The Pea Ridge Visitor Center is located 100 yards from the entrance to the park. All visitors must stop and pay the entrance fee or show a pass.
Once inside the Visitor Center there is a 28 minute orientation film "Thunder in the Ozarks" and a small museum. The park's film was produced in 2001 and provides the visitor an excellent production on the reasons for the battle and what happened during and after the battle.
The park's museum was opened in 1963 and the exhibits are scheduled to be replaced in 2007. While the exhibits are old are tired they are still of interest to most who visit the park. There are temporary exhibits about archeology, General Curtis and two Union officers who fought at Pea Ridge located in the foyer of the Visitor Center.
The park's Eastern National Bookstore is also located in the Visitor Center. The bookstore has one of the finest Civil War related selection of books in the National Park System.
The only restroom facilities in the park are also located in the visitor center.