We have been here with the whole family at least 5 times and it always feels so new. A wide variety of the most beautiful artwork from different ages and painters and countries, all housed in a gorgeous building. The interior of the gallery itself is one of the most impressive things about it. I would recommend coming on a weekday to avoid the crowds, but the Van Gogh pieces usually have a decent number of people surrounding them. If you come during the week you can take decent pictures. Entry is free but we made a donation upon entering.

The National Gallery is without question one of the worlds great art galleries up there with the best Paris, Madrid and Vienna have to offer. There is just to much to see in a single visit. If you can manage it, it's best to come 2 or 3 times and view different parts of the gallery on each visit. As it's free it does not mean added expenditure. On this occasion I went to a "special" exhibition of Gauguin's portraits held in a separate building, which you did have to book well in advance and pay but it was well worth it, certainly the largest gatherings of Gauguin portraits under one roof I have ever seen. History seems to be judging the artist in a different light these days, if you judge him on his painting ability alone, he is a master. A truly wonderful exhibition.

Firstly making this trip with 2 boys who would rather be out playing sport meant we did not spend hours examining each piece of art. The gallery is free to enter so I was happy to make a quick trip rather than to put the boys off! I do however think everyone should spend something whilst they are there to help support this fantastic gallery. The plan was to use the shorter 80 painting audio guide but we soon deviated from it. (The audio guide was £10 for a family of 4) We made whistle stop tours to each of the earlier rooms talking about generally what we saw, ie religious paintings, dark, bodies, or landscapes. In some rooms we spun round and chose our favourite. When we fancied it we listened to the audio guide, we probably listened to a maximum of 20. We spent far more time on the more recent paintings. Some we sat and discussed whilst others we stood looking at the detail. We had lunch in the cafe whilst dodging a rain storm. The coffee was lovely and pricing was typical London prices but everyone was happy as we left to explore more of London. Many people may not have visited a gallery or may think it would be boring. I think you should give it a go...... head for the 10 most famous pieces and just see what you think of them!!