• Tours are FREE!
• Join a scheduled public tour (no reservations required)
• Book your own custom tour for groups of ten or more
• Bring your class for a school group tour »
• NEW! Bring your 3- to 5-year-olds for a preschool tour »

For more information, call the MIA tour office
at (612) 870-3140.

current and upcoming Tours of the Month »

Discover the museum with the help of our trained tour guides. Free one-hour public tours are offered daily. Topics range from special exhibitions to treasures of the MIA’s permanent collection. Feel free to join the tours at any point, and stay as long as you like.

schedule of Daily Public Tours »

A Spotlight tour invites you to focus on a single artwork in the museum’s collection during a 20-minute group discussion facilitated by a tour guide. You may also engage in half-hour or 45-minute group conversations about special exhibitions and featured MIA galleries.

schedule of upcoming Spotlights & Conversations »

Visit the MIA’s family-friendly, hands-on Art Carts, in the galleries during weekdays, Thursday evenings, and on weekends. Request a free passport to discover all the Art Carts, and collect a stamp for each one you visit.

schedule of Art Carts »

Discover fun, little-known facts about artworks in the galleries with free MIA self-guided tour brochures. Offering something for every taste, our themes include “Love and Scandal,” “Believe It or Not,” “People’s Choice,” and “Highlights of the Collection."

Download your self-guided tour brochures to prepare for your visit. Or pick them up at any Information Desk in the museum—and let your journey begin!

    Believe It Or Not » (571KB .pdf)
    Highlights of the Collection » (763KB .pdf)
    Love and Scandal » (1MB .pdf)
    People's Choice » (632KB .pdf)
    Scavenger Hunts » (2.19MB .pdf)

Give your students an artful experience. Bring your class to the MIA!

Reservations are required for all school groups. Tour times fill up quickly, so please plan in advance. To request a tour, send in a Tour Request Form (132KB .pdf). Simply download the form, print it out, fill it out, and mail it in.

For tour ideas of the museum’s permanent collection, view a selection of tour topics.

School groups may also take tours of special exhibitions FREE of admission charges.

To reserve a school tour in conjunction with a class visit to the Children’s Theatre Company, use the special MIA/CTC Tour Request Form » (108KB .pdf)

MIA/CTC Tour Topics » (176KB .pdf)
Preschool Tour Request Form » (140KB .pdf)
Sin and Salvation: William Holman Hunt and the Pre-Raphaelite Vision School Tour Request Form » (140KB .pdf)
The Louvre and the Masterpiece School Tour Request Form (K-12) » (148KB .pdf)
The Louvre and the Masterpiece School Tour Request Form (University Groups) » (156KB .pdf)

Registered Art Adventure schools may book tours using the Art Adventure Tour Request form (84KB .pdf)  We look forward to seeing you and your students at the MIA!

Friends Transportation Fund

Established in 1996 to cover transportation costs for approximately 3500 children annually, from Twin Cities schools who visit the museum for educational tours. Please contact the Friends of the Institute for more information via phone or email, (612) 870-3045 or friends@artsmia.org.

You may request a tour on almost any topic for a group of ten or more. Pick from one of our most popular topics or together we can create a custom tour topic of your own. To get started, call (612) 870-3140.

Touch tours, including detailed verbal descriptions and tactile diagrams of select works of art, are available for visitors who are blind or have low vision.

browse a list of tour topics »

On the first Sunday of each month, at 1 p.m., public tours are interpreted for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Interpreted tours are also scheduled on other days throughout the year.