Tourist Visit Policies
These rules are designed to allow tour groups and tourists to visit the University, while assuring that the University community is able to conduct daily activities without disruption. These rules are also designed to ensure traffic safety and the safety of visitors. Stanford University is private property and Stanford can establish and enforce rules regarding access to campus and use of campus space by visitors and third-party businesses.
Stanford University requires all group tour and tour bus operators, and their individual visitors, in addition to general tourists, to observe the following rules of conduct:
- Do not disrupt campus and classroom activities.
- Do not talk loudly or smoke near buildings.
- Do not use amplified sound.
- Do not enter campus buildings. These are private workplaces and classrooms. Visitors should stay 20 feet away from campus buildings and refrain from opening doors or peering into windows. The only buildings open to large tours without prior arrangements are the Stanford Bookstore and Tresidder Union.
- Cross streets only at designated crosswalks. Do not cross streets between parked buses.
- Use paved sidewalks and pedestrian malls to move about campus. Groups should move in a manner that does not block sidewalks, bike paths, street or building doorways.
- Use waste receptacles for trash, including chewing gum. Use ashtrays for cigarette butts.
- Groups may not walk on landscaped areas or pick flowers or other vegetation. Visitors may not climb on structures or outdoor artwork.
- Use public restrooms provided for visitors. Locations:
- Lasuen Street at the tour group loading area
- Memorial Church (One restroom on each side of building; These are the only restrooms open to the public in the Quadrangle area of the campus.)
- Stanford Bookstore
- Tresidder Union
- Commercial photography and filming anywhere on campus is prohibited. Group photography and photography and filming inside classrooms and buildings is prohibited.
- The flying of remote-control drones or other devices for photography or recreational purposes is prohibited.
- Tour groups must be accompanied at all times by a tour guide or staff member, and members of group tours may not wander the campus unaccompanied.
- Tour groups and buses must have at least one person who speaks English to ensure effective communication with Stanford University personnel in case of emergency or issues related to the tour group or tour bus.
Disability-related accommodations
Disability-related accommodations are the responsibility of the individual and/or tour bus company, not Stanford University.
Consequences of violating Tourist visit policies
Stanford University and the Stanford Department of Public Safety reserve the right to ask any individual or group to leave campus property, and may ban tour-group and/or tour-bus operators from the campus for repeated failure to follow the above rules of conduct, or other specific directive from the Department of Public Safety or University official. Further, Stanford University reserves the right to take appropriate legal action against those failing to comply with the policy, including actions under civil or criminal trespass laws. For further information: tours and large groups, tourbuses@stanford.edu, 650.498.7882.