10 of the Best Art Galleries to See in Europe

Experience the still and lonely landscape paintings of Caspar David Friedrich in Berlin's Alte Nationalgalerie. Working around the same time as JMW Turner, Friedrich was the foremost of Germany's romantic landscape painters and left a body of work that has an almost unique power to move people to this day.

Once you've taken in the poignancy of such extraordinary works as Monk by the Sea and Abbey in the Oakwood, it's time to set off by bike through the landscape that inspired Friedrich, past scattered lakes and through peaceful wetlands and emerald forests towards the German north coast and then on to Copenhagen on our Berlin to Copenhagen Bike Tour.

See the Alte Nationalgalerie on our Berlin to Copenhagen Bike Tour

Before setting off on our Champagne - Paris to Epernay Boat & E-Bike Tour through the delightful French countryside, pay a visit to what is perhaps the world's greatest collection of paintings at the Louvre. You'll see the works of Johannes Vermeer, Eugine Delacroix and of course, the world-famous brushstrokes of Leonardo Da Vinci.

A perfectionist and innovator, Da Vinci drew on all his knowledge of anatomy to create what is widely regarded as the world's greatest painting. Glazes applied over years create the 'sfumato' effect (softened outlines and transitions between colours) on her face.

See the Louvre on our Champagne - Paris to Epernay Boat & Bike Tour

Salvador Dalí said that "There is only one difference between a madman and me. The madman thinks he is sane. I know I am mad." You can decide for yourself whether you agree that Dalí was unhinged or, much more likely, inspired, at the Dali Theatre and Museum in Figueres on our Catalan Coast & Villages Bike Tour.

The museum holds the largest collection of works by Dalí in a single location. You'll need to take a small detour from the main route to get to Figueres, and, after your healthy dose of surrealism, you'll continue on through a truly diverse region of Spain past sandy beaches, craggy coasts, green mountains and sheltered forests.

See the Dalí Theatre and Museum on our Catalan Coast & Villages Bike Tour

As well as painting the classic scenes of windmills and dykes, the Dutch masters often turned their gaze (and glaze) to the sea, where the masts of ships and high waves took the place of forests and hills. Experience the wonderful landscape and marine painting of the Netherlands in Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum.

And of course, take a look at Rembrandt's thick impasto brushmarks which he used to create some of the most intimate and alive portraits ever painted. Our Amsterdam Bike Tour From One Hotel makes it easy for you to pay multiple visits to the Rijksmuseum in between your hours in the saddle, an ideal situation for the keen art enthusiast.

See the Accademia Gallery on our Amsterdam Bike Tour From One Hotel, Amsterdam to Bruges Bike Tour, Amsterdam to Brussels Bike Tour and Green Heart of Holland Bike Tour

The Accademia Gallery in Florence not only sits in one of the most beautiful cities in the world but also boasts some breathtaking artwork, the most famous of which is Michelangelo's Statue of David. It took the artist three years to create and was the first colossal marble statue to be made in the early modern period after classical antiquity.

If you're a fan of Michelangelo and would like to bookend your bike tour with his finest works, we recommend our Florence to Rome Bike Tour. Begin in Florence with the Statue of David and end your journey gazing up at the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome.

See this gallery on our Florence to Rome Bike Tour, Pisa to Florence Bike Tour and Venice to Florence Bike Tour

Lying right at the centre of Europe, the Kunsthistoriches Museum houses extraordinary works that have come from all over the continent. Enjoy the outstanding collection during a day out of the saddle in Vienna on our Danube Cycling Tours.

The museum notably contains more paintings by Pieter Breugel than anywhere else, including his most famous, The Tower of Babel. Breugel intended his painting to illustrate the hubris surrounding the tower's construction, and the arches of the tower are humorously depicted rising perpendicularly to the slanted ground.

See the Kunsthistorisches Museum on our Danube Bike Tours

So far we've been guiding you around Europe's great collections of traditional art, but the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao will put you firmly in the 20th and 21st centuries. Wander the rooms to find and contemplate the visionary works of Anselm Kiefer, Joseph Beuys and Mark Rothko.

You'll have to make your way to the Guggenheim in Bilbao at the beginning or the end of our La Rioja Descent Bike Tour, as it's a little out of the way of the route, but as most people fly into Bilbao for this tour, it should be fairly straightforward!

See the Guggenheim Museum on our La Rioja Descent Bike Tour

Painters down the centuries have been inspired to depict the spires and domes of Venice. You can probably think of a few. But the city that is a work of art in itself is also home to some splendid galleries - not least among them, the Doge's Palace. Here you can admire the lavishly ornate interiors of the former political home of the Venetian Republic, including beautiful gilded decorations and gigantic paintings.

The Doge's Palace along with the rest of Venice provide a stunning end to our Bolzano to Venice Bike Tour where you cycle through equally beautiful Italian countryside out of the Dolomites along riverside paths, picturesque tracks and quiet country roads.

Bolzano to Venice Bike Tour is just one of nine Italy Bike Tours where you can see Doge's Palace

As well as housing paintings by a wealth of international artists including Rembrandt, Rubens, Goya, Renoir, Degas and Gauguin, the Nationalmuseum in Stockholm houses some fantastic works by Swedish artists. Make sure you check them out on our Sweden Bike Tours, all three of which start and finish in Stockholm.

Explore the works of Carl Larsson, Ernst Josephson and CF Hill. Larsson in particular is fascinating. Part of the flourishing arts and crafts movement in Europe in the nineteenth century, he helped to reform design and decoration, taking influences from Medieval and Romantic styles.

See the Nationalmuseum Stockholm on our Sweden Bike Tours

The Museum De Reede was opened as recently as June 2017 and contains poignant works by three masters; Fransisco Goya, Félicien Rops and Edvard Munch. Peruse halls containing weird and wonderful sketches by these three critical observers of the time in which they lived.

You'll find this gallery in Antwerp on your route between two of Europe's most historically important and beautiful cities, Amsterdam and Brussels, as you cycle through picturesque countryside along flat cycle paths on our Amsterdam to Brussels Bike Tour.

See the Museum De Reede on our Amsterdam to Brussels Bike Tour

If you've found a bike tour that would go nicely with a gallery you like the look of, make sure you get in touch with our team. Either enquire online or call us on +44(0) 1273 224066.

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