Because Boston has an abundance of colleges in the city and its surrounding areas, it has to cater to the tight budget of the typical college student. Having a college ID can help make the city’s events, restaurants and activities more affordable. Students can visit museums, go ice skating and see performances at a discount.
For students interested in art, a college ID can help gain access to museums such as the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.
Sarah Michelson ’18, a first year taking an art history course has used her ID to visit the MFA already.
“Having free access to the MFA and Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is so wonderful and convenient. I already have a lot of work involving art history, so having these resources is not only helpful, but vital … if I couldn’t get in for free, I don’t know what I’d do,” Michelson explained.
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum appears simple on the outside but carries fantastic works of art ranging from ancient Greek sculptures in the picturesque courtyard to the displays of Gothic stained glass windows in the chapel on the third floor.
All people named Isabella can visit the museum for free and for students who are not named Isabella, a visit is free with a Wellesley College ID. Normally, an adult ticket costs $15.
The Museum of Science also offered a College Night last Friday and many Wellesley students attended
“It was really fun for college students. You could go around and walk into all of the exhibits,” Alison Lanier ’15 said.
This year, the College offers a limited number of passes to the Museum of Sciences, including free entrance to the museum but not to its Mugar Omni Theatre. Student, faculty and staff can request up to two free tickets per person at the Science Center office.
Boston offers students more than museums. In the winter, a typical seasonal activity for people living in Boston is ice skating on the frozen Frog Pond in the Boston Common. The Frog Pond offers a “College Night” with student discounts on Tuesdays from 6 to 9 p.m. Weather permitting, the pond will be open for skating by mid- to late November. Admission with your Wellesley ID is just $2, excluding the additional price of skate rentals. On days without college discounts, the admission is $5, and the adult skate rentals are $9.
As for shows, the Office of Student Involvement has offered discounts in the past few weeks on tickets for “The Lion King” in the Boston Opera House for $30. A ticket price usually ranges from about $45 to $180.
However, students who missed this opportunity can still get discounted tickets. The Boston Opera House box office offers student rush tickets to “The Lion King” for $25, when seats are available.
Tiffany Chung ’17 used her student ID over the summer to see the Broadway musical “Phantom of the Opera.”
“I went with another Wellesley friend during summer and we got to see a world-class broadway musical that was $200 for 20 bucks. It was very well-done,” Chung said.
She also used her ID in New York to see the Broadway musical “Jesus Christ Superstar.”
“During the summer I went to a Broadway show in New York and got front-row tickets for $29. We were so close we could see the spit coming out of the singers’ mouths. What happens is that they just give you the unsold seat tickets,” she explained.
In addition to musicals, the Blue Man Group, a show combining music and comedy for a unique and innovative experience of entertainment offers a deal for students in the Boston area. The price ranges from $70 to $100 for general admission. However, if the Blue Man Group tweets that it has open seats, students can show up two hours before the show and purchase tickets for $30.
Another opportunity students can take advantage of is the discount for Red Sox tickets. In an effort to make Red Sox games more affordable, Fenway Park introduced the $9 ticket for college students.
Similarly, the Celtics offer student discounts on their website for certain nights. October 6 and October 22 pre-season tickets start at $10. They are also having a “College Night” on November 5 against Toronto, with tickets for college students starting at $20.
For anyone looking for more discounts on outings, the Wellesley College Bookstore has free “Collegiate Coupon Books” filled with coupons and more information about discounts in and around the town of Wellesley. The booklet includes coupons for restaurants such as Boloco and promo codes for the car service Uber.
