in or near Northeast Ohio, reward yourself for voting by visiting MOCA Cleveland for free from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. today.

Then watch the returns tonight, knowing you did your part for democracy.

MOCA

That’s the acronym for the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland.

The museum is at 11400 Euclid Ave., in a cool neighborhood called Uptown (seen here from inside the museum). Its four floors feature changing exhibitions that catch your eye and make you think. At least that’s been my experience. Its website has information about current and upcoming exhibits.

I haven’t visited MOCA with any children, but I’ve noticed there is a space for kids to make art if they’re more interested in doing than looking. That’s a great idea. It keeps them from getting bored and – who knows – might be helping to mold some artists of the future.

Speaking of kids, everyone 18 and younger is admitted free, so MOCA is an affordable family activity. The highest admission fee is $9.50, but there are ways to get a break. The easiest is to visit on the first Saturday of the month, when everyone is admitted free. If you’re not sure whether contemporary art is your thing, this is a low-risk way to check it out. I’ve gone to MOCA on a few first Saturdays and it was busy but not overly crowded. If you want to make more of a commitment while still saving money, you can buy a membership.

MOCA also is one of the institutions included in the Circle Pass discount. More about that in a future post.

Getting there: There are on-street and off-street parking options near the museum, at the intersection of Euclid Avenue and Mayfield Road The meters are for two hours, and I learned the hard way that they mean it. The first time I visited MOCA, I returned to my parking space a few blocks away eight minutes late and found a $25 ticket on my windshield.

On subsequent visits, I have taken RTA. I ride the Red Line from the Triskett rapid station on the West Side, where I buy an all-day pass ($5.50 at this writing) that’s good until 3 a.m. the next day. I can take the Red Line to the Little Italy station, then walk about four blocks up Mayfield to the museum. But last time I visited MOCA, the Red Line was having problems, so my friend  Tonya and I got off at Tower City, walked outside to Public Square and got on the Health Line, the bus that runs down the center of Euclid Avenue. No extra charge, thanks to our all-day passes. We got off just one block east of the museum. Pretty convenient, and no worries about parking tickets.

While you’re in the neighborhood, walk a couple of blocks east to the Cleveland Institute of Art’s Reinberger Gallery at 11610 Euclid Ave. The art school’s gallery is showing a free exhibit called The Great Lakes Research as part of FRONT International through Oct. 7. It also offers other free exhibits featuring professional and student artists throughout the year.