ArtsAbroad recently returned to the ancient city of Athens with a group of patrons of a renowned modern and contemporary gallery.

From classical masterpieces to modern galleries, Athens is a city where art and culture are deeply woven into its fabric. The group enjoyed opportunities to explore the city’s artistic and cultural duality through visits to the magnificent Acropolis Museum, the Byzantine & Christian Museum and the Benaki, perfectly interspersed with visits to modern cultural institutions, including the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation, Ghika House and the Takis Art Foundation.

A highlight of the tour was a day trip to the charming island of Hydra, sitting across the waters of the Saronic Gulf. The group was inspired to follow in the footsteps of British painter John Craxton, who celebrated Greek landscape, people, food and culture through his art, and made Hydra his second home for many years.

During a recent autumn tour to Florence, a group of musically inclined museum supporters had the opportunity to explore the city’s rich artistic and musical heritage.

Staying at a centrally located hotel, we were able to easily visit several Renaissance treasures on foot. Highlights included the spectacular private chapel of Palazzo Medici Riccardi, adorned with Benozzo Gozzoli’s exquisite frescoes depicting the Procession of the Magi. We enjoyed an exclusive backstage tour of Teatro Niccolini, the oldest theatre in Florence and among the first modern playhouses in Europe.

A scenic coach journey took us to Montalcino in the province of Siena, where we marvelled at a renowned harpsichord studio, celebrated for crafting high-quality instruments shipped worldwide. The day concluded with a fascinating masterclass on the region’s iconic Brunello wines, held in an atmospheric 13^th-century castle. Our tour wrapped up with a private concert honouring Florentine Baroque composers, featuring performances on both harpsichord and violone, followed by a sumptuous dinner at one of Florence’s finest restaurants.

An autumn trip to Copenhagen provided our patrons from a Cambridge-based institution with valuable insight into the intersection of technology and history in curating diverse museum experiences in Denmark’s capital.

The group explored both private collections and state museums, gaining a unique perspective on how globalization influences curatorial decisions. We had the privilege of meeting curators from leading institutions, who shared firsthand insights on their efforts to broaden perspectives by collecting art from around the world. By reframing the past within contemporary contexts and acknowledging shifting viewpoints in the zeitgeist, Danish art is being re-examined in the modern landscape.

Highlights of the trip included a visit to the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art and a concert featuring one of the world’s oldest working organs at Frederiksborg Castle. We also delved into Copenhagen’s vibrant culinary scene, celebrated for its emphasis on fresh, local ingredients and perfectly balanced flavours. The rich variety of Modern European cuisine is exceptional, including the Nordic countries’ famous ‘smørrebrød.’

ArtsAbroad curated a five-day cultural tour to Oslo this September for the patrons of one of the UK’s most valued museums.

Oslo enchanted us with a rich display of cutting-edge contemporary art, with the group enjoying exclusive visits to private collections and artist studios, providing an insight into the artists shaping Norway’s cultural identity today. We had the opportunity to view Oslo’s most revered artworks during a private, curator-led evening tour of the Munch Museum; and a visit to Kistefos Museum with its exceptional sculptural bridge and gallery, The Twist.

A day trip travelling by private boat across the fjords enabled us to appreciate the city’s breathtaking scenery while exploring some of Oslo’s neighbouring peninsulas. The vibrancy and individuality of Norway’s capital was certainly felt both culturally as well as through the gastronomic delights experienced at the city’s most prestigious restaurants.

Patrons of North America’s premier horticultural display garden enjoyed a wonderful, week-long tour of The Gardens of Provence.

The group stayed at the luxury five-star Hotel Royal-Riviera on the St-Jean-Cap-Ferrat peninsula, the perfect location for exploring the abundance of both private and public Provençal gardens. The itinerary showcased the remarkable variety of the region’s gardens and their history; from the flamboyance of the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild to the tranquillity of the Arts and Crafts garden, Le Clos du Peyronnet, and the innovative designs of James Basson’s “dry gardens”.

The tour ventured from Grasse in the west to Menton in the east, as well as crossing the border into Italy where the group enjoyed exclusive private visits to two significant gardens in Ventimiglia – the historic Villa Boccanegra, dating back to 1554; and Hanbury Botanical Garden, with its breathtaking clifftop location and 2,500 plant species from the six Mediterranean climate zones of the world. The trip also included visits to Henri Matisse’s extraordinary Chapelle due Rosaire and the Fondation Maeght in St Paul de Vence, as well as dining in some of the region’s finest restaurants.

A recent tour for the patrons of one of London’s most renowned museums provided a unique insight into the architecture and design heritage of LA and Palm Springs, ranging from Spanish Colonial Style, Arts and Crafts, Modernism to Postmodernism.

Highlights in LA included a very special private visit to the Getty Foundation, Conservation & Research Institute and a tour of the Gamble House, Pasadena’s most famous example of Arts and Crafts architecture and the best-preserved work of architects Charles and Henry Greene. Departing LA for Palm Springs and the remote wilderness of Joshua Tree National Park, our tour continued with exclusive tours of exceptional private residences, a visit to the open-air workshop of sculptor and designer Dan John Anderson, and the unique and otherworldly Kellogg-Doolittle House.

Curated for the supporters of one of the UK’s renowned garden institutions, a recent tour of the Lakes Maggiore and Como saw some of the finest gardens and picturesque landscapes.

From Italian Villas to the islands on the lake, we visited magnificent floral collections and saw a variety of different tree species, including ancient chestnuts, Lebanese cedar and olive and citrus groves. Travelling by private boat between visits, we were guided by experts around impressive sights, such as the largest Kashmir cypress in Europe, found on Isola Madre, tropical exotics such as coffee, mimosa and banana.

We enjoyed breath-taking views across the lakes, sampling local delicacies al fresco and even crossing over to Switzerland on our final day of the tour, visiting the stunning Brissago Islands. Notably, San Pancrazio, the smaller of the two, benefits from an unusually mild microclimate, and is thus home to plants from across the world, a wonderful way to end our trip.

From Accra to Tamale, exploring Ghana afforded a unique insight into its flourishing contemporary art scene.

Starting in the capital we toured the studios at Artematis, a collective opened in 2018 to represent emerging artists, working with museums and art institutions globally. The Artists Alliance Gallery, one of Ghana’s most important art centres and largest gallery was a must-see, championing contemporary as well as traditional African art. Our next stop on the trip, Tamale, is newer on the art scene but fast becoming a notable centre for contemporary art, spear-headed by artist Ibrahim Mahama’s and his development of key art spaces in the city.

We visited both the Savannah Centre for Contemporary Art and the Red Clay Studio. The former functions as a project space, exhibition and research hub and artists’ residency, while the latter covers more than 200 acres of land, showcasing large-scale installations. Mahama himself has found much success with these installations, representing Ghana at the Venice Biennale.

Perched on the crossroads of Europe and Asia, Istanbul stands as a historic bridge between East and West.

Following the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, the city underwent a remarkable transformation into an Islamic bastion, today boasting some of the world’s most exquisite Islamic architecture.

ArtsAbroad curated a 5-night tour of this captivating city for the patrons of a leading UK museum. Our journey through Istanbul’s architectural wonders included special visits to the iconic Hagia Sophia, the majestic Suleymaniye Mosque, and the opulent Topkapi palace. We enjoyed an unforgettable private boat trip along the Bosphorus to visit the extensive Ottoman art collection at the Sadberk Hanim Museum. Dining at the city’s finest restaurants, we also enjoyed private lunches at Istanbul’s most prestigious addresses.

Patrons of one of the UK’s leading opera companies enjoyed a wonderful 4-night tour to Vienna.

Each evening, we were treated to world-class musical performances at the city’s best venues, including Verdi’s Otello, Mozart’s Le Nozze de Figaro, and Puccini’s Manon Lescaut, all staged at the magnificent Wiener Staatsoper. Our final night saw a captivating performance by the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia Roma at the iconic Wiener Musikverein, the city’s 150-year-old concert hall.

The music was complemented by exclusive visits to the Liechtenstein Garden Palace and its remarkable art collection, and the awe-inspiring Prunksaal in the Austrian National Library – a true masterpiece of Baroque splendour.