Accessibility at the Rubin Museum of Art
The Rubin Museum of Art (RMA) welcomes all visitors. In addition to meeting the standards of physical accessibility outlined below, the Museum also offers events and programs to accommodate all audiences on a regular basis.
Please see pages on Accessibility programs for:
For any additional assistance during your visit, RMA guides are available on all gallery floors during all open museum hours. Whether it is explaining a piece of art, pointing out a beautiful detail, or directing you to a specific part of the museum, the guides are always available to help.
For Visitors with Limited Mobility or a Mobility Aid
Wheelchair Availability
RMA has a limited number of wheelchairs for use by visitors to the Museum. Please request a wheelchair at the admissions desk or at the coat check, or reserve one by calling the admissions desk at 212.620.5000 x375 on the day of your visit.
Mobility Aid Accessibility
All public areas at RMA are accessible by elevators that connect all seven public floors, including several ADA-compliant restrooms.
A wheelchair lift is available to transport visitors from the entrance lobby to the first gallery level. This lift is sized to accommodate most wheelchairs. For oversize wheelchairs, there is an alternative entrance with ramped access to the first gallery level.
Service Animals
Service Animals are allowed throughout the museum.
For Visitors Who Are Blind or Partially Sighted
High-Contrast, Large Print
High contrast, large print labels are available for every exhibit at RMA. They can be found in binders on each gallery floor to assist visitors in their viewing of the exhibitions.
Verbal Imaging and Touch Tours
RMA now offers Verbal Imaging and Touch tours for visitors who are blind or partially sighted.
Free with museum admission, these tours are one hour in length and take visitors on a journey that weaves together the culture, history, religion, and arts of the Himalayas.
The RMA Guides are trained to lead highly descriptive verbal imaging and touch tours throughout the gallery floors. The tours expose partially sighted and blind visitors to close, careful descriptions of images and sculpture that allow the participants to form visualizations of the pieces, touch objects that include sculpture, art materials, wood blocks, and ritual implements, and then sit in our studio and hear the sounds of traditional music and experience some of the sacred smells of the Himalayas through the use of incense.
Group and individual tours are available. Please schedule your tour two weeks in advance by calling Liz Cintron for reservations at 212.620.5000 x345, or email at reservations@rmanyc.org.
Click the image below to view a Newsweek.com video highlighting RMA's Verbal Imaging and Touch tours.
For Visitors Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing
Assisted Listening Devices
Assisted listening devices are available for RMA programs and special events. Please place requests in advance by calling 212.620.5000 x344.
American Sign Language Interpreted Tours
Deaf Guide Guthrie Nutter and Sign Language Interpreter Andria Alefhi offer American Sign Language interpreted tours of the RMA collection specifically designed for individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing. These tours afford our visitors a chance to learn about the cultures, history, religions, and sacred art of the Himalayan region.
Tours meet in the spiral lobby of the museum and last about one hour. The next ASL Tour will be held on Friday, December 18 at 7pm.
For Seniors
Free Seniors Day at the Rubin Museum of Art
RMA welcomes older adults to participate in free admission, guided visits through the galleries, film screenings, and a 10% discount on selected items at the shop and cafe. Free Seniors Day is the first Monday of each month.
Free Seniors Day Regular Schedule
Individuals and groups of adults 65 and older are encouraged to visit RMA and enjoy free admission on Free Seniors Day (Admission for seniors is ordinarily $7). RMA is open from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. on Mondays.
Dates for 2008: January 7, February 4, March 3, April 7, May 5, June 2, July 7, August 4, September 1, October 6, November 3, and December 1
12-2 p.m.: Auspicious Stitches - Lifelong Learners discover and create needlework, applique, and other fiber arts inspired by the RMA collection.
1-2 p.m.: Himalayan-themed film screened in the theater
3-4 p.m.: A Taste of RMA guided visit through the galleries
Reservations for group visits are recommended, and private tours of the galleries can be arranged by calling Group Visits at 212.620.5000 x345 or by e-mailing reservations@rmanyc.org.
