Immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante with Kids

**We were lucky to be kindly gifted free entry for our family to the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante, in return for promotion via this website and our social media channels. All opinions expressed below remain our own.

Introduction

As one of the most celebrated artists of the 20th century, Vincent Van Gogh has an enduring global appeal. Born in Holland, he went on to paint over 2,000 works of art in a short career spanning just over 10 years, including creating some of his best known pieces while living in France. He died at the young age of just 37.

Despite his artworks now selling for tens of millions of dollars when they come up for sale, amazingly Van Gogh only ever sold one painting during his short lifetime. Now though, his legacy will live on forever.

The latest concept for presenting the art of Van Gogh to a new audience is via an immersive exhibition. This touring exhibition aims to re-define the idea of an art gallery. Rather than simply offering a chance to look at paintings hanging on the wall, through the use of multimedia presentations visitors are instead transported to feeling like they could be almost inside the artworks themselves.

We are always on the lookout for new and interesting things to do with our 4 children in Costa Blanca. A visit to this immersive Van Gogh Exhibition presented a great opportunity for an activity that promised to be both fun and, at the same time, cultural and educational.

If you are keen to try your hand at art yourself, check out these art and pottery sessions for kids in Costa Blanca.

Here though, is a review of our experiences of visiting the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante with kids.

Where is the Immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante Located?

The immersive Van Gogh Exhibition is a touring exhibition that has travelled to many cities all over the world. Currently it is possible to visit the exhibition in the city of Alicante, in the Costa Blanca region of Spain.

The immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante is actually located outside of the city to the south, at the Institución Ferial Alicantina (IFA) exhibition centre, which is directly next door to the Alicante-Elche international airport. The exhibition is held indoors in an air-conditioned space, making it a great option if looking for an indoor activity.

There is plenty of car parking at the venue. Being close to the airport means that it is also possible to arrive by bus from many surrounding locations in the area.

What are the opening times for the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante?

The immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante runs from June 6th to September 15th 2024.

The exhibition is open every day Monday – Sunday, from 10:00am – 22:00pm. Last entry is at 21:00.

How much does entry cost to the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante?

General admission to the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante costs €15 on weekends and €13 on working days. Reduced admission is €12/€11. Families with children can enter for €11/€10 per person.

Children under 4 are free.

How long does a visit to the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante last?

Typically, a visit to the immersive Van Gogh exhibition lasts around 1-1½ hours. This gives enough time to tour the various rooms and watch the entire presentation of video projections in the main room.

There is no restriction on time though, so if you want to you are of course free to stay and enjoy the experience for longer.

Review of our visit to the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante

We were all really looking forward to our visit to the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante. We visited with our 4 children, aged 9, 7, 5 & 3. Our 7 year old has actually just been learning a bit about Van Gogh at school, so it tied in perfectly.

Description of our visit

We arrived when the attraction opened at 10am. This was great as it meant we were some of the first people in, giving us more of a quiet and personal experience. There is a chance to buy some souvenirs at the entry desk, either on entry or exit from the exhibition. Sunflower hair clips can be bought for €1 and are fun to wear inside the exhibition as they glow is some of the rooms that have UV lights in.

Without wanting to spoil the surprise or give too much away, after being presented with some backgound information about Vincent Van Gogh, you enter through a couple of immersive rooms that are decorated in the style of his paintings.

You then make your way into the main exhibition room. Here, the story of the life of the life of Van Gogh is told while his artworks are animated to music and projected onto huge screens surrounding the room. There are seats and informal bean bags to sit on while enjoying the show. It is really beautiful and the accompanying music makes it quite moving.

What we thought of the exhibition

We all enjoyed our visit to the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante. It was nice to be able to do something a bit cultural for a change and introduce our children to a famous painter in a way that is more accessible and immersive than a traditional art gallery.

The projected animation in the main room is very absorbing. It is also interesting to learn more about the relatively short and often mentally tortured life of Van Gogh. You leave with a good sense of who the artist was and who were the major influences on his style of art.

The immersive rooms are also really nicely done, particularly the ‘Starry Night’ room. It was just a shame that there weren’t more of these rooms, as our kids would have loved the adventure of exploring more.

Visiting with kids

Children of all ages are welcome to visit the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante. The nature of the exhibition makes it enjoyable for people of all ages. That said, my older two children (aged 9&7) remained engaged for longer than my younger two (aged 5&3), who got a little restless.

Much of the experience is based in the main room where the animated projections are played. To watch this all the way through lasts around 45 mins, which is quite long for some small children to stay in the same place. Having bean bags to sit on and the opportunity to move around within the room helps to alleviate this somewhat. Don’t worry, it is not like being in a formal theatre space.

We stayed in the exhibition for a little over an hour and our kids all left with smiles on their faces.

Value for money

There is no getting away from the fact that the cost of entrance is quite high for an experience that lasts just over an hour. For a large family like ours, even with the family discount giving entry for €10 per person, it still gets quite expensive.

That should not take away from the fact that we all enjoyed our vist though. It is not often we get the chance to do something unusual and cultural like this in Costa Blanca, so I’d still recommend people to visit, if you can afford to do so.

In Summary

We had a great time visiting the immersive Van Gogh Exhibition in Alicante with our kids. The way that the artwork is displayed is really beautiful and engaging. I can now understand how this novel way of presenting art to a new audience has gained popularity all over the world.

If you too are looking for a break from the usual beaches and water parks this summer and are instead after an interesting cultural experience to do with your family, then you should definitely consider visiting this immersive Van Gogh Exhibition. Although a little expensive, the presentation is stunning and we left impressed.

Now that I’m a Van Gogh fan, I just have the small task of saving $100 million dollars so that I can buy myself an original!