Looking for something fun and free to do on a rainy day or with out-of-town guests? Then check out two of our local treasures — the Allentown Art Museum and America on Wheels.

If you live in Emmaus Borough, Macungie Borough or Upper Milford, your Emmaus Public Library card entitles you to borrow museum passes good for four people (adults or children) at either museum. With regular adult admission ranging from $10-$12, that’s enough savings for a tank of gas or a nice lunch on the way.

Some of the current exhibits at the Allentown Art Museum include:

  • Power and Piety: Spanish Colonial Art (through 12/9) — paintings, sculpture, silver pieces, furniture and decorative devotional objects made in the Spanish and Portuguese colonies of the Americas from the late 17th to the early 19th centuries.
  • Katagami: The Japanese Stencil (through 7/28/19) — The Japanese have printed fabric for centuries using katagami, hand carved mulberry paper stencils. Many became collectors and drew inspiration from these stencils—including architect Frank Lloyd Wright, whose library from the Little House is on view at the Museum.
  • The Soviet Lens: Photography by Dmitri Baltermants an Mark Markov-Grinberg (through 1/6/19) — In the Soviet Union, photojournalists were told to create images that showed their country’s progress toward a bright future. This exhibition examines the role of truth and censorship in the work of these two important Soviet photojournalists.

These are just three of many exhibits currently on display. Preview the rest and plan out your visit on the museum’s website or call 610-432-4333. They’re located at 31 North 5th St. in Allentown, and open 11-4 on Weds.-Sat., 12-4 on Sunday, and 11-8 on the third Thursday of the month. They’re closed Monday and Tuesday.

Over at the America on Wheels Antique Auto Museum — which celebrates our love affair with cars, trucks, motorcycles and bicycles — they’ve just wrapped up an exhibit on Cars of Rick Henrick of NASCAR Fame and are getting set for Fabulous Fins of the ’50s and ’60s: The Jet Age of Automobile Design (9/29/18 – 3/23/19). They’re also displaying the Art of William Bunting through March 2019.

The museum has several galleries — including one featuring early cars and another exhibiting examples from 60 years of Mack trucks — and they have monthly lectures on a variety of topics, free with museum admission. Lots to see and lots to learn for ‘kids’ of all ages.

America on Wheels is located at 5 North Front St. in Allentown and is currently open 10-5 on Tues.-Sat. and 12-5 on Sunday, with last admittance at 4 p.m. They’re closed Mondays. In January, they’ll switch to winter hours, closing at 4 p.m. instead of 5 p.m. Visit their website to plan out your visit or call 610-432-4200.

Passes for both museums can be borrowed for two weeks. There are no renewals.

So stop in and pick up a pass for a great day out — free with your library card!