PRINCE’S PALACE
Singer’s estate to hold tours
Paisley Park, the private estate and studio complex of the late rock superstar Prince, will open for daily public tours starting Oct. 6, the trust company overseeing his estate announced this week, and the company that runs Elvis Presley’s Graceland will manage it.
Bremer Trust said in a statement that millions of Prince fans will get the chance to tour the 65,000-square-foot complex in the Minneapolis suburb of Chanhassen, where Prince collapsed in an elevator and died of an accidental overdose of the painkiller fentanyl in April.
“Opening Paisley Park is something that Prince always wanted to do and was actively working on,” Prince’s sister, Tyka Nelson, said. “Only a few hundred people have had the rare opportunity to tour the estate during his lifetime. Now, fans from around the world will be able to experience Prince’s world for the first time as we open the doors to this incredible place.”
The tours will be run by Graceland Holdings, which has overseen Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee, since 1982, according to the museum’s business plan. Graceland, where Presley died in 1977, has welcomed more than 20 million visitors since opening to the public, averaging more than 600,000 annually in recent years. Graceland is providing the initial funds for capital improvements and operating costs.
The plan says the tours will include studios where Prince recorded, produced and mixed most of his biggest hits, and the sound stage where he rehearsed for tours and hosted exclusive private concerts. Also featured will be thousands of artifacts from his personal archives, “including iconic concert wardrobe, awards, musical instruments, artwork, rare music and video recordings, concert memorabilia, automobiles and motorcycles.”
Tickets go on sale online only on Friday at 4 p.m. EST. Standard tickets will cost $38.50, but VIP tours will be offered for small groups priced at $100 or more. Tours will last about 70 minutes, starting every 10 minutes, and each group is expected to include 25-30 guests. Graceland officials expect 1,500 to 2,000 guests on peak days. No walk-up sales will be allowed.