Art gallery tour

Standard / non-member rates

For groups of 15 or more children
1 hour 15 minute tour  – £4.78 per child
2-hour tour – £7.75 per child

For groups of fewer than 15 children
1 hour 15 minute tour  – £71.70 per group
2-hour tour – £116.25 per group

Magical Museums member rates

For groups of 15 or more children
1 hour 15 minute tour  – £2.18 per child*
2-hour tour – £4.36 per child*

For groups of fewer than 15 children
1 hour 15 minute tour  – £32.70 per group
2-hour tour – £65.40 per group

*If available, your member school's free hours will be used first.

Please note: SEND groups are charged at our Standard per-child rate plus a £10 administration cost.

What to expect from your Experience Day

Choose your theme then take a tour of Ferens Art Gallery. Pupils will see a range of artworks covering different art movements, from Renaissance to Victorian, to Modern and Contemporary. After your tour, our team will give a demonstration of an art-based skill linked to your chosen theme. Then we’ll then encourage your class to get out their sketchbooks, start exploring the artworks and create their own interpretations.

Choose from portraiture (1 hr 15 mins), landscapes (1hr 15 mins) or still life (2 hours). This led session includes:

1 hour 15 min tour

• Welcome to Ferens Art Gallery
• Guided tour of key artworks (30 mins) linked to either Portraiture or Landscapes.
• For inspiration, a demonstration of an art-based skill.
• You’ll then be encouraged to explore the gallery with your sketching materials.*

2-hour tour

• Welcome to Ferens Art Gallery
• Guided tour of key artworks (30 mins) linked to Still Life.
• Art-based skills sessions focusing on composition (using a range of objects to create a still life to draw from) and drawing skills using dry art materials.

*Sketching materials (paper, clipboards and pencils) will be provided. You’re welcome to bring a range of colouring pencils and crayons for your self-directed time. However, please do not use charcoal, pastels or any other art materials in the gallery. We encourage other materials like these to be explored back at school.

Group size

We can accommodate up to two groups from your school per available date – with a maximum of 35 pupils per group. If you’d like to bring more than two groups (70 pupils), please book additional days.

Timings

The timings for your Experience Day will depend on the size of your group and the length of session you book. 

1 hour 15 minute tour

We deliver tours from 10–11.15am for the first group, and 11.15am–12.30pm for the second group. If you’re bringing two groups to/from the gallery at the same time, we strongly recommend you book in self-directed time (you can find out more about this below).

2-hour tour

Tours are delivered from 10am–12pm for the first group, and 12.30–2.30pm for the second group. If you’re bringing two groups to/from the gallery at the same time, we strongly recommend you book in self-directed time (you can find out more about this below).

Make a full day of your visit

When making your booking through Eventbrite, you’ll be asked if you want to book a space for lunch and self-directed time, too.

Self-directed time is essentially a booking to explore the museum in a large group. You need to book it in so we know we can accommodate your class alongside other visitors. It does not include any activities led by museum staff – so please plan your time accordingly.

Pre-visit info

To make the most of your visit, make sure you download and read the following documents. These include detailed information on what to expect from the day. For example: timings, locations, T&Cs and risk assessment.

Schools Visit Pack (PDF, 350kb)
Portraits Tour info pack (PDF, 214kb)
Landscapes Tour info pack (PDF, 215kb)
Still Life Tour info pack (PDF, 236kb)

A link for these will also be included on your confirmation email and ticket.

We also have the following resources and documents available to help with your visit planning:

Book the Art Gallery Tour for your school

We are currently using Eventbrite for bookings while we move over to a new system. Any reference to FREE on the Eventbrite system relates only to not being charged at the point of booking. These sessions are NOT free – all schools will be invoiced following your visit based on the booking details you provide. Prices are listed above.

Bookings for the Autumn Term have now sold out. Our bookings for the Spring Term will open up to Magical Museums member schools in late Autumn 1 half term, and to all other schools in late November 2024. 

Cancellation policy

If you need to cancel or change your booking, you can do this by logging into the Eventbrite account you used to make your booking.

Our cancellation policy states: If you accept this visit but are unable to attend, please cancel your visit via Eventbrite by logging into your account and cancelling your booked ticket. We ask that where possible, you do this within 7 working days of the visit to free up the slot for another school. 

Please note: if you cancel your visit with less than 24 hours’ notice of the booked slot, you will be charged £50.