For music lovers traveling to Europe, Artisans of Leisure can incorporate a wide range of unforgettable experiences into any private tour. Some of our favorite music experiences in Europe include:

1. Attending major annual music and opera festivals

Some of the most renowned annual music festivals we incorporate into our private tours include the Salzburg Festival in Austria, the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, the Caracalla Summer Festival in Italy, the Lucerne Festival in Switzerland, the Bayreuth Festival in Germany, the Ravello Festival in Italy, the Granada International Music and Dance Festival in Spain, Glyndebourne in England, the Arena di Verona Opera Festival in Italy, the Taormina Opera Festival in Sicily and the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

2. Attending performances in legendary opera houses

Artisans of Leisure arranges tickets to opera performances in beautiful European opera houses, such as Palais Garnier in Paris, the Hungarian State Opera House in Budapest, Teatro La Fenice in Venice, Teatro alla Scala in Milan, the Vienna State Opera in Vienna and the Berlin State Opera in Berlin.

3. Experiencing Christmas carol services and holiday concerts

Attending Christmas carol services and special holiday concerts—such as Christmas Eve at the Silent Night Chapel near Salzburg, Handel’s Messiah at the Royal Albert Hall, carols at Westminster Abbey in London or the Vienna Philharmonic’s New Year’s Concert at the Musikverein in Vienna—are wonderful ways to celebrate the winter festive season in Europe in addition to other favorite winter holiday travel experiences.

4. Touring the homes of famous composers

Visiting the former homes of composers offers a unique glimpse into their personal lives and creative environments. Some of our favorites include Mozart’s Birthplace in Salzburg, the Beethoven Museum and the Johann Strauss Apartment in Vienna, the Richard Wagner Museum in Bayreuth, Villa Verdi outside Parma, the Fryderyk Chopin Museum in Warsaw, Troldhaugen (the home of Edvard Grieg) in Bergen and the Franz Liszt Memorial Museum in Budapest.

5. Attending concerts in churches, celebrated concert halls and other iconic sites

Favorite experiences include classical music performances at the Palace of Versailles in the summer, seeing the Vienna Boys Choir perform, attending annual season premieres at Teatro alla Scala in Milan and performances at the Palais Garnier in Paris and the Palau de la Musica Catalana in Barcelona. For a special, VIP experience, Artisans of Leisure can arrange private concerts in the homes of musicians, palaces and other special venues.

6. Visiting historic collections of instruments, specialty shops and museums dedicated to music

Consider having us arrange a tour of the Museo del Violino in Cremona, Italy; the Cite de la Musique in Paris; or the Collection of Historic Musical Instruments at the Kunsthistorisches Museum and the Haus der Musik in Vienna.

7. Touring renowned opera houses and concert halls

Touring some of the most celebrated opera houses in Europe offers travelers a behind-the-scenes look at the beautiful architecture and the intricate infrastructure used to stage performances. Upon request, we can often arrange exclusive after-hours and backstage tours.

Consider having us arrange a private tour of the Royal Opera House in London, Teatro La Fenice in Venice, the Palais Garnier in Paris, the Royal Danish Opera in Copenhagen, Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, the Vienna State Opera in Vienna, Musikverein in Vienna, Teatro Massimo in Palermo, the Estates Theater in Prague or the Harpa concert hall in Reykjavík. 

8. Enjoying a musical in London’s West End

For travelers on our private London tours, we arrange tickets to musicals and other performances in the West End, a vibrant theater district known for hosting some of the world’s leading plays and musicals at iconic venues.

9. Meeting with master craftsmen who make traditional instruments

Favorite experiences we can arrange for music enthusiasts include meeting with bagpipe makers in Scotland and Malta, an Irish harp maker in Ireland, luthiers in Spain, and violin makers in Italy, France and the Czech Republic. We can also arrange a tour of the Selmer factory outside Paris, which produces clarinets, saxophones and other instruments.

10. Participating in local music traditions

We can arrange experiences that immerse our travelers in local culture, such as listening to Gregorian chanting in a medieval church in France or Italy, taking a flamenco guitar lesson in Spain, enjoying live traditional (trad) music at a pub in Ireland, and spending an evening at a jazz club in Copenhagen, Oslo or Stockholm.

Contact Artisans of Leisure to begin planning a private tour that incorporates the best classical music, opera and jazz experiences in Europe. We also regularly incorporate other notable cultural performances such as the Edinburgh International Festival and Fringe and the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo in Scotland, ballet performances by some of the most prestigious companies in Europe, flamenco performances in Spain, fado in Portugal and private Sound of Music tours around Salzburg.