As it gets warmer and summer quickly approaches, students at the University of Memphis begin to plan out their three-month vacation.
Though college kids will have more time to go out and enjoy the city of Memphis in the summer, they often do not have the money to benefit from many activities the city has to offer. What some students don’t know is that multiple attractions across the city of Memphis cost $10 or less. Some are even free on certain days of the week.
One of the most popular attractions in the city is the Memphis Zoo. As the zoo grows more and more each year, Memphians’ interest also seems to grow. Though a normal day’s admission price is $15, every Tuesday the zoo allows free admission from 2 p.m. to close for Tennessee residents and current Tennessee college students.
Garrett Barnes, a freshman communications major, plans to spend his first summer living in Memphis. He explained how he has really enjoyed going to the zoo in the past but wasn’t aware the zoo offered free admission on Tuesdays.
“I love going to the zoo,” he said. “It's really cool to see all of the awesome animals we have here in Memphis. I had no idea about free zoo day. I definitely plan to go again, now hopefully on Tuesday.”
Shelby Farms and the Shelby Farms Greenline have also become huge attractions to Memphians as well. Both are free to use and give the city two incredible recourses for outdoor activities. At Shelby Farms there are multiple biking and walking trails, picnic areas, fishing spots, an 18-hole disc golf course and a huge dog park. The Greenline offers 6.5 miles of trails, for bikers, joggers, and walkers to travel from Shelby Farms all the way to Memphis’s midtown area.
Sophomore marketing major Ryan Estes said he looks forward to going to Shelby Farms and playing disc golf.
“Just going to Shelby Farms Park is always a fun thing to do,” he said. “It’s free and they are working on a lot of new things over there. I love playing the disc golf course.”
Memphis is nationally known as a musical city. There are multiple events and attractions music fans can enjoy. One event that seems to get an incredible amount of buzz around the city is the free summer concert series at the Levitt Shell. The Shell will host more than 50 concerts this year. Usually free concerts are offered every Thursday-Sunday throughout the summer. They’ll have multiple food trucks to serve food at each event, but visitors are welcome to bring their own snacks and drinks.
Lacy Ritter, a senior psychology major, said she loves going to the Levitt Shell and thinks it’s a great option for college students running on a budget.
“The Levitt Shell is always a good option since it's free and you can bring your own food and drinks,“ she said. “I think it's a great thing for our city. I don't go that often because of my work schedule, but the shows are always wonderful when I do go.”
For classic movie lovers, the Orpheum Theatre offers their Classic Summer Movie Series each year. Admission is $7 and in the past, the series has included the likes of “Jaws,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “Grease,” “Casablanca” and “National Lampoon’s Vacation”. This summer’s lineup has yet to be announced.
With summer, also comes baseball. By the time summer break begins the Memphis Redbirds’ season will be in full swing. Tickets to the newly renovated bluff seating are $9 per person.
Cole Sanders, a senior supply chain management major, said he really looks forward to not only going to see the Redbirds, but to see the University of Memphis baseball team’s final games as well.
“I absolutely love baseball,” he said. Going to see the Memphis Redbirds is always fun. I’ll try to make it to the few University of Memphis baseball games after classes end as well. The Tigers have a great shot at making the postseason this year.”
Festivals are also very popular in Memphis. The Memphis Italian Festival has become a huge mainstay in the city. This year’s festival will take place May 28-30 at Marquette Park and admission fee is $10 a person. The festival offers live music, crafts, games, cooking competitions, and plenty of Italian food.
Multiple museums across the city offer very decent admission prices as well. The Cotton Museum charges a $9 admission fee with student ID. The museum highlights the history of the cotton industry and its affect on the city of Memphis and its residents.
Lichterman Nature Center, $6 admission for adults, offers a wide variety of activities to help visitors learn about and get more in-touch with nature. Every Tuesday the center offers free admission to the public from 1 p.m. to close.
Dixon Gallery and Gardens is also a cheap and fun experience for students to go to this summer. Admission is $5 with student ID and is free every Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (donations are excepted), as well as Saturdays from 10 a.m. to noon. This summer, the Dixon will host a Jun Kaneko Sculpture exhibit.
The Memphis Botanic Gardens also offers a very reasonable admission price. Adult admission is $8 to explore and tour the gardens.
Mud Island River Park offers a great $10 deal called the museum package. This gives visitors not only access to the park and the river walk, but also admission to the Mississippi River Museum, a guided tour of the river walk and roundtrip ride on the monorail.
The Memphis Gibson Guitar factory, one of only three active Gibson factories in the U.S., offers tours that show every step of the Gibson guitar manufacturing process. Tickets are $10.
The Brooks Museum of Art, which charges $3 with a student ID, offers multiple exhibitions for public access. During the summer, the museum will feature two new exhibits, “Play” and “The Art of Video Games,” to go along with many more that have been on display throughout the winter and spring. On Wednesdays the museum’s admission is donation only and is free to the public.
Junior philosophy major Sarah Belchic, 20, said she loves going to the Brooks Museum because there is always something new to see and it is very affordable.
“Even though I love being outside, I also enjoy museums and I know a few of them give pretty good student discounts,” Sarah said. “For example, the Brook's museum is only three dollars with a student ID and there are some pretty awesome exhibits that come through.”
Belchic, an Alabama native, explained that she has really enjoyed visiting the city’s different museums in her time at the University of Memphis, but the art museums are by far her favorite.
“I've been to several since coming to Memphis, but I prefer art museums because they change, so I feel like it's more to see,” she said.
Another couple of great attractions that people often don’t know have free admission days are the Pink Palace and the Rock n’ Soul Museum. Normally both museums charge around $12 admission fees, but on Tuesdays both museums are free to the public. The Pink Palace begins free admission from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. every Tuesday, and the Rock n’ Soul museum offers free admission to Shelby county, Tennessee residents Tuesdays from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Ritter explained how she really likes museums, but hasn’t been to any in awhile because she thought they were too expensive. Now knowing most are free, she is excited to hopefully visit multiple museums this summer.
“I haven't been to a museum in a little while,” she said. “I love the Pink Palace and I plan to go to Food truck Friday at the Dixon. I would go to more museums if my budget allowed it. I was aware of the Pink Palace free day, but I did not know about the Rock n' Soul museum. That is exciting because I've never been there before.”
There are plenty of exhibits, events and attractions to visit this summer in Memphis. By no means necessary do you have to be wealthy to take part in the fun.
Belchic said she can’t wait to get outside and just enjoy the city.
“I'm honestly looking forward to spending most of my time outside,” she said. “Everything in Memphis seems a lot more lively when it's warm.”
