Van Gogh Museum Tours and Tickets

Yes, you need tickets for the Van Gogh Museum, but you can’t buy tickets at the museum on the day—you need to reserve your timed entry ticket online in advance, even if you have a Museumkaart or similar museum pass. Entrance to temporary exhibitions is included with your booked ticket.

Plan to spend between 1.5–2.5 hours at the Van Gogh Museum. You can take in the permanent collection in just over an hour, but there are often temporary exhibitions to enjoy (which are included with your admission ticket), as well as a café, shop, and bookstore.

Entry to the Van Gogh Museum is by timed admission ticket only (which you can only book online), but you might still have to queue. Expect wait times of about 15 minutes with prebooked tickets, though this can go up to 30 minutes at busy times such as summer weekends.

No, there’s no specific dress code for the Van Gogh Museum, and face masks are no longer compulsory. However, as with most public buildings throughout Amsterdam, you won’t be allowed to enter shirtless or without footwear. You also won’t be able to bring rucksacks and other luggage into the museum.

On average, it takes 75 minutes to explore the permanent collection at the Van Gogh Museum, which is spread over two floors. You could easily take in the highlights in an hour, but it’s best to allow two hours to cover the temporary exhibitions, gift shop, and café.

At the Van Gogh Museum, you shouldn’t miss iconic paintings such as Sunflowers, The Potato Eaters, Bedroom in Arles, Wheatfield with Crows, and The Yellow House. Alongside these highlights, don’t miss the collection of 35 Van Gogh self-portraits and the series of letters Van Gogh wrote to his brother and friends.