Visitor center

A visitor center or centre (see American and British English spelling differences), visitor information center or tourist information centre is a physical location that provides information to tourists.

A visitor center may be a Civic center at a specific attraction or place of interest, such as a landmark, national park, national forest, or state park, providing information (such as trail maps, and about camp sites, staff contact, restrooms, etc.) and in-depth educational exhibits and artifact displays (for example, about natural or cultural history). Often a film or other media display is used. If the site has permit requirements or guided tours, the visitor center is often the place where these are coordinated.

A tourist information center provides visitors with information on the area's attractions, lodgings, maps, and other items relevant to tourism. These are often operated at the airport or other port of entry, by the local government or chamber of commerce. Some are called information centers.

The Unicode code block Letterlike Symbols allocates a code point (U+2139) for a symbol that may used to identify an information source. The default form is a lower case, roman type, serif, extra bold, letter i, but the script typeface form ${\displaystyle i}$ is common.

In the United Kingdom, there is a nationwide network of Tourist Information Centres run by the British Tourist Authority (BTA), represented online by the VisitBritain website and public relations organisation. Other TICs are run by local authorities or through private organisations such as local shops in association with BTA.

In England, VisitEngland promotes domestic tourism.

In Wales, the Welsh Government supports TICs through Visit Wales.

In Scotland, the Scottish Government supports VisitScotland, the official tourist organisation of Scotland, which also operates Tourist Information Centres across Scotland.