If youre interested in art, taking a detour of a gallery or town is a wonderful way of breaking up your travels. Try a dip into these capitals for some of the best paintings, frescoes and a rather famous portrait.

You could begin your journey at Amsterdam, an attractive city and home to Vincent Van Gogh, a Dutch Post-Impressionist artist, famous for amongst other iconic works - his Sunflowers painting. A native of Amsterdam, Van Gogh has a whole museum dedicated to him. The Van Gogh Museum has more than 200 of his paintings on display, which trace his career in five sections: the Netherlands, Paris, Arles, Saint-Remy and Auvers-sur-Oise.

If this isnt enough to satisfy the culture vulture amongst you, The Rijksmuseum, or the National Museum, is the largest museum in the Netherlands and boasts an enviable collection of 17th-century Dutch masters, with twenty pieces by Rembrandt. The building itself is a site worth seeing, dating back to 1876 - it shows off decorative gothic and renaissance architecture.

Florence makes for another world class arts destination especially if youre a fan of Renaissance art. For the stars of the Renaissance, check out The Academy Art Gallery, where youll find Michelangelos David, or try the Uffizi Museum, which was created by the famous Medici family. Their vast collection includes Titians Flora and works by Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci, who was a native of Florence. The citys art isn't just confined to museums and galleries; you can simply pop into one of Florences churches of which there are many and see some of the frescoes.

The Cathedral Santa Maria del Fiore dates to the thirteenth-century and inside its Gothic interior youll find Dante and the Divine Comedy by Domenico di Michelino and the Detail of Last Judgement by Giorgio Vasari and Federico Zuccari.

For more Da Vinci artwork, cruise over to Paris, a city that truly deserves its place in the line-up of Europes best art destinations. The Louvre Museum is a vision in itself and dates to the 12th- century. It was a monument before it became a museum and once-upon-a-time, served as the palace of the Sun King, Louis XIV.
The Mona Lisa dominates its Denon Wing and is the star attraction; however the museum has an abundance of other famed Renaissance pieces, including Raphaels St Michael slaying the Dragon, works by Titian and more of Da Vincis handiwork.

The queues at the Louvre are unfortunately not a pretty sight, and if you intend on catching a glimpse of the Mona Lisa, its probably best not to take any chances ? early risers should be rewarded with shorter lines.

Take the train to St Pancras where you can catch the Eurostar to the continent in a few hours.

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