Washington DC Visitor

Red text surrounding blue illustration of the Capitol on white background.

Field trips are a staple of elementary school education, many ending in a memorable trip to the White House in Washington, D.C. At the end of school tours in the 1970's and 1980's, each student received a souvenir of their time in Washington, D.C. Field trips to the White House changed quite a bit after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Although tours are still given on a self-guided basis, tickets can only be granted through a petition to your local congressman no closer than 21 days prior to your planned visit and several security checks must be cleared. Before the events of 9/11, tickets were handed out at the White House Visitor Center and all a person needed to begin the tour was a ticket and validation stamp on their hand. At non-peak times, guests arriving anytime before noon on the day of their planned visit were guaranteed a trip through the famous residence on Pennsylvania Ave.