Rick Steves Recommends This Elegant, Tucked-Away London Museum For Art Lovers

The world's most well-known museums are held in high regard for a reason. The institutions curate and protect treasured art and artifacts that may otherwise be lost to time. We're talking about famous works of art like Leonardo DaVinci's "Mona Lisa," Sandro Botticelli's "The Birth of Venus," and Michelangelo's "The Creation of David." Treasures we learned about in grade school prompted some of us to pledge that one day we'd see the masterpieces in person. That's the thing about art museums. They make even the rarest and most valuable works of art accessible to the masses. And therein lies the rub. The world's most well-known museums are often the most crowded.

Consider the Louvre. The sprawling Paris landmark houses a collection of approximately 35,000 objects, including works of art and artifacts dating back millennia. The most famous piece, though, may well be DaVinci's "Mona Lisa." Ardent fans will wait in line for hours to catch a glimpse of the portrait. Is it worth it? That's a matter of opinion. Rick Steves, for one, would rather explore a lesser known museum than navigate hordes of visitors jockeying for position to view a famous piece of art.

In Paris, that may be the Musée d'Orsay, a treasure trove of works by Impressionist and post-Impressionists artists. In London — one of the best European cities for kids — you're more likely to catch the longtime travel guru, guidebook author, and television host wandering through The Wallace Collection, an eclectic library of fine and decorative arts including works by Titian, Velázquez, Rubens, and Van Dyck, than waiting to enter The British Museum or the National Gallery. The collection on display at Hertford House, the 19th-century home of Sir Richard and Lady Wallace, comprises pieces collected over generations by the Marquesses of Hertford.

Sir Richard Wallace, who inherited the collection from the Fourth Marquess of Hertford in 1870, died in 1890. Upon the Marquess' death in 1897, Sir Wallace's widow, Lady Wallace, bequeathed the entire collection to the British Nation. Today, The Wallace Collection ranks among Britain's most significant assemblages of historic art and artifacts. In addition to Titian's 16th-century masterpiece "Perseus and Andromeda" and Van Dyck's 17th-century portrait "Marie de Raet," exhibits showcase items from the Medieval and Renaissance eras. While the collection is stunning, one of the most interesting aspects of The Wallace Collection may well be its ambiance. In a departure from more staid museums, The Wallace Collection maintains the charm of a private home. 

"Luckily, not all art masterpieces are kept in the powerhouse museums. Europe is filled with many fine little museums that amply reward those who venture beyond the monumental sights." Rick Steves says. "London's Wallace Collection features fine 17th-century Dutch Masters and 18th-century French Rococo pieces inside a sumptuously furnished townhouse ... a wander through this little-visited mansion makes you nostalgic for the days of the empire." 

Tucked in London's Marylebone neighborhood, a quietly sophisticated residential area in the city's Westminster district — Westminster is also home to Trafalgar Square, the most filmed location in Europe, The Wallace Collection is a stone's throw from the shopping pandemonium of Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, but also equidistant from Marylebone High Street, an upscale boutique shopping area. Make a day of it. Allot a couple of hours to The Wallace Collection. Arrive mid- to late-morning then stroll a few blocks to have lunch at a café on Marylebone High Street. Orrery, a French restaurant about four blocks from The Wallace Collection, has a seasonal roof terrace. Its sister restaurant, Orrery Epicurie, offers casual dining with sidewalk seating.