National Gallery

The National Gallery occupies the north side of Trafalgar Square in central London. It was founded in 1824, when the British government bought 38 paintings from the collection of the banker John Julius Angerstein and displayed them in his former house on Pall Mall. Unlike many European national galleries, it did not grow out of a royal collection.

The present building, designed by William Wilkins with a long neoclassical facade and a central portico, opened in 1838. It was extended several times, most recently with the Sainsbury Wing, designed by Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown and opened in 1991. The gallery celebrated its 200th anniversary in 2024, and the refurbished Sainsbury Wing entrance reopened in 2025.

The collection numbers more than 2,300 paintings, covering Western European art from the middle of the 13th century to 1900. Well known works include Jan van Eyck's Arnolfini Portrait, Leonardo da Vinci's Virgin of the Rocks, Velazquez's Rokeby Venus, Constable's The Hay Wain, Turner's The Fighting Temeraire and Van Gogh's Sunflowers. Early Italian paintings hang in the Sainsbury Wing, while later works continue through the main building.

The gallery is one of the most visited art museums in the world. It runs free talks, family activities and a programme of paid special exhibitions, and its cafes and shop face the square.

Entry to the permanent collection is free, while some exhibitions charge for tickets. The gallery opens daily from 10am to 6pm and until 9pm on Fridays. Charing Cross, Leicester Square and Embankment Underground stations are a few minutes' walk away, and weekday mornings are the quietest.

When is the National Gallery open? The gallery opens every day from 10am to 6pm, with a late opening until 9pm on Fridays. It closes from 24 to 26 December and on 1 January. General admission is free, and visitors can either walk in or book a free timed ticket online for faster entry. Paid exhibition tickets include general admission.

The main public entrance is now through the Sainsbury Wing, facing Trafalgar Square at the corner of Pall Mall and Whitcomb Street. Every door has walk-through metal detectors, and staff check bags. Suitcases, cabin bags and wheeled luggage are not allowed, though baby buggies are welcome. The cloakroom charges GBP 3 per item and takes bags up to 56 by 25 by 45 centimetres.

Facilities. Toilets and baby changing are just inside the entrance, and Changing Places toilets are on the ground floor of the Sainsbury Wing and in the Roden Centre on Orange Street. Free wifi runs throughout the building. The gallery has cafes and a restaurant, but visitors cannot eat their own food in them. A visit pairs well with the National Portrait Gallery, which stands directly behind on St Martin's Place.