REAL ID Requirements

Beginning May 7, 2025, all individuals over the age of 18 who are authorized to drive onto Arlington National Cemetery should be prepared to present a REAL ID at the security checkpoint.

Published on: Tuesday, April 29, 2025 read more ...

Learn More! 

•  ANC's Education Program contains lesson plans, readings, walking tours, children's activities, and other materials related to the origins of Memorial Day and its significance at Arlington National Cemetery. All are free and available to download in our learning module on The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Materials can be used if you are planning to visit the cemetery this weekend or simply wishing to know about Memorial Day history and traditions. 

•  Visiting with children? Our "Understanding Arlington" module includes activity packets and overall guidance for families. 

•  Read blog articles authored by ANC historians: "Arlington National Cemetery and the Origins of Memorial Day" and "Flowers of Remembrance Day: Inaugurating a New Tradition at Arlington National Cemetery." 

•  Download our richly illustrated digital publication, "A Century of Honor: A Commemorative Guide to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier," published for the Tomb's 100th anniversary in 2021. 

•  If you are planning to visit ANC over the weekend, consider taking one of our thematic, self-guided walking tours—also part of ANC's Education Program. Themes include Medal of Honor recipients; individual service branchesAfrican American historyMemorial Arboretum and horticultureexploration of earth, air and space; and specific conflicts ranging from the Spanish-American War to World War II to the Cold War

•  Also if you are visiting in person, don't forget to check out the exhibits in the Welcome Center and the Display Room inside Memorial Amphitheater, which focus on the history of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and ANC's overall history. Or, take a virtual tour by clicking the following links: Welcome Center exhibit and Display Room exhibit

•  Explore an online exhibit on the history of Memorial Amphitheater, which turned 100 years old in 2020.