Do you consider your passion for art greater than most?

Are you open-minded?

Do you want lifetime experiences that are very exclusive and available only to a small number of people?

If so, lean forward — sit on the edge of your seat for a moment.

What if I could give you an art experience like no other on earth? No exaggeration.

An art experience most people in the world only wish they could do. One reserved for those who have worked hard so they can do special things in their lives.

Here’s the rub…

This experience is reserved for those who are passionate about art and consider themselves adventurous and open-minded.

And because of the nature of the experience and the access we provide, it is available only to about 40 people in the world.

And frankly, there are not very many people this adventurous, this passionate about art, this driven to understand art at a deeper level.

On our annual Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine Fine Art Trip, we share experiences with our guests that are normally reserved for kings, queens, presidents, and rock stars. We literally have been the only guests ever allowed in some of these places aside from the highest-level VIPs.

Examples…

• Private roam-around time for three hours in the Hermitage museum in St. Petersburg, Russia, after hours when we were the only guests

• Private viewing time at The Last Supper without all the tourists

• A full hour with just our group in the Sistine Chapel in Rome, with the lights on. In fact, when the media heard about how our group got this special privilege, it made national news because it’s simply unheard of

• Access to the then-private Vasari Corridor, which houses self-portraits of the greats, behind the Uffizi Museum

But there are also experiences even rock stars and presidents could not duplicate — we have deep contacts because we publish one of the most influential magazines in the art world, Fine Art Connoisseur, which is read by billionaires, leading art collectors, top curators and museum professionals, and top artists and galleries.

Examples…

• Entry into the private studio of the artist painting the king and queen of Sweden

• Entry into the private home of the 90-year-old daughter-in-law of Alphonse Mucha, whose art started the Art Nouveau movement. We were given a tour of Mucha’s personal art collection, never seen by the public.

• Entry into the private home of a major art collector for dinner overlooking the center of Florence

• Entry into the home of John Singer Sargent’s muse, Vernon Lee, and private access to the studio Sargent used in Florence and a Tuscan farm dinner, with fresh-pressed olive oil, farm-to-table foods, and a spread fit for kings

• Entry into a private home in Italy where the family make their own wine and taught our group Italian cooking

• Private access (no photos allowed) to a marble-carving studio to see works by a world-renowned artist being made (we’re not even allowed to say his name)

• A private art showing by the top living master artist in Russia in one of the most important studio buildings in Moscow, and a chance to purchase his works and those of his famous father. The American equivalent would have been a visit to Andrew Wyeth.

• A private showing in a castle of some of the most important paintings on earth, which were embroiled in a major legal battle and later confiscated, destined to sit in a warehouse for perhaps the next hundred years

I could go on. Over the last nine years we have provided art experiences that few will ever have in their lives, which is why the majority of our guests return year after year.

In fact, even though our guests have often seen the museums and have visited the cities we visit, they sign up anyway, knowing the experience will be rich.

One visitor told me, "We have been here twice before, and on your trip we experienced things we did not know existed and never could have known about."

And one local tour guide once told me, "I’ve lived and guided here for 30 years, and you took us to places I never knew existed." In fact, we learned that one of the local guides tried to gain access to some of the places we take our group for other guests and was denied. It’s all because of our relationships, which open doors in the art world.

The reason we seek out people with a sense of adventure and a deep passion for art is because we provide experiences that only passionate art-loving people can appreciate. If that’s not you, you won’t enjoy this trip. And if you’re unhappy, we’re unhappy.

Frankly, when we produce our agenda, you’ll see a lot of things that seem ordinary, that seem not to include private access, yet there are simply things we cannot publish for security reasons, such as visits to private chateaus or castles with billion-dollar art collections. Just last year we managed to not only have a private showing in a chateau, we held our closing dinner there and had the owner visit with us.

If you’ve heard about these legendary trips, this is probably the best year to go. We are pulling out all the stops, we have some incredible experiences lined up, and it will be our best yet.

Normally these trips are 80 percent sold out the day we announce them, which was the case this year. As I said, people want to keep coming back, whenever possible. This year there are now 4 slots open, only because of an illness in one case, a wedding in another.

Once you’re in the group, you get first access to future trips, the day we finish our current trip.It is often difficult for others to find their way into this amazing trip and this tight-knit group of people. This year is a rare exception.

One unexpected benefit of being on these trips is that because you share a passion for art with others, you become great friends. New members are welcomed with open arms and feel part of the family fast. And the family is together year-round because we all tend to stay in touch and visit one another. I recently stayed the night with friends from the trip, and they told me they had just visited with three different couples from the trip that year. You become part of an art family.

Here’s the situation. We have a few undecided people interested, a couple are trying to shift their schedule, and in one case they are awaiting clearance on some other issues so they can go on the trip. But WE need to wrap it up so we can make our final details happen. Plus you still have a month to get decent airfares to Europe. So if you think you might want to join our little group, timing is important.

One guest said to me, "It does not matter where we go, we know it will be good and we’ll be with our friends. We’ll go every year." (And they have.)

This time, to celebrate our 10th year, we’ve selected the South of France, Provence, Nice, and various areas in between. Not only is it stunningly beautiful in the fall, there are art treasures there that most people are unaware of. Of course it’s known for Van Gogh, Cézanne, Corot, and many of the Impressionists, but we’ll see things and offer experiences that will provide you with lifetime memories.

If you’re thinking, "Maybe someday, timing isn’t good," maybe you should ask yourself if you could rearrange a few things. There will only be one 10th-anniversary trip ever and it will be worth any trouble you need to take.

Sadly, we can’t make this trip available to just anyone. It’s expensive, it’s exclusive, and it’s probably the finest art experience you can have anywhere. In fact, one returning guest also travels with major museum trips and says our trips are head and shoulders above all others she has been on, some to the same cities.

You can poke around on the website, but the best way to grab one of those 4 remaining slots (singles or couples invited) is to pick up the phone and call our travel partner, who can give you all the info you could ever need. His name is Gabriel, and he is our angel … and he, along with our editor, Peter Trippi, and myself have a world-class, lifetime-memory trip planned for our 10th. Plus, when we announce where we’re going next year, you’ll want to be on this trip so you can get first dibs on that trip.

Call the number below to grab one of those remaining 4 slots on the trip. You’ll never regret it.