Smithsonian redesigns guide to include price tag and coupons

The Smithsonian Institution recently redesigned its official, and formerly free, visitor guide, goSmithsonian. The guide is now available for $2 and includes exhibitions highlights, descriptions and floor plans for all the museums within the Institution. However, visitors should not be discourage from purchasing the new and improved guide as the publishers have also included $40 worth of coupons and each museum still offers free floor plans. The decision is definitely an interesting sign of the times as more and more museums play the game of balancing visitor satisfaction with decreasing budgets.