Anyone who’s ever visited Washington D.C. knows that one of the great perks of being a tourist in the U.S. capital city is that the vast majority of the museums are completely free. It’s a budget traveler’s dream in that sense (nevermind that lodging and meals can be expensive in D.C., that’s another problem entirely), but unfortunately that chain of beloved Smithsonian institutions doesn’t stretch beyond the beltway. For one day later this month, however, the “free museum” idea does.

On September 27, 2008, Smithsonian Magazine is presenting Museum Day at participating museums across the country. As part of Museum Day, the museums involved are waiving their admission fee for the day to people holding a Museum Day card – and all you need to do to get the card is download it from the Museum Day website (or pull it out of your September 2008 issue of Smithsonian Magazine, if you happen to already get the mag).

There are a few restrictions that come with the free museum entry card, but they’re limited:

• The card is only good for one day, September 27, 2008, unless otherwise specified (some venues aren’t open on Saturdays & are therefore making their Museum Day on Sunday, and some are honoring the card all weekend).
• The card is only good for general admission, and doesn’t include admission fees for special exhibits or IMAX shows.
• The card is good for the cardholder plus one guest, and they’re only allowing one card per household – so if you’re a family of four, you’ll pay for two entries.

You can learn more about the restrictions on the Museum Day’s about page, and find participating venues near you by clicking on the various states on the map here. There are museums and cultural venues participating in this free museum day event in all 50 U.S. states, plus Puerto Rico.