WHITE HOUSE TOURS

*Please Read As The White House Visitors Office Has Made Changes To The White House Tour Request Process*

White House tours are scheduled on a first-come first-serve basis with no way to prioritize requests.  Unfortunately, submitting a White House tour request does not guarantee a tour request will be approved due to the inability of the White House Visitors Office to accommodate the high volume of requests received every day from across the nation.

The White House tour is not a guided tour and generally takes no more than 40 minutes.  Following the tour, groups are welcome to visit the White House Visitors Center, located across the street in the Commerce building at 15th and E Streets, NW. Wheelchairs are available upon request.  Please specify in your request if someone in your group may need a wheelchair during the tour to ensure one is available upon arrival.  If you are requesting a tour for a school group, please be sure to read the special notes for school groups at the bottom of the instructions.

Tour times occur Tuesday – Saturday, 7:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.  Please seethe note below regarding planning ahead

How To Submit a White House Tour Request

STEP ONE:

Submit a tour request through this web site by completing the online Tour Request Form. Please make sure you click Submit.  When filling out the Dates field on the Tour Request Form, please write specific dates or range of dates that work for your group to ensure that if one of those dates is chosen, it is indeed a date and time your group could tour. Keep in mind that White House tours occur sometime Tuesday – Saturday between 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.  If you cannot make it to the White House before a certain time of day, please indicate that in your request.  Having less date and time flexibility in your request, may decrease the likelihood the White House Visitors Office is able to accommodate your request.  If the White House Visitors Office assigns your group a tour date and time, you cannot reschedule.

Note Regarding Group Size: The group size requested must include every child and adult over the age of six months old.  You will not be able to add at a later date more people to your group than the number you submit in your request.   The larger your group size, the harder it will be for the White House Visitors Office to accommodate the number of spaces requested.

Note Regarding Planning Ahead: Tour requests cannot be transmitted to the White House Visitors Office if the requested date is less than a month away.  Similarly, our office is unable to transmit your request to the White House Visitors Office if the dates requested are more than six months away.  Submitting your request exactly six months out from the date you requested gives you the greatest chance of your tour request being granted.

School Groups

If you are requesting a tour for a school group, there are some things you should know:

• The White House Visitors Office schedules tours Tuesday-Saturday between 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.  If your school group cannot make it to the White House prior to a given time, please indicate that when you request your tour. 

• White House tours are usually not confirmed more than three weeks out from the requested date.  For some school districts, this makes it hard to plan for transportation and gain approval from the school district for the trip.  Unfortunately, this is something that cannot be changed.

• No bags are allowed in the White House, nor are food or drink.  There are no lockers or storage spaces for people to stow their belongings while they are on the tour. 

• White House Kitchen Garden Tours are available to elementary, middle or high school students on a first-come first-served basis most Tuesdays and Thursdays at 11:30am. Kitchen Garden Tours requests may be submitted directly to the White House by filling out a request form here.

STEP TWO:

Download and complete the Security Information Spreadsheet (right-click the link, and "save-as"). Collect information from everyone in your group including children and infants who will be over the age of 6 months at the time of the tour. Complete the spreadsheet with information as it appears on government issued photo identification.  Whether or not you have a security clearance does not make a difference regarding whether you need to submit the required security information, nor does it give you a greater chance your request will be granted.

STEP THREE :

Email a completed security spreadsheet to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it   within 48 hours of submitting your Tour Request Form. PLEASE NOTE: Failure to provide security information within 48 hours of completing a Tour Request form will result in the White House Visitor Office not accepting the tour request and a new request will need to be submitted. This is a change from previous years, prescribed by the White House Visitors Office.  Since tours are scheduled on a first-come, first-serve basis, it is in your interest for all steps to be completed correctly and in a timely manner in order to increase your chances of getting a tour approved.

The Subject of the email containing your security spreadsheet should read your last name and the earliest month you indicated you would like to tour the White House, e.g. "HANSON June2010."

After Submitting A Tour Request:

You will be notified by Congressman Hoyer’s office when the request is received and has been submitted to the White House. If the request is approved and a tour is scheduled by the White House Visitors Office you will be notified of the assigned tour time. We strongly recommended downloading your confirmation page (emailed) and reading the White House Tour Information Documents provided. Parking and metro information is available here. Because of the high volume of White House tour requests going through our office, we may only notify you once a tour is approved by the White House Visitors Office.  However, you are more than welcome to check in on the status of your tour request.

White House Tour Information Documents

• Security Information Spreadsheet (right-click the link, and "save-as")
• Security Information Instructions
• Country Postal Codes
• Quick Tour Tips for Easy Access
• Map of the White House

White House Links

General White House Tour and Event Information for Visitors
White House History
White House Historical Society
White House's Media Center - Slideshows, Video, and Live Streams
White House 101: Fun Facts

Information About Other Visitor Events at the White House:

White House Easter Egg Roll

For the most up-to-date information for other public events at the White House, please call the Visitors Office 24-hour information line at (202) 456-7041. The Visitors Office TDD (telephone device for the deaf) number is 202-456-2121.