Dream ’scapes: Europe’s 10 best surrealist trips for art lovers

This autumn, the dreamy, subconscious world of surrealism will come into full focus. September 2024 marks 100 years since André Breton founded the movement. Not only are there exhibitions across Europe to celebrate the anniversary but, from Mallorca to Sussex and Rome, it’s a chance to lose yourself in the artists’ homes and studios.

Dalí, Figueres

Salvador Dalí, Surrealism’s most famous artist, was born in this town in Catalonia. His fantastical works – a great way to introduce children to art – can be seen alongside the paintings he collected, including those by El Greco and Marcel Duchamp, in the Dalí Theatre Museum (£18, salvador-dali.org), which is topped with giant eggs – Dalí is buried under the stage here. His birthplace, 6 Monturiol Street (£12.60, cnsd.entradasdemuseos.com), a more low-key experience, opened last year. When in Figueres, Dalí often dined at the restaurant of the nearby (still family-run) Hotel Duran.
Double rooms from £59, hotelduran.com

West Dean House, West Sussex

A 1920s base camp for surrealism in England, featuring artworks including Dalí’s Mae West sofa and a lobster telephone. Today, West Dean is a college devoted to teaching crafts and restoration but, to mark surrealism’s centenary, from October, there will be monthly tours. Near Chichester, at the base of the South Downs, West Dean also offers B&B accommodation in the main Jacobean house. Nearby, at Petworth, influential British surrealist Leonora Carrington is being celebrated in an exhibition at Newlands Gallery (£14.50, newlandshouse.gallery) until 24 October.
Doubles from £95 B&B, westdean.org.uk

De Chirico, Rome

Near the Spanish steps is the former home of Giorgio de Chirico (£7, fondazione dechirico.org). His paintings, with their deserted cityscapes, tap into surrealism. Some of his favourite works are on show here, along with his studio – paint brushes and palettes left as if he has just stepped out. Behind de Chirico’s house is the elegant Hotel Scalinata Di Spagna.
Doubles from £168 B&B, hotelscalinata.com

Artistic Marseilles

At the end of the 30s, the leaders of the surrealist movement, especially those of Jewish origin, gathered in the south of France as they tried to escape Nazism. One legacy has been a superb collection of works, especially in the Musée Cantini (free, marseille-tourisme.com) in Marseilles, including Max Ernst’s Monument Aux Oiseaux. Marseilles is currently on an artistic high and Pavillon Southway in the hip Mazargues area blends a gallery and studios with a distinctive place to stay.
Doubles from £124, southwaystudio.com

Magritte, Brussels

René Magritte brought whimsicality and wit to the movement. In the Belgian capital around 230 of his works are on show at the Musée Magritte (£8, musee-magritte-museum.be), including his surrealist films (there’s also a superb museum shop). The Hotel Amigo, a 10-minute walk away, pays tribute with a Magritte bar and cocktails that are a hat tip to the artist in their inventiveness; the Sheherazade combines frozen vodka, lemon bitters and rose champagne while the La Fleur en Papier Doré café allows you to hang out in the same café Magritte and his fellow Belgian surrealists frequented in the 20s.
Doubles from £260, roccofortehotels.com

Surrealism in Yorkshire

The surrealist movement used landscape to unsettling effect. From 22 November until 23 April, the Hepworth in Wakefield brings together works by the leading artists of the movement alongside contemporary artists in the Forbidden Territories exhibition (£13, hepworthwakefield.org). Meanwhile, in Leeds, the Henry Moore Institute will show postwar female artists’ work in The Traumatic Surreal from 22 November to 16 March (free, henry-moore.org). In Leeds, the Malmaison Hotel is a stylish billet.
Doubles from £104, malmaison.com

Miró, Mallorca

Joan Miró, Spain’s other leading surrealist, spent the final 25 years of his life in Mallorca. Alongside a museum devoted to his work, his studio and home are also open to the public, giving a fully rounded picture of the artist (£8, miromallorca.com). Surrealism tried to break down barriers and the Miró Museum here also has art courses for members of the public. Stay at the nearby Hotel Joan Miró, which has a pool and bicycle service station.
Doubles from £139, hoteljoanmiro.com

Pompidou Centre, Paris

Before it closes for a five-year renovation, the Pompidou Centre (£15, centrepompidou.fr) is marking surrealism with an exhibition from 24 September to 13 January. André Breton wrote the surrealist manifesto Les Champs Magnétiques at the Hotel des Grands Hommes when it was a budget boarding house filled with artists. Today, it’s been upgraded, but its position, opposite the Pantheon, is superb.
B&B doubles from £129, hoteldesgrandshommes.com

Dada in Zurich

The dada absurdist art movement, one of surrealism’s parents, started in 1916 when Cabaret Voltaire opened in Zurich. Avant-garde artists seeing out the first world war in neutral Switzerland flocked here. It’s still a café and exhibition space while the Kunsthaus Zurich (£21, kunsthaus.ch) has an acclaimed collection of dada and surrealist art. The new Home Hotel aims to bring some cultural fizz with talks and music programming.
Doubles from £156 B&B, thehomehotel.ch

Lee Miller, East Sussex

Photographer Lee Miller spent 35 years living near Lewes with her husband, the artist Roland Penrose. Their house is still filled with the art they created and collected from visitors, including Miró, Magritte and Man Ray. It is open from April to the end of October (£10, farleyshouseandgallery.co.uk). Miller, a Cordon Bleu cook as well as a photographer, went on to create surrealist food. Kate Winslet portrays her in Lee, a biopic opening this week.
Doubles at the Star from £240, thepolizzicollection.com/the-star