Vicksburg National Military Park announced Wednesday it was resuming guided tours of the park with social distanced tours.

The tours will be conducted with the guide and those taking the tours in separate vehicles. The tours will be conducted using cell phones and hands-free equipment.

Visitors may get out of their vehicle to visit the Illinois Memorial, Fort Hill, Stockade Redan and the USS Cairo. The guide will remain in their vehicle during the tour. Payment will be made through a designated online platform.

Tours will be scheduled through the Vicksburg Convention and Visitors Bureau.

To schedule a tour, visitors should call 1-800-221-3536 or 601-636-3827.  Visitors taking the tour will be given instructions on tour payment and guide link up. Guides will meet visitors in the VNMP Visitor Center parking lot and connect by phone. The guide will provide instructions, expectations, restroom availability and safety information in the parking lot.

Check the park’s website for current information on park closures: https://www.nps.gov/vick/planyourvisit/conditions.

For safety reasons the following areas remain closed indefinitely and will not be part of the tour:

• Grant Avenue, Sherman Circle, and Union Avenue from Grant Avenue to the USS Cairo Museum.
• The Vicksburg National Cemetery is open to pedestrians with the exception of the area within the chain-link fence.

If planning a visit to a national park during this pandemic, the NPS asks visitors to adhere to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state and local public health authorities to protect visitors and employees.