For the second-smallest state, Delaware offers a surprisingly deep bench of free and nearly-free museum days, almost all clustered in Wilmington and the capital, Dover. The headliner is the Delaware Art Museum, home to the country's largest Howard Pyle collection and a celebrated group of Pre-Raphaelite paintings: regular admission is $18, but the galleries are free every Thursday evening from 4 to 8 pm, April through December. A few minutes away, the Delaware History Museum and its Mitchell Center for African American Heritage open free on the first Friday of every month, and the riverside Brandywine Zoo waives admission entirely from December through February.
Down in Dover, the Biggs Museum of American Art is free every day thanks to a community partnership with Dover Federal Credit Union, and the Air Mobility Command Museum's hangar full of historic cargo and refueling aircraft is always free too. Families on a budget should also note the Delaware Children's Museum's $2 Wednesdays — a steep discount off the usual $15. Many Delaware museums additionally offer reduced 'Museums for All' admission (often $2) with a SNAP/EBT card, and several participate in Bank of America's Museums on Us program on the first full weekend of each month.
Wilmington
Delaware Art Museum
Regularly $18 adults / $16 seniors / $7 students / $6 youth 7-18 / Free under 7One of the finest art museums between Philadelphia and Washington, the Delaware Art Museum holds the country's largest collection of works by illustrator Howard Pyle, a renowned group of Pre-Raphaelite paintings, and American art by Andrew Wyeth, John Sloan, and Winslow Homer. Regular admission is $18, but the galleries are free every Thursday evening from 4 to 8 pm, April through December. Bank of America cardholders also get in free the first full weekend of each month, and the outdoor sculpture garden is free year-round.
🌐 Check current dates →Delaware History Museum
Regularly $10 adults / $8 seniors, military & students / $5 youth 6-17 / Free under 6 / $2 with SNAP/EBTRun by the Delaware Historical Society, this downtown museum tells the story of the First State through its 'One State, Many Stories' exhibition and the Jane and Littleton Mitchell Center for African American Heritage, whose 'Journey to Freedom' gallery traces Black history in Delaware from the 1600s to today. General admission is $10, but the museum is free on the first Friday of every month, and teachers visit free on the third Saturday.
🌐 Check current dates →Brandywine Zoo
Regularly $9 adults / $8 seniors / $7 youth 3-17 in peak season (lower in spring & fall)Tucked into Brandywine Park along the river, this compact five-acre zoo run by Delaware State Parks is home to everything from river otters and bald eagles to an Andean condor. Peak-season admission tops out at $9 for adults, but from December through February the zoo is completely free (except for special ticketed events) — a quiet, uncrowded time to visit when many animals are most active. Members and children under 3 are always free.
🌐 Check current dates →Delaware Children's Museum
Regularly $15 general / Free under age 1On Wilmington's Riverfront, the Delaware Children's Museum is a hands-on playground of science, math, and imagination for young kids — an art studio, a water table, a climbable giant tree, a toddler boat, and a mock operating table among them. General admission is $15, but every Wednesday admission drops to just $2 per person, making it the most affordable day for families. Open Wednesday through Sunday.
🌐 Check current dates →Dover
Biggs Museum of American Art
Regularly FreeA block from Dover's historic Green, the Biggs Museum holds one of the finest collections of American fine and decorative art focused on Delaware and the Mid-Atlantic — paintings, sculpture, and silver by the Peale family, Hiram Powers, and illustrators N.C. Wyeth and Howard Pyle, across three floors. Admission is free for everyone, every day it's open (Thursday through Sunday), through a partnership with Dover Federal Credit Union. A free 'Biggs Weekend' the first Friday–Sunday of each month adds special programs and tours.
🌐 Check current dates →Always Free in Delaware
No free day needed — these flagship museums never charge general admission.