We came to the Nelson-Atkins with the primary purpose of seeing its Caravaggio painting – “John the Baptist in the Wilderness.” You can check out the how, where, and why of our Caravaggio hunt here! When we arrived, we realized that there was a huge party going on for Dia de los Muertos, and it was one of the busiest days of the year for the museum. No worries though, our purpose was singular, and we went straight to the Caravaggio when we arrived. One of the docents hanging out near the painting was curious as to why we came straight there, and we explained what we were doing. She was super kind and totally lovely, like most people we encountered in Kansas City.

I have to mention here that entry into the museum is FREE, but you should pre-register online before you arrive to be able to walk right in. There are some paid exhibits, but their usual collection is free to view – and you should definitely come here and view it!

Following the Caravaggio, we wandered around to the other baroque paintings, as well as my favorite impressionists. They had a few very nice Renoirs and Monets, but my favorite was “The Garden of Les Mathurins at Pontoise” by Camille Pissarro. This very large painting had so much going on, and you wanted to just walk right into that scene. I stood contemplating it for a little while.

The Nelson-Atkins also has a pretty cool collection of Chinese Art, all housed in a very unique setting.

They do have a very lovely looking indoor atrium restaurant and cafe, which was not open in the early morning when we were there, but looks like an inviting place to sit and eat if you are spending a few hours wandering the collections.

Finally, before we left, we were obligated to check out the gift shop. Unlike the Detroit Institute of Arts who had not even a postcard of their Caravaggio painting, the Nelson Atkins is super proud of having a Caravaggio, and there is all kinds of merch you can get with John the Baptist on it – even a t-shirt!

This is an excellent museum and collection, and the fact that it’s free to get in makes this a no-brainer for a tourist stop while visiting Kansas City.