National Museum in Manila to gradually reopen starting Tuesday

The National Museum, or Pambangsang Museo, in Manila. INQUIRER.net file photo

MANILA, Philippines — The National Museum of the Philippines (NMP) has announced that it will gradually reopen starting Tuesday after stopping its operation for a year due to restrictions brought by the Covid-19 pandemic.

In an official statement released on Monday, NMP said that the National Museum of Fine Arts, Anthropology, and Natural History will be open from Tuesday to Sunday, excluding religious holidays.

It will have morning sessions from 9 a.m. to 12 noon and an afternoon session from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.  However, the National Planetarium will remain closed until further announcement.

Also, only persons aged 15 to 65 would be allowed access, while a maximum of five people per group would be permitted to enter, and the facilities would only house a maximum of 100 visitors per session.

“Based on recent considerations with authorities regarding the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, and to ensure the health and safety of the visiting public as well as of the museum personnel, the visitor guidelines given below will be adopted immediately and come into effect starting March 2, 2021,” the NMP said.

Interested parties are required to do pre-online booking on NMP’s website — https://www.nationalmuseum.gov.ph/  — before visiting the museum due to limitations placed still due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

No walk-in visitors will be allowed to enter the museum.

Aside from these restrictions, NMP said that guided tours will not be allowed, while physical distancing measures will be observed.  Furthermore, the museum management assured possible visitors that hand sanitizing and washing facilities will be available.  Lizelle Soriano Roy, INQUIRER.net trainee

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