Prince’s Paisley Park Tours: Ticket Price, Where To Buy, What To Expect

After some last-minute uncertainty, late musician Prince’s Paisley Park estate is set to open for public tours Thursday, albeit in a more limited capacity than originally planned by organizers. The private estate in Chanhassen, Minnesota, where Prince lived and recorded a lot of his music, has been converted into a museum and opens its doors to public at 9 a.m. Central Time (10 a.m. EDT).

The opening of the museum was thrown into doubt when the Chanhassen city council put the plans on hold while it reviewed the traffic and public safety concerns that would emerge as a result of large numbers of visitors expected to visit the site. However, a temporary permit was granted to the museum that allows visitors who bought tickets for Oct. 7-15 to tour the attraction on either Oct. 6, 8 or 14, according to reports.

The permit granted by the city council is similar to the ones it granted Prince for him to host parties on his estate.

The museum’s official website says nothing about any of this, instead it still says the site will be open to public all days of the year (except Thanksgiving and Christmas) from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day.

It did, however, send out an email Monday night to Prince’s fans who had already bought tickets, which read: “The Chanhassen City Council voted late yesterday to table the measure which would have permitted Paisley Park to open as a museum starting this Thursday, October 6. We will email you with updates very soon.”

It is unclear how the museum plans to give refunds to those who won’t be able to use their tickets. On its website, the museum operator says: “Tour ticket purchases are non-refundable. Tickets/Tours are subject to the City of Chanhassen approval.”

If you are a Prince fan, and want to take your chances, the tickets are still up for sale on the museum’s website. The early purchase tickets cost $38.50 (plus $7.50 service fee) for a self-guided tour that lasts 70 minutes. Every hour has a limited number of tickets under the category, and once they are over, the general ticket price goes up to $50 plus service fee.

The VIP tickets cost $100 (plus $11.75 service fee) and offer a 100-minute guided tour that covers additional rooms and studio areas not covered in the general tour.

Children below 5 years are not permitted and everyone over that age requires a ticket. Every transaction also entitles the purchaser to one parking pass.

“Visitors will see artifacts from Prince’s personal archives, including iconic concert wardrobe, awards, musical instruments, artwork, rare music and video recordings and motorcycles,” according to the museum website.