Know Before You Go

Thank you for your interest in bringing your group to the Harvard Art Museums. The following guidelines were designed to provide a pleasant experience for all and to ensure safety and security of museum visitors and collections . We look forward to welcoming you soon.

Group visits of eight or more people must register at least three weeks in advance by emailing am_groupvisits@harvard.edu. Please note that we have limited availability for group visits on weekends.

While we will do our best to accommodate your request, arrangements are not guaranteed until you have received confirmation from a museum representative. Unregistered groups may be asked to return at a later time.

For the safety of our collections, the largest group size that the museums can accommodate is 45 people. All groups must be divided into smaller groups of 18 or fewer while visiting the galleries.

If you plan to combine your gallery visit with a trip to the Art Study Center, this must be arranged separately. We recommend scheduling your Art Study Center visit first, due to the space’s limited availability. An appointment request can be made online through the Art Study Center page.

Planning your Visit

Resources
Digital tools are available on our website and provide guided opportunities for deeper investigations of selected works. Further information about our collections is available through our Browse Our Collections page, and special exhibitions are detailed on our Exhibitions page. For a layout of the museums, you can refer to the Floor Plan. Please note that we cannot guarantee that any specific object will be on view.

Group fees/Payment
The museums are free to all visitors.

Cancellations
Cancellations or changes to the group number can be made up to one week prior to the group’s arrival.

Getting here
The Harvard Art Museums are located at 32 Quincy Street, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Please visit our Plan Your Visit page for directions and for details on arriving by car, subway, or walking.

Arrival by bus
Please note that the Harvard Art Museums do not have parking. Groups arriving by bus should be dropped off on Prescott Street near the corner of Broadway. There is limited space for school buses to park at the Harvard Stadium. To inquire about parking, please reach out to the Harvard Transportation and Parking Office in advance of your visit at parking@harvard.edu. Please include the date and time of the parking needed, the number of buses, and a note that the group will be visiting the Harvard Art Museums. Parking fees may apply.

Accessibility
The Harvard Art Museums are accessible for visitors using wheelchairs and other mobility devices. However, Adolphus Busch Hall has limited accessibility. A limited number of wheelchairs are available in the lobby free of charge. Wheelchair seating and assistive-listening devices are available in our lecture halls. For further assistance, including sign language interpretation, please contact Visitor Services at least two weeks prior to the specific program at 617-495-9400. Harvard University’s Disability Services and Parking Services jointly manage all parking policy and parking requests based on disability; to secure a parking spot, please visit their website for more information and email disabilityservices@harvard.edu with the date and location of your visit. See the Accessibility section in the Plan Your Visit page for more details. The Harvard Art Museums do not discriminate on the basis of disability with regard to admission, access, or employment.

Check in
There are wheelchair-accessible ramps at Quincy Street, Prescott Street, and Broadway entrances; however, we recommend that groups with mobility concerns enter through the Broadway entrance. Groups of 22 people or fewer should convene in the Calderwood Courtyard on Level 1. Groups of 23 people or more should proceed one level down to the Lower Level lobby. One person from your group should check in at the admissions desk on Level 1 when you arrive, and a member of the museum staff will provide a short orientation to the museums for your group.

Cafe
Jenny’s Cafe has very limited capacity and cannot serve groups. The museums can neither accommodate brought-in meals nor provide meals on site, so please plan accordingly. As an alternative, we recommend splitting into groups of 15 or fewer to eat lunch in the Harvard Square area. The nearby Science Center Plaza can also accommodate groups outdoors, weather permitting.

Gallery Guidelines

The following rules for group visits are an extension of our General Policies, and they are in place to ensure the safety of the art and public. For general guidelines, including COVID-19 protocols, please visit the General Policies page.

Please note that classes may be held in the galleries during your visit. In these cases, certain areas may be temporarily inaccessible.

• Large items including umbrellas, briefcases, and backpacks are not permitted in the galleries. Please check these items in our coatrooms (located on the Lower Level and Level 1), or only bring a small bag for essentials. Note that luggage is not permitted in the galleries and cannot be stored in our lockers. All bags are subject to inspection. For school groups, a bin for belongings will be provided.
• Pencils are the only writing tools permitted in the galleries and are available at the admissions desk should you need them. If members of your group will be completing worksheets or assignments in the galleries, it is required that they use a clipboard or book to write on. Please note that the museums do not have clipboards to lend to visitors.
• Cell phone use in the galleries is acceptable when accessing digital tours and digital records of objects on view. Please refrain from having phone conversations in the galleries, and ensure your phone is on silent before entering.
• Noncommercial photography without flash or tripod is permitted, except for works of art accompanied by a “no photo” icon. Photographs must be taken at least three feet from any object. Filming is not permitted.
• Please do not block corridors, gallery entrances, or doorways.
• Please be aware of how close you are standing to objects on display. It is surprisingly easy to brush against or bump into a painting or sculpture accidentally. Museum security may ask you to step away from a work of art. Please understand that it is their job to protect the art.
• Please do not touch anything in the galleries. Our hands carry oils, which over time can damage the surfaces of objects. (For a visual demonstration of this, teachers can ask students to touch the surface of a mirror and note the marks left by their fingers.)
• Gum, food, and beverages are not permitted in the galleries.

The Harvard Art Museums reserve the right to dismiss a group due to misconduct.