Best senior discounts in Pittsburgh, from car insurance to campsites

Explore the city and the great outdoors with these Pittsburgh senior discounts for the oldest and wisest among us.

Those gray hairs you earned over the years aren’t just marks of maturing — they may also net you senior discounts throughout Pittsburgh. Seniors, generally considered anyone over the age of 55, can get discounts on transportation, cultural activities, and health and wellness opportunities. Note that some activities may have higher age requirements and only allow discounts to seniors who are, for example, at least age 62 or 65. But that just means every birthday is a ticket to more senior discounts!

Transportation

Car insurance

Thanks to Pennsylvania law, drivers 55 years and older can save at least 5% on car insurance if they complete a “mature driver improvement course.” Ten organizations across the state, including AAA and AARP, offer the courses.

Pittsburgh Regional Transit

Pittsburghers travel throughout and around the city on public transit via Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s buses, light rail, and incline. PRT’s reusable ConnectCard is your ticket to paying transit fares, but seniors ages 65 and older can get a special Senior Citizen ConnectCard and ride transit completely free! All you need to do to register for your card is present proof of age — like a driver’s license or birth certificate — at the PRT downtown service center or a nearby legislator’s office. Then, you’re free to travel on the transit system entirely for free.

Seniors can ride Pittsburgh Regional Transit buses for free. (Can Pac Swire/CC BY-NC 2.0)

Culture

Pittsburgh Pirates

Pittsburgh Pirates fans 55 and older can enjoy baseball ticket discounts of up to 45% off! Discounted tickets are available for home games for seats in the upper and lower levels. The senior discounts are subject to availability, so make your plans to see a game in the country’s most beautiful baseball stadium early.

Seniors can enjoy discounts to Pittsburgh Pirates home games at picturesque PNC Park. (Joshua Peacock/Unsplash)

Pittsburgh Opera

Senior opera fans, take note. While purchasing tickets the usual way won’t net you a discount, the Pittsburgh Opera offers half-price rush tickets for seniors aged 65 and older two hours before a mainstage production. Seniors simply need to head to the box office starting two hours before a show to purchase available seats at half price. Check out the current opera season to see what tickets you might aim to get half-price. 

Carnegie Museums

It’s usually $25 for adults to visit any of the four excellent Carnegie Museums: the Carnegie Museum of Art, the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, the Carnegie Science Center, and the Andy Warhol Museum. However, seniors 65 years and older get a $5 discount and pay just $20 to visit the Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History — one ticket gets you into both museums. Seniors also pay $20 to visit the Carnegie Science Center. The discount is even bigger at the Andy Warhol Museum, where seniors pay just $13 to learn about the life and work of legendary, Pittsburgh-born pop artist Andy Warhol.

City Theatre

Located on Pittsburgh’s South Side, City Theatre is a local theater company specializing in presenting new plays and commissioning daring works. And seniors can enjoy the fruits of City Theatre’s labor for less. On the day of a performance, seniors 62 and older can purchase available tickets either by phone or at the box office for just $25. See the City Theatre website to learn what new and engaging work is coming to the stage this year.

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre

The Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre continues the Pittsburgh arts tradition of senior rush tickets by allowing seniors 65 and older to buy tickets to ballet performances for 50% off beginning 90 minutes before the start of a show. You’ll need an ID that notes your birthday to prove your age— after all, you probably look much younger!

Staying Active

America the Beautiful Annual Senior Pass

Pennsylvania may not have a national park, but it’s likely still worth it to purchase a senior pass for U.S. national parks and federal recreation lands. The America the Beautiful Annual Senior Pass is just $20 and covers entry fees to any sites managed by the Forest Service, the National Park Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the Bureau of Reclamation. Plus, a lifetime pass is just $80. You can visit a number of sites in Pennsylvania for free, plus more than 2,000 other sites nationwide. You can buy a pass online for an extra fee or at a number of participating recreational sites.

Stays at Pennsylvania State Parks

Pennsylvania State Parks are always free for everyone to visit, but if you need extra motivation to spend time in the great outdoors, seniors 62 and older can book campsites at a reduced rate.

Allegheny County Parks

Allegheny County Parks are free to visit, but some park activities — like skiing, golfing, kayaking, or spending time at the pool — will harbor an additional fee. Seniors who are 60 and older can benefit from discounted fun at nearly all of the county parks. 

Our esteemed elders can purchase golf season passes for the 18-hole courses at North Park and South Park for as little as $80 (non-residents of the county pay $100). Otherwise, the greens fee is $20 for adults on weekends. Allegheny County Park pool passes for the wave pools at Boyce, Settlers Cabin, and South Parks and the swimming pool at North Park are just $40 for senior residents ($50 for non-residents), while non-senior adults pay double that rate. If you don’t need a pass, the daily entry fee for seniors is just $3. 

During the colder months, seniors can ice skate at the rinks in North and South Parks all season long for just $25 (non-residents pay $31). Seniors can also buy $200 season passes to ski or snowboard at Boyce Park all winter (non-residents—and non-senior adult residents—pay $250). 

North Park is a large Allegheny County Park with lake access, a swimming pool, a golf course, and ice skating in the winter. (Joseph/CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

YMCA

Membership at your local YMCA not only grants you access to a state-of-the-art gym and fitness facility, but it also offers a wide variety of community programs and engagement opportunities. Seniors ages 65 and up can enjoy all of the YMCA’s amenities with a reduced membership fee. For example, a monthly membership at the Thelma Lovette YMCA in Pittsburgh’s Hill District is usually $53, but seniors pay just $34. An even better deal: you can get a duo membership for you and a senior partner for only $42.

This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.