3‑Hour Itinerary for the Van Gogh Museum – Follow Vincent’s Life

You have about three hours and you want to leave the Van Gogh Museum feeling like you’ve travelled through a life, not just a gallery. Use this itinerary as a chronological spine.

Overview: the 3‑hour plan

Total time: ~180 minutes
Includes: short breaks, photo moments, and a quick shop stop.

1. Arrival & orientation – 10–15 min
2. Early Dutch years – 25–30 min
3. Paris transformation – 25–30 min
4. Arles & Sunflowers – 40–45 min
5. Saint‑Rémy & late works – 25–30 min
6. Letters, drawings & exit – 20–25 min

🗺️ Tip: Grab a paper map even if you use your phone. It’s easier to share and circle key rooms with a travel partner.

1. Arrival & orientation (10–15 min)

• Enter through the glass hall and take a moment to look up – architecture matters; it sets the tone.
• Check locker/toilet/coat basics now, not mid‑Sunflowers.
• Decide your non‑negotiables: maybe The Potato Eaters, Sunflowers, and one self‑portrait.

Small exercise:

• Each person in your group chooses one question they hope the visit answers (e.g. “Why did he paint so fast?” or “Was he really always sad?”).

2. Early Dutch years (25–30 min)

Here you'll find darker, earthy works and studies.

Focus pieces:

• The Potato Eaters
• Drawings of workers, weavers, and peasants

What to notice:

• Brown‑green palette, heavy shadows
• Interest in hands, faces, and work
• How much effort went into learning “classic” drawing

Ask: If the story ended here, what kind of painter would we think he was?

3. Paris transformation (25–30 min)

Move into the period when Vincent lived in Paris, meeting Impressionists and Japanese prints.

Checklist:

• Compare pre‑Paris vs Paris colours.
• Find at least two self‑portraits here and treat them as diary entries.
• Look at brush strokes: they become shorter, more varied, more experimental.

🎨 Mini challenge:
Pick one painting and identify three influences: another artist, Japan, photography, or prints.

4. Arles & Sunflowers (40–45 min)

This is the emotional and visual peak.

Works to linger on:

• Sunflowers
• Bedroom in Arles
• Works connected to The Yellow House and life with Gauguin

Slow looking exercise with Bedroom in Arles:

1. Look only at lines (ignore colours).
2. Then look only at colours (ignore objects).
3. Finally, look at it as a room you could enter – does it feel safe, tense, or both?

Spend a few extra minutes around any small canvases that don’t have crowds; they often reveal quiet sides of his work.

5. Saint‑Rémy & late works (25–30 min)

These rooms carry a different energy: structured chaos.

Key works:

• Wheatfield under Thunderclouds
• Late landscapes and tree studies
• Paintings made from inside or near the asylum

Try this:

• Stand far back and squint slightly – do shapes dissolve into bands of colour?
• Then step close and trace one single brushstroke from start to finish.

Think about timing: many of these works were created in the last two years of his life.

6. Letters, drawings & exit (20–25 min)

Before you head to the shop, spend time with the letters and drawings.

• Look for paired displays where a letter describes a future painting.
• Notice how often Vincent talks about work, money, and doubt, not just inspiration.

💌 Reflection prompt:
If you could answer one of his letters, what would you say? Write a two‑sentence “reply” in your notes app.

Finish with a slow walk through the shop, treating items as reminders of specific works (not generic souvenirs).

Exit ritual

Outside on Museumplein, take two minutes to:

• Share your top three works.
• Answer the question you brought in at the start.
• Decide which painting you'd like to revisit in a book or online when you get home.

That simple closing ritual turns a museum visit into a memory you'll actually carry.