Museums-PASS-Musées

A year-long museum pass for a French, German and Swiss border region

Museums-PASS-Musées is an annual pass that gives free entry to more than 350 museums, castles and gardens in a cross-border region of France, Germany and Switzerland. It is run from Basel, Switzerland (Birsigstrasse 2, 4054 Basel) by an association, which the footer calls "Der Verein", working with its member institutions ("Mitgliedshäuser"); the footer has sections for member museums and for new museums wishing to join. It does not run tours or sell single tickets. The homepage greets visitors with "Das grösste Museum der Welt heisst Sie willkommen", welcoming them to what it calls the largest museum in the world. The site is available in German, French and English, and prices are set in both Swiss francs and euros because the pass is sold on both sides of the border.

The About page defines the area precisely. On the German side it covers Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate; on the French side Alsace, Lorraine and Franche-Comté; and on the Swiss side the cantons of Basel, Basel-Land, Bern, Aargau, Jura and Solothurn. Outside those regions the pass has no members.

What the pass includes

The About page says the pass gives access to "mehr als 350 Museen, Schlössern und Gärten" and to "mehr als 1000 Wechselausstellungen" (more than 1000 temporary exhibitions), with "ein Jahr lang freien und unbegrenzten Eintritt", a year of free and unlimited entry, "für 1 Erwachsenen und 5 begleitende Kinder unter 18 Jahren", for 1 adult and up to 5 accompanying children under 18. The pass is nominative, meaning it is in the holder's name. The About page opens by addressing the people it is made for: those who like to spend a Sunday afternoon with antique finds, who always put a museum on the plan for a weekend with friends, or who have been waiting for their children to reach museum age. The member list ranges, in the page's words, from natural history museums to the big art museums, castle gardens and small town museums.

The homepage's exhibition carousel gives a sense of the range: shows at the Museum für Brot und Kunst in Ulm, the FRAC de Franche-Comté in Besançon, the Centre Pompidou in Metz, the Kunstmuseum Stuttgart, the Cartoonmuseum in Basel and the Zentrum Paul Klee in Bern, each listed with its dates. A members' museum finder lets visitors search for museums, castles, gardens and monasteries near them.

Events and extras for pass holders

Beyond entry, the association runs a program of its own. The menu lists "Unsere exklusiven Angebote" (exclusive offers), events in member museums, online events and recordings of past online events. The homepage shows examples: an evening event with the Kunstmuseum Bern on 7 October 2026, already marked "AUSGEBUCHT" (booked out); online talks presented by the Museum der Kulturen Basel and by the Staatliche Kunsthalle Baden-Baden with the Badisches Landesmuseum; and member museum events on a single day in September: an archaeology after-work session where visitors choose the topic, a talk on masks tied to Emil Ferris's comics, a book launch at the Museum Kleines Klingental in Basel, a guided tour of a contemporary show and a walk on historic Basel table culture. A referral scheme, "Passinhaber werben Passinhaber", runs until 31 December 2026.

Prices and where to buy

The prices page lists the normal rate for 1 person plus up to 5 children under 18 at 153,00 CHF or 129,00 €, and a reduced rate of 141,00 CHF or 119,00 €, with prices valid from 1 January 2026. The reduced rate applies to pupils and apprentices, people with disabilities, the unemployed, teachers and members of a museum friends' association, on showing proof, and the page states it is only available at member museums and sales points, "nicht aber in unserem Onlineshop", not in the online shop.

The pass is sold at the member museums "(mit wenigen Ausnahmen)", with a few exceptions, at a network of sales points and in the online shop. The menu offers a choice between a plastic card and a digital pass, and the MPM app holds the digital pass along with exhibitions, a favorites list and theme filters. A "Mein Bereich" login lets holders manage their pass. General terms and conditions are linked as a PDF dated 8.6.2026.

Support

The association lists phone numbers for each country, (CH) 061 205 00 40, (DE) 07621 161 36 34 and (FR) 03 89 33 96 29, and the email info@museumspass.com. The office hours are Monday to Friday 10 to 12, Monday, Thursday and Friday 14:00 to 17:00, and Tuesday 15:00 to 17:00. There is also a newsletter, an FAQ and a downloadable brochure, a press section, a "Meine Story" section for holders' own accounts, a partners page and a careers page where the association advertises its own job openings. The site's data protection notices are written for both EU and Swiss law, reflecting its cross-border setup.

What the pages leave open, and who it suits

The pass and price pages do not summarize the refund or cancellation rules (a terms PDF is linked), and they do not say whether the year runs from purchase or from first use. They do not explain whether any member charges a supplement for particular exhibitions, or whether some museums need a time slot booked. Accessibility at member venues is not covered on the pass pages.

The pass suits residents of the border region and visitors spending a long stay there who will visit museums often, and it is especially good value for a parent or grandparent who brings children, since up to 5 under-18s go in on one adult pass. The testimonials the site chose make the same point: one holder, Peter, says the pass often serves as a guide for short trips "um die Ecke", around the corner, and that it has made his children more open to art. Another, Marion, describes riding antique trains, touring castles and monasteries, and following spies and childhood heroes through the member collections. For a short tourist visit to one city, single tickets will usually be cheaper, but anyone planning repeated trips across Alsace, Baden-Württemberg and the Swiss cantons it covers within a year has a strong case for the pass.