The Barnes, Art Museum, and others announce new policies to align with Philly’s vaccination mandate

Not wasting any time after the announcement last month of a January vaccination mandate for indoor dining in Philadelphia, the Penn Museum announced on Dec. 17 that it was tightening its own COVID-19 restrictions for visitors.

Beginning Jan. 4, museum officials said, visitors 5 years old and up would be required to show proof of vaccination for admission to the museum itself — not simply to the museum café. The decision was driven, the museum said, by the city’s Dec. 13 announcement of a COVID-19 mandate requiring proof of vaccination for admission to all Philadelphia eateries and areas where food is sold and consumed on-site.

COVID-19 policies at cultural institutions across Philadelphia, which have been a hodgepodge, are now gradually coming into alignment as a result, at least in part, of the city mandate.

(Masks are already required at virtually every museum in the city.)

The Barnes Foundation announced Tuesday that beginning Jan. 21, proof of vaccination and a valid identification card will be required of visitors 18 years and older; visitors 5 to 18 need only proof of vaccination. A spokeswoman said proof of vaccination is required for dining in the Barnes’ Garden Restaurant. (Reflections Café in the Annenberg Court is not offering dining at the moment.)

The Philadelphia Museum of Art also announced Tuesday that it, too, would be requiring proof of vaccination for entry into the museum beginning Jan. 24. A spokesman said that dining at the museum required proof of vaccination as of Monday.

The Mütter Museum of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia is closed throughJan. 9, because of the surging viral outbreak. When it reopens Jan. 10, proof of vaccination will be required for entry into the museum.

The Woodmere Museum of Art also requires proof of vaccination (or a negative COVID-19 test) for entry, a policy instituted in November.

The Museum of the American Revolution will begin requiring proof of vaccination for all visitors to enter the museum beginning Jan. 10. Vaccinations are already required for the museum’s café, as mandated by the city.

The Franklin Institute does not require proof of vaccination for museum entry. But if you want to eat anything, you must now show proof of vaccination to get into the institute’s Eatery Café.

The Please Touch Museum remains open to the public with neither adults nor children required to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test to enter. Visitors will be allowed to bring in food from outside, but if they wish to purchase food from the museum café, proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test will be required. After Jan. 17 only proof of vaccination will be accepted.

The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, which comprises a school and a museum, has separate policies for its different units. As of now, the school will begin its spring semester online with the intention of in-person instruction resuming Jan. 21. The PAFA museum remains open with no vaccination required for admission. The Tableau Café, however, will require diners to show such proof.

Neither the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University nor the National Constitution Center requires proof of vaccination for admission. The Academy of Natural Science’s café has been closed since the start of the pandemic. The NCC’s Delegates’ Café is also closed, but an on-site Starbucks, which offers no seating, does not require proof of vaccination (the city mandate excludes places with no seating from the restaurant mandate).

The African American Museum in Philadelphia does not require proof of vaccination for entry, and the museum has no food services.