A guided tour of the museum: worth it?

Which guided museum tours can you book?

Two private tours priced per group, plus a walk that ends with a self-guided museum visit.

What does a private museum guide add?

Orientation and context in a very large museum: guests praise how the guide kept them from getting lost in the detail.

One guest wrote that the museum is so big it would be easy to get bogged down, and that the guide prevented that. Another praised a guide who took the time to answer the children's questions. Several name the same guides again and again.

What do the less happy reviews say?

That a guide added little over a self-guided visit, and, in one 2022 review, that a guide spent time on her phone and cut the tour short.

One KB guest put it plainly: if you are not set on a private tour, you can see everything on your own for free. A UTG guest felt they could have walked the museum on their own. Another said there was no fast track: they waited in line with everyone else.

Do you still need a timed pass?

The UTG listing says museum tickets are included in the tour cost, and the KB listing lists an admission ticket; either way, entry itself is free.

Do not expect a guided tour to skip the line. See how the timed passes work.

How much of the museum does a two-hour tour cover?

Not all of it: one KB guest wrote that the tour covers the first three floors.

The history galleries span three concourse levels, and the third and fourth floors hold the community and culture galleries. Plan to stay on after the guide leaves.

Is it good value for a family?

It can be: both tours are priced per group, so a family of five or seven pays one price.

Five people on the UTG tour work out at $70 each; seven on the KB tour at about $43 each. For a couple, the same tours cost $175 or $150 each.

A bigger family? The KB private museum tour is one price for up to seven.

★ 4.1 · 2 hours · from $300 per group (up to 7)

Explore the private museum tour (up to 7) → Tour details

When should you skip the guide?

If you like to set your own pace, or plan to come back more than once: entry is free, and you can return as often as you can get passes.

If you want a guide for the city rather than the galleries, compare the driving tours.

Frequently asked questions