Visitors are welcome to explore the Capitol at their leisure, while noting during the legislative session and other times, areas may be restricted due to government functions. Photography is prohibited when the House and Senate are conducting business in any location. Please begin your tour of the Capitol on the Garden Level of the Building where you will find a central rotunda filled with educational panels about Idaho and our state government. Garden Level entrances are located on Jefferson Street.  You can access the Garden Level of the Capitol by using the leftmost and rightmost sidewalks off Jefferson Street. These are the only sidewalks with black handrails.

By submitting a reservation form, tour participants understand and accept that the Idaho Capitol is a traditional public forum dedicated to the free exchange of political speech and debate. Participants understand and accept that while visiting the Capitol, participants may be exposed to language or ideas protected by the First Amendment that some may find sensitive or offensive.

Guided Walk-in Tours

Guided tours, on a walk-in basis are available every Friday at 10:30 am year-round, except major holidays (New Years Day, Christmas Day, 4th of July) .
Summer Tours: From June 1st to September 5th we will have guided tours, on a walk-in basis available every Monday at 10:30 am and the 1st and 3rd Saturday of each month at 10:30 am. (June 6th, June 20th, July 18th, August 1st, August 15th, September 5th). For all tours: they last approximately 75-90 minutes and meet on the Garden Level of the Capitol building at the Information Desk next to the Gift Shop. Please call 208-332-1012 for additional information. All tours are ADA accessible.

Guided Tours

*Guided tours must be requested at least 2 weeks in advance and for a minimum of 5 attendees in the group with a maximum of 2 classrooms or approximately 60 attendees.

• Guided tours are scheduled a minimum of 2 weeks in advance but not more than 6 months in advance.
• Guided tours are available to groups of 5 or more but limited to no more than 60 attendees (or 2 classrooms) per time slot.
• Guided tours begin at 10:00 am or 1:00 pm, Monday – Friday.
• To request a reservation, please fill out the tour request form.
• School groups (3^rd grade and higher) and visitors are invited to tour the Capitol through the Guided Tour Program.
• The tour program is staffed by volunteers and may be cancelled with little notice.
• All tours are free of charge.
• Groups should plan on arriving 15 minutes prior to the scheduled tour time and meet in the rotunda on the Garden level.
• Guided tour times in March, April and May fill up quickly! Please contact us a maximum of 6 months prior to that day to submit your tour request form.

Self-Guided Tours

• Groups may take a self-guided tour using our Capitol tour brochure and Scavenger Hunt!
• Self-Guided Tour Booklets can be found on the 1st floor Rotunda, on the Garden Level at the Visitor’s Information Desk or in the Capitol Gift Shop.
• Grades lower than 3rd are invited to visit the Capitol using our self-guided tour program.
• The Capitol Scavenger Hunt is located under the “Capitol Virtual Tours” section on this page.
• The self-guided tour booklet can be downloaded here.

Capitol Virtual Tours

• Virtual Tour Videos, produced in conjunction with Idaho Public Television, can be viewed here.
• Click here, for the Virtual Tour Scavenger Hunt.
• The self-guided tour booklet can be downloaded here.

American Sign Language Tours

Thanks to a partnership with the Council for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, the Capitol Tour Program is able to offer our full tour in American Sign Language (ASL). Please provide a minimum of two weeks advance notice. To schedule an ASL tour or for questions, please email capitoltours@lso.idaho.gov

Tour Videos

• Click here to explore the Idaho State Capitol Virtually.
• Click here to watch The Capitol of Light, a video production by IPTV.

Videos

• Click here to watch The Capitol of Light, a video production by IPTV.

Volunteering

This program can only work with the time and dedication of our volunteer tour guides! Schedules are flexible and training is provided. If you are interested in being a Volunteer Tour Guide please contact Elaine Conroy at econroy@lso.idaho.gov. For additional information on volunteer docents and an application click here

Games

• Scavenger Hunt
• State Symbol Word Search
• Capitol Word Search
• Legislature Word Search
• Please contact capitoltours@lso.idaho.gov to request the answer keys.