Kirker Holidays Unveils Exhibition-Focused Breaks for 2025–26

Cultural travel is on the rise, with more travellers seeking meaningful holidays built around art, music, and history. Over the past year, specialist tour operator Kirker Holidays has reported a marked increase in enquiries for holidays centred on major exhibitions across Europe – and this autumn unveils its latest collection of exhibition-focused breaks.

For nearly 40 years, Kirker has been creating meticulously designed itineraries for curious discerning travellers, combining expert knowledge, exceptional service, and privileged access to the world’s greatest exhibitions, concerts, and cultural events.

Kirker’s latest trips showcase two of Europe’s most anticipated art events: Fra Angelico at Florence’s Palazzo Strozzi and Sargent. The Paris Years at the Musée d’Orsay, alongside upcoming exhibitions in the cities of Antwerp and Padua. Take advantage of the quieter shoulder season and the chance to experience these limited exhibitions, with the specialist insight that only Kirker can provide.

FLORENCE

Fra Angelico at the Palazzo Strozzi (26 September 2025 to 25 January 2026)

Opening on 26 September 2025, Fra Angelico is being hailed as one of the most significant Italian art events in years. Dedicated to Fra Angelico (c.1395–1455), a key figure of the early Renaissance, the show will reunite masterpieces from international collections for the first time in more than 200 years – with loans from the world’s most important institutions, including the Louvre in Paris, the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin, the Met in New York, the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Kirker offers three nights at the five-star Helvetia & Bristol from £1,098 pp*, including entrance tickets to Palazzo Strozzi and the Uffizi Gallery.

PARIS

Sargent. The Paris Years (1874-1884) at Musée d’Orsay (23 September 2025 to 11 January 2026)

Meanwhile, in Paris, the Musée d’Orsay will open Sargent. The Paris Years (1874–1884) on 23 September 2025. Designed with the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the exhibition will be the first monographic presentation of John Singer Sargent’s work in France, bringing together more than 90 paintings and drawings from his formative decade in the city.

Kirker offers three nights at Le Senat from £998 pp*, including a two-day museum pass.

ANTWERP

Magritte. La Ligne de Vie. At the KMSKA (15 November 2025 to 22 February 2026)

In 1938, René Magritte gave a landmark lecture at the KMSKA (Royal Museum of Fine Arts) titled La ligne de vie (The Life Line), offering rare insight into his vision, artistic development, and the rise of Surrealism in Belgium. This exhibition revisits that pivotal moment, featuring key works discussed in the lecture and delving deeper into Magritte as a connecting figure between surrealism in Antwerp and Brussels. It also includes works by contemporaries such as Marcel Mariën and Léo Dohmen.

Kirker offers three nights at the T-Sandt from £698 pp*, including entrance to the Museum of Fine Arts.

PADUA

Modiglani, Picasso & the Voices of Modernity at Palazzo Zabarella (16 October 2025 to 25 January 2026)

This autumn, Palazzo Zabarella in Padua – just 40 minutes from Venice – hosts a major exhibition featuring 65 works by 30 avant-garde artists, including Picasso, Braque, Miró, and Calder. At the heart of the show is Amedeo Modigliani, represented by a remarkable group of paintings that showcase the emotional depth and range of his brief, yet powerful, career.

Kirker offers three nights at the Majestic Toscanelli from £698 pp*, including guaranteed entrance to the Scrovegni Chapel.

*Prices are based on two people sharing and include return flights or Eurostar (for Paris), private transfers, accommodation with breakfast, Kirker Guide Notes where appropriate and the services of the Kirker Concierge to assist with private excursions and restaurant reservations.

For more information, or to book one of Kirker’s small group tours, tailor-made short breaks or holidays to Europe and beyond, please call 020 7593 2284 or visit www.kirkerholidays.com.

Press: Please contact Gemma Minto or Julia Farish at Travel PR on 020 8891 4440 or email g.minto@travelpr.co.uk / j.farish@travelpr.co.uk. At Kirker, contact Patrick Millar on 020 7593 2281 or email patrick.millar@kirkerholidays.com.