Muzeum Narodowe w Krakowie Muzeum Narodowe w Krakowie
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Private guided tours

Obraz przedstawiający zatłoczoną średniowieczną ucztę przy długim, nakrytym białym obrusem stole, z grupą mężczyzn i służby w bogatych, kolorowych strojach; u środka siedzą dostojnicy w koronach z złotymi pucharami i insygniami, obok stoi starszy mężczyzna w zielonym płaszczu pochylający się z ozdobnym naczyniem, po lewej służący niosący tace z owocami, u stóp stołu leży pies obok hełmu i zbroi, a w tle tłum gości, muzycy i dekoracyjna tapeta z powtarzającym się motywem orła.

A story well told – that’s what we do every day! Guided tours led by our experts are a great opportunity to explore the National Museum in Kraków’s rich collections in greater depth and from various perspectives, and to develop the skills needed to appreciate art. All this takes place in a friendly atmosphere, in the company of experts who are masters of storytelling.

A guided tour is…

… a guided walk through the entire exhibition, during which we stop at selected works of art or objects. The narrative accompanying the tour allows you to understand the concept behind the exhibition (depending on the section, also the history of the building and the collection); to learn more about the most important artefacts on display as well as other selected pieces; to discover the historical, biographical and cultural contexts relevant to the creation of the works; and to explore the secrets of various artistic techniques, movements and trends in art. During the tour, there is also time to ask questions related to the topic and share your thoughts.

What makes our guided tours stand out?

The guides at the National Museum in Kraków are directly affiliated with our institution – they form a close-knit community that participates in numerous methodological and subject-specific training sessions, and has the opportunity to engage with exhibition curators, collection managers, conservators and other specialists in topics related to the collection, who possess the most extensive knowledge of it. The format of the guided tours offered by the National Museum in Kraków is the result of many years of experience and the constant search for the best possible solutions by specialists from the Education Department, with whom the guides collaborate. This is the result of efforts to respond as effectively as possible to the current needs of our visitors, the ongoing development of skills, and the whole team’s commitment to keeping up with new developments in the sector.

As a result, the knowledge conveyed by our guides is proven, reliable and in-depth, and the methods used to convey it are effective. By choosing the guided tours offered by the MNK, you are choosing high quality.

Important information

Duration of the tour: 60 to 90 minutes (depending on the size of the exhibition)

Price:

  • 190 PLN + admission tickets (tours in Polish at MNK Main Building, MNK Czartoryski Museum, MNK Sukiennice)
  • PLN 170 + admission tickets (guided tours in Polish at the MNK Mehoffer, MNK Matejko, MNK Wyspiański, MNK Szołayski, MNK Ciołek, MNK Czapski, MNK Arsenal, MNK Szymanowski)
  • 270 PLN + admission tickets (guided tours in a foreign language at the MNK Main Building, MNK Czartoryski Museum, MNK Sukiennice)
  • 220 PLN + admission tickets (guided tours in a foreign language at the MNK Mehoffer, MNK Matejko, MNK Wyspiański, MNK Szołayski, MNK Ciołek, MNK Czapski, MNK Arsenal, MNK Szymanowski)

Guided tours are available in Polish and English, and in selected branches also in Italian, French and Ukrainian.

We do not provide guided tours on request between 24 December 2026 and 27 December 2026, and between 1 January 2027 and 3 January 2027. Guided tours between 28 December and 31 December 2026 will be available only to organised groups that have booked a date for the service by 22 December 2026.

How to book a guided tour?

By contacting the MNK Information and Booking Centre, tel. 12 433 57 44 (Monday–Friday, 9:00–16:00), email: rezerwacja@mnk.pl

Please provide the following details by email or telephone:

  • the date of your visit
  • the MNK branch and/or exhibition, and the language in which the guided tour is to take place
  • the number of participants in the group
  • contact details: the institution’s address (if applicable), telephone number and email address of the group leader
  • any additional comments that will help us better prepare for your visit to the Museum

What will the guide talk about, and what can you see on the tours? Find out below!

Duration: 60 mins

Maximum group size: 30

Price: PLN 190 + admission ticket for each participant

The MNK Main Building is the largest of the exhibition buildings of the National Museum in Kraków. This structure, with its impressive modernist architecture, forms part of the unique urban layout of Aleja Trzech Wieszczów – the prestigious promenade of interwar Kraków. The building houses permanent exhibitions across three floors: the Gallery of Artistic Crafts, the 20th and 21st Century Gallery of Polish Art, and the Gallery of European Art, as well as temporary exhibitions (including the current exhibition ‘The Young Poland Group of Five: The Forgotten Rebels’).

  • who formed the Group of Five and what set its members apart from other artists of the early 20th century,
  • how the Group’s works complement the artistic canon of the Young Poland period,
  • how various painting and graphic techniques can be used to convey a range of emotions, including difficult ones,
  • why the most famous member of the Group of Five, Witold Wojtkiewicz, is described as an isolated phenomenon.
  • the richness and diversity of the themes and emotions expressed in the works on display,
  • a projection of photographs of artworks that were once thought to be lost and are still being sought,
  • just how relevant the themes addressed by artists over a century ago remain today,
  • and how curatorial work resembles detective work.
  • Witold Wojtkiewicz’s work Pentecost in Bielany near Kraków, which is normally held in a collection in the United States,
  • information boards with questions encouraging visitors to share their experiences of the exhibition.

Duration: 90 mins

Maximum group size: 30

Price: PLN 190 + admission ticket for each participant

The MNK Main Building is the largest of the exhibition buildings of the National Museum in Kraków. This structure, with its impressive modernist architecture, forms part of the unique urban layout of Aleja Trzech Wieszczów – the prestigious promenade of interwar Kraków. The building houses permanent exhibitions across three floors: the Gallery of Artistic Crafts, the 20th and 21st Century Gallery of Polish Art, and the Gallery of European Art, as well as temporary exhibitions (including the forthcoming exhibition ‘Gothic in the Carpathians’).

  • how the mountains influenced the art created in their shadow hundreds of years ago, and what constituted the artistic cohesion of the Carpathian region in the Middle Ages
  • what constituted the broader cultural context of the works of art on display: the role of pilgrimages, the veneration of relics, rivalry between ruling dynasties, the wanderings of artists…
  • what were the main themes and subjects of medieval art, and how were Gothic paintings and sculptures created
  • a diverse range of works: from panel paintings and altarpieces, through epitaphs, wooden and stone sculptures, to candlesticks, a tabernacle and a baptismal font
  • the extraordinary symbolism hidden in medieval works of art, the wondrous legends from the lives of the saints, and the sweeping mountain landscape in one of the paintings
  • a whole new perspective on places you may recognise from trips to Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Romania or other countries in the Carpathian region
  • Medieval artefacts from as many as nine countries across the Carpathian Basin, brought together in one place for the first time
  • artefacts never before exhibited or rarely accessible to the public (such as works by Paweł of Levoča, one of the leading Gothic sculptors in Central Europe, or by Veit Stoss the Younger)

Duration: 60 mins

Maximum group size: 20

Price: 170 PLN + admission ticket for each participant

The Gothic-Renaissance palace of Bishop MNK Ciołek, secretary to King Alexander Jagiellon, was built in the early 16th century. Over the following centuries, it served various purposes, eventually becoming a branch of the National Museum in Kraków. Not everyone knows that the building, situated on the route of the former Royal Route, conceals magnificent treasures: galleries of ancient and Orthodox art are on display here. The intimate atmosphere of the historic interiors, the splendour of the gilding and the colourfulness of the exhibited works invite you to let your thoughts wander back to bygone eras.

  • what techniques, themes and characteristics are typical of medieval, Renaissance and Baroque art,
  • you will explore the secrets of the complex symbolism of Gothic sculpture and painting,
  • you will learn the difference between a cabinet altar and a modern altar, what hierarchical and convergent perspective are, and what distinguishes different types of portraits.
  • the legendary and apocryphal lives of the saints, brimming with fantastical events, as depicted in medieval paintings,
  • a unique liturgical prop: a life-size Palm Sunday donkey on wheels,
  • the vivid colours and beauty of the gilding on these historic works, which have remained unchanged by the passage of time, even after several hundred years.
  • the most famous sculpture of the Polish Middle Ages – the Madonna of Krużlowa,
  • the dynamic stone relief The Agony in the Garden by Veit Stoss, which once stood in the now-defunct cemetery next to St Mary’s Church,
  • the sombre Hall of Death, dedicated to Baroque funeral customs.

Duration: 60 mins

Maximum group size: 20

Price: PLN 170 + admission ticket for each participant

The Gothic-Renaissance palace of Bishop MNK Ciołek, secretary to King Alexander Jagiellon, was built in the early 16th century. Over the following centuries, it served various purposes, eventually becoming a branch of the National Museum in Kraków. Not everyone knows that the building, situated on the route of the former Royal Route, conceals magnificent treasures: galleries of ancient and Orthodox art are on display here. The intimate atmosphere of the historic interiors, the splendour of the gilding and the colourfulness of the exhibited works invite you to let your thoughts wander back to bygone eras.

  • what an icon is and how it is created step by step, as well as what constitutes an iconostasis, one of the most important elements of Orthodox church décor,
  • what the main iconographic types found on icons are and what characterises them – including the Hodigitria and Eleusa Mother of God, the Mandylion, and Christ in Glory,
  • you will learn more about the symbolism of icons, but you will also discover the significance of other important elements of Orthodox church furnishings – such as the pall, the tomb and the altar.
  • differences in the depiction of well-known biblical scenes and figures in Eastern and Western Christian art,
  • the unexpected appearance of King John III Sobieski and his wife Marysieńka in one of the icons,
  • narrative depictions of the Last Judgement, rich in extraordinary detail.
  • a remarkable collection of Orthodox church paintings from the south-eastern reaches of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth,
  • one of the most valuable icons in our collection, depicting the Holy Trinity of the Old and New Testaments, which has been given an unusual five-petalled shape.

Duration: 60 mins

Maximum group size: 30

Price: PLN 170 + admission ticket for each participant

The atmospheric house at 26 Krupnicza Street, where MNK Mehoffer once lived with his family, now houses a biographical museum dedicated to his work. Within these interiors, which still bear the mark of their former occupants, a collection of artworks, archival materials and memorabilia relating to one of the most famous artists of the Young Poland movement has been assembled. At the rear of the building, hidden from view from the street, lies a secluded garden once laid out by the artist himself, where you can relax after your visit.

  • What was the history of the house known to its residents as the ‘Palace under the Pine Cones’?
  • Who was the artist’s favourite model – perhaps you might try to count the number of works in which she features?
  • What were MNK Mehoffer’s greatest artistic successes and failures, the traces of which extend far beyond Kraków?
  • the diversity of the artist’s works: from stained-glass designs and portraits to bookplates and publication covers,
  • artistic and historical traces of key figures from Kraków’s Young Poland period, including Stanisław MNK Wyspiański and Feliks ‘Mangghi’ Jasieński,
  • the MNK Mehoffer family’s collection of Japanese prints.
  • sketches for The Strange Garden – one of Józef MNK Mehoffer’s most famous paintings,
  • the interiors of the MNK Mehoffer House, furnished in keeping with the original décor – offering an intimate journey into the past,
  • a Pegasus to be found on every floor.

Duration: 60 mins

Maximum group size: 25

Price: 170 PLN + admission ticket for each participant

The National Museum in Kraków houses the largest and most valuable collection of works by MNK Wyspiański – nearly 200 of them can be admired in the former Granary building, which now houses a biographical museum dedicated to the artist. A visit to the MNK Wyspiański Museum is an opportunity to listen to a story echoing within Kraków’s ancient walls: a tale of extraordinary diligence and passion, boundless imagination, and respect for the past in the pursuit of a better future.

  • Did the artist say more often, ‘Oh, I love Kraków’, or rather, ‘It’s a shame about the people of Kraków’,
  • how MNK Wyspiański saw the Planty Park, Wawel, the Vistula and the interior of the Franciscan Church,
  • what connects a certain balustrade with chestnut flowers and leaves, a lamp shaped like a snowflake and Apollo – the sun god.
  • the diversity and scope of the works created by MNK Wyspiański: from designs for monumental stained-glass windows, through portraits of his loved ones and landscapes, to furniture crafted according to his own designs and book covers,
  • the scale of some of the works: from small sketches to designs several metres in size,
  • MNK Wyspiański in many roles at once: playwright, director and set designer of his own plays, author of rhapsodies and poems, painter, furniture designer, teacher, as well as father and husband.
  • a close-up look at the designs for MNK Wyspiański’s most magnificent stained-glass windows,
  • the artist’s personal library – take a peek at what MNK Wyspiański read and which authors he admired, as well as which books he, as he himself put it, ‘made use of’,
  • portraits of those whom MNK Wyspiański deemed worthy of being portrayed.

Duration: 60 mins.

Maximum group size: 30

Price: PLN 170 + admission ticket for each participant

MNK Matejko – the most outstanding representative of Polish historical painting – spent almost his entire life in a townhouse in the heart of Kraków. After his death, the first biographical museum in Poland was established there. The exhibition features numerous paintings, sketches, drawings, personal mementos of the artist and his family, as well as the painter’s extensive collection of props. The museum’s interiors retain the atmosphere of 150 years ago, and the furnishings in some rooms date back to the time when the MNK Matejko family used them.

  • what daily life was like for the MNK Matejko family,
  • how Jan MNK Matejko shaped the historical awareness and patriotism of his contemporaries and subsequent generations of Poles,
  • in which areas the painter was involved in the social life of Kraków and what other fields of art, apart from oil painting, he was involved in,
  • what the artist’s studio was like.
  • authentic painting accessories that have survived to this day, including palettes bearing traces of paint applied by MNK Matejko himself,
  • replicas of the royal regalia of King Casimir the Great and the actual crown of Sigismund the Old,
  • Wernyhora’s hurdy-gurdy, the scythe-like weapons of the scythemen from the Battle of Racławice, and other items from the painter’s extensive collection of props.
  • authentic interiors – a living room and a bedroom – dating back to the time of MNK Matejko, and the artist’s original studio, complete with its furnishings,
  • the artist’s prop room – a diverse and vast array of items with which the artist dressed or furnished his male and female models – the people who posed for him as historical figures.

Duration: 60 mins

Maximum group size: 30

Price: PLN 170 + admission ticket for each participant

The neoclassical MNK Czapski Palace houses the largest and most important collection of Polish numismatic items, the core of which consists of the collection of Emeryk Hutten-Czapski, an outstanding collector and numismatist. The beautiful interiors have retained some of the display cases and the original layout of certain rooms from over 120 years ago. At the rear of the building is a secluded garden with a lapidarium, where you can relax after your visit.

  • what were the key moments in the history of money and what drove its evolution,
  • what money was made of and how it was produced, how it was secured, and how it was counterfeited,
  • what donatives were and what Neapolitan sums were, where the name ‘grosz’ comes from, and why ‘a good joke is worth a penny’.
  • the diversity of motifs on coins: from extinct plants and fantastical animals, through gods and rulers, to designs whose meanings remain a mystery to this day,
  • the talent of medallists and designers, thanks to which many numismatic items are true works of art (including banknotes and securities designed by MNK Mehoffer and Zofia Stryjeńska),
  • the mammoth bones stored in the branch, no less impressive than those found beneath Wawel Cathedral.
  • one of the most expensive coins in the world – Sigismund III Vasa’s 100-ducat crown coin – within easy reach,
  • several historically significant unique specimens – the only surviving examples of ancient coins, such as Władysław Łokietek’s florin and Bolesław Chrobry’s ‘Gnezdun civitas’ denarius.

Duration: 60 mins

Maximum group size: 25

Price: PLN 170 + admission ticket for each participant

Dedicated to the eminent Polish painter, writer and intellectual, the Pavilion is one of the newest branches of the National Museum in Kraków. The white, geometrically shaped building is situated a short distance from the MNK Czapski Palace, where the numismatic collection of the artist’s grandfather, Emeryk Hutten-Czapski, is on display. The most important part of the Pavilion is the permanent exhibition detailing the life and work of Józef Czapski, which was created using archival materials bequeathed to the National Museum in Kraków by the artist himself. 

  • you will discover the life story of Józef Czapski, a man often referred to as a ‘witness to history’, a story rich in dramatic yet significant events,
  • you will examine the course of Czapski’s artistic career as a painter and what was important to him in his art, and you will learn more about the artistic group known as the Paris Committee,
  • you will learn more about Czapski’s literary works – essays, diaries and memoirs.
  • a harmonious blend of a modern multimedia exhibition and authentic artefacts – the artist’s personal effects, diaries and paintings,
  • the chance to climb onto the roof of the Pavilion and view the surrounding area – the neighbouring townhouses and their gardens – from a new perspective.
  • a 1:1 scale reconstruction of the painter’s small room from the Literary Institute’s house in Maison-Laffitte, where he lived for over 40 years – complete with original furniture, fittings, and even the doors and windows;
  • a quiet and intimate reading room with a small library of books related to the artist.

Duration: 60 mins

Maximum group size: 30

Price: 170 PLN + admission ticket for each participant

The atmospheric interiors of the Zakopane-style villa “Atma” house Poland’s only museum dedicated to Karol Szymanowski, one of the country’s most outstanding composers. It was here that Szymanowski spent five years of his life, living and creating. Today, you can soak up the atmosphere of the interwar period here, admiring the composer’s collected memorabilia or attending intimate concerts. After your tour, it’s worth relaxing in the garden surrounding the villa.

  • you will learn about Karol Szymanowski’s life and discover why he settled in Zakopane;
  • you will learn about the history of ‘Atma’ and what it was like during the composer’s lifetime;
  • how inspiration from highlander folklore influenced Szymanowski’s work;
  • who the composer socialised with in Zakopane and what traces of these friendships can be found in ‘Atma’
  • the changes that certain familiar objects have undergone over the years;
  • the size of the rooms described by Szymanowski as a ‘modest highlander’s cottage’;
  • the complexity of the composer’s creative process, as illustrated by the ballet Harnasie.
  • a reconstruction of Karol Szymanowski’s study – allowing visitors to experience the atmosphere in which the composer worked;
  • three portraits of Karol Szymanowski by Witkacy – unique works created whilst the composer was living at ‘Atma’;
  • a picturesque veranda with an extraordinary view of the garden – a place that will make ‘Atma’ enchant you just as it did Szymanowski.

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