Private Guided Tour of the Met for Groups of up to 8

This is a private tour of the Metropolitan Museum of Art: the guide works only with your party, up to 8 people per booking, for about 2.5 hours. Entrance fees are included, so nobody in your group has to deal with the ticket desk. The security check at the door is a different matter. It applies to every visitor, no ticket gets around it, and the wait depends on how busy the museum is that day. You meet in the Great Hall and head for the galleries most people come for. The route passes through medieval Europe to the Studiolo from the Ducal Palace, then into the arms and armor rooms, where pieces worn by Henry VIII are on display. In the American Wing you stand under the staircase salvaged from the Chicago Stock Exchange and in front of 'Washington Crossing the Delaware'. The European paintings bring Vermeer, Seurat, Picasso and Van Gogh, and the guide talks about their lives, which were rarely easy, as much as their canvases. One question runs through the whole visit: how did an American museum, started before the United States was even 100 years old, set out to hold its own against the older collections of Europe? Evening tours run on Fridays and Saturdays, when the museum stays open later and the galleries are calmer. A few practical points. Works on loan or under restoration drop out of the route, and the museum can close rooms without notice. Large bags and suitcases are not allowed past security; a handbag or a small, thin backpack is fine. Some rooms ask for near silence, and your guide will tell you before you walk in.