Free things to do in Cambridge

10 places in Cambridge with free entry or no charge, based on guide listings and map data.

Ranked with the travel guide's picks and well-known places first.

See
Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East
formerly Semitic Museum
See a collection of over 40,000 artifacts from the Near East across multiple ancient civilizations.
Sun-Fri 11AM-4PMFree
Do
Lynch Family Skatepark
Shred your face off in this concrete paradise designed for you to bust out your sweetest ollies and kick-flips. Graffiti is encouraged on the "free walls", and there's an Artist-in-Residence program in the summer. Established in 2016.
Dawn-10PMFree
See
MIT Museum
Has a huge collection of holography, rotating exhibits, and showcases some of the best "hacks" performed by students. Hacks at MIT are practical physical jokes taking place around the institute. For example: installing a somewhat functioning police car (complete with instructions for how to remove it) atop the great dome. This museum is great for kids and many exhibits are hands-on, including moving sculptures and a shadow room.
Sep-Jun: 10AM-5PM daily; Jul-Aug: 10AM-6PM dailyAdults $10, youth/students/seniors $5, children under 5 free. Free admission last Sunday of the month Sep-Jun
See
Mount Auburn Cemetery
Yes, it's a cemetery. It just happens to be the first landscaped cemetery and in fact the first large-scale designed landscape in the U.S. The tower provides visitors with a breathtaking panoramic view of the cities of Boston and Cambridge, as well as the surrounding countryside to the north. The fact that it's the final resting place of some of the area's most influential figures (Sumner, Gardner, Eddy, and Longfellow) cements its status as a National Historic Landmark.
Free
See
Putnam Gallery
The Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments
Representing a broad range of scientific studies, this museum holds over 20,000 unique instruments dating from 1400 to present day.
Sun-Fri 11AM-4PMFree
See
Washington Elm
On July 3, 1775, George Washington officially took command of the Continental Army at ceremonies taking place beneath this Elm tree, which stood at the edge of the training grounds used by the troops. While this tale may be a myth, clearly the tree has remained a symbol of patriotism in Cambridge for generations. The tree finally succumbed to old age and disease in 1923, and today a small bronze plaque marks this historical spot.
24 hours dailyFree
See Not mapped
African American Heritage Trail
Twenty historic plaques across the city honor notable African Americans who were abolitionists, authors, educators, and office holders in Cambridge from 1840 to 1940.
24 hours dailyFree
See
Cambridge Arts Council Gallery
344 Broadway
Mon 8:30AM-8PM, Tue-Thu 8:30AM-5PM, Fri 8:30AM-noonFree
See
Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts
24 Quincy St
Free
See
List Visual Arts Center
20 Ames St
Free

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Cambridge (CC BY-SA 4.0).