NIH Visitor Center, Nobel Laureate Exhibit Hall, and Tours

About

The National Institutes of Health is the nation’s medical research agency. NIH’s mission is to seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to enhance health, lengthen life, and reduce illness and disability. Learn more about the NIH and the research we conduct.

The NIH Visitor Center and Nobel Laureate Exhibit Hall on the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland, welcomes visitors from across the United States and around the world. NIH tour programs are designed for young adults, individuals, and small groups who are interested in learning more about how the NIH improves human health and prevents disease. The NIH Nobel Laureate exhibit honors NIH-supported intramural and extramural scientists who have won the Nobel Prize in chemistry, physiology, or medicine.

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NIH Visitor Center and Nobel Laureate Exhibit Hall

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NIH Clinical Center

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Inside the NIH Clinical Center

The Clinical Center on the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland, is the world’s largest hospital entirely devoted to clinical research. It is a national resource that makes it possible to speed the translation of laboratory discoveries into new approaches for diagnosing, treating, and preventing disease. The 870,000-square-foot research center has 200 inpatient beds and more than 1,600 laboratories conducting basic and clinical research. Learn more facts about the Clinical Center.

Location and Hours of Operation

9000 Rockville Pike
Building 45 (The Natcher Building) Lobby, Room 1AS-13
Bethesda, MD 20814
Phone: 301-496-1776
Hours of operation: 8:00a.m. – 4:00p.m. Monday through Friday (Closed on weekends and Federal holidays)

NIH Visitor Information

Information for visitors to the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland, can be found on the Visitor Information page.

Directions to the Building 45 NIH Visitor Center from the Gateway Center

Walking — Exit the Gateway Center via stairs or elevator at the 2nd floor and follow the paved walkway to Building 45 known as the Natcher Building. You will be approaching the back of the building, but the doors are open. As you enter the Natcher Conference Center, continue to the main lobby, at the front of the building. From this point, the NIH Visitor Center is to your right and our entrance is left of the large framed wall poster that reads, “NIH, The Nation’s Medical Research Agency.”

Shuttle — The NIH Campus Shuttle is available from the Gateway Center and other locations. Exit at the Building 45, the Natcher Building, stop. The stop is on a circular drive, and our exterior office sign, “NIH Visitor Center Nobel Laureate Exhibit Hall,” is visible from the front of the building. Enter the main lobby, and the NIH Visitor Center is to your left. Our entrance is left of the wall poster that reads, “NIH, The Nation’s Medical Research Agency.”

NIH Virtual Tour

Explore the Bethesda campus and how NIH turns discovery into health.

Take the tour

On-Site Tours

The Visitor Information Center provides tours for visitors who fall within four basic categories:

• Individuals working in areas of biomedical research or scientific programs
• Graduate, undergraduate, or high school students who are studying biomedical research or who are interested in S.T.E.M. careers
• NIH employees, interns, or postdoctoral fellows, and/or visiting fellows
• NIH patients or patient visitors

Requesting an On-Site Tour

NIH tours of the NIH Clinical Center have resumed as of June 15, 2023, on a limited basis. At this time, we are only able to accommodate and schedule tours for groups who meet the below requirements:

• Tour groups may not exceed 15 attendees. NIH does not have the resources to split a group of 30 into two groups of 15.
• A tour request must be submitted 14 days in advance of the desired tour date. Requests received in less than 14 days cannot be accommodated.
• NIH tours are conducted Tuesday through Thursday at these times:
  • 9am–10am ET
  • 10am–11am ET
  • 11am–12pm ET
• School groups with children under the age of 17 are not permitted to receive a Clinical Center tour. We do offer an NIH overview presentation for such groups.
• In preparing for your visit, the NIH requires a valid government photo identification prior to entry for all individuals ages 18 and above. Guests under the age of 18 without a photo ID must be signed in by a sponsor or chaperone from the visiting group.
• NIH does not accept third-party tour requests. NIH resources may not be offered to commercial entities for profit-making events or activities.