St. Louis Art Museum

If there is one city in the Midwest that has lots to offer to any group looking for a great student travel deal, St. Louis is it.  The sheer volume of what this historically famous city has to offer to any travel group is simply overwhelming.  It is incredibly difficult to choose amongst the numerous destinations; however, one of the best ones, in my opinion, is the St. Louis Art Museum (commonly called the SLAM by native St. Louisans), which houses high-profile exhibits and is perfect for St. Louis educational tours.   

The St. Louis Art Museum, located conveniently next to the St. Louis Zoo as well as the infamous Jewel Box arboretum in Forest Park, is easy to get to and has a beautiful view of the downtown St. Louis area.  This Museum offers many various educational tours which are both guided and self-guided.  The guided tours, which the museum suggests you reserve in advance, are led by a highly-trained museum docent, happy to answer any questions your group may have on an exhibit. This is certainly a great value, as these tours are free to the general public; however, they do charge a dollar for featured exhibits, which are, though, well-worth the cost. 

Perfect for group travel, the St. Louis Art Museum’s collections include art from Oceania, pre-Columbian times, ancient China, and European and American art from the 19th and 20th centuries. The museum boasts, in particular, its ancient Germanic art collection. The museum has many special exhibitions and they are always changing, updating, and being added too. One exhibit in particular takes a look into contemporary art.   

After the museum’s guided tours are completed, food is just around the corner. The museum has a café, which serves cafeteria self-serve style American food. For more upscale dining, the museum also houses Pucks Restaurant, which features high society cuisine while overlooking the sculpture terrace in the museum. This is a great venue to rest and relax while still being able to enjoy the museum’s art collection from an overlook.   

By Christopher Graham