The Visitor Center Paradox

There is a paradox at the heart of every visitor center project: if it's so fantastic that people never want to leave — it's a total failure.

The more time you spend in a visitor center, the less time you have for the actual destination. We want to visit Niagara Falls, not the Niagara Falls Visitor Center.

Is there a way to solve this? Yes. I follow a unique, simple rule: Visitor center exhibitions should grant visitors perceptual superpowers.

What are "perceptual superpowers"? Powers that amplify the visit. For example, give visitors:

— X-ray vision, so when the geyser erupts later, they can "see" the geology underground.

— Time travel, so when they tour the prison ruins, they can "see" convicts of the past in the hallways.

— Flight, so when they look over the canyon rim, they can "see" like a bird, flying over the water below.

Here's the thing:
The more amazing the visitor center, the less energy is left for the real destination. Make the time count. A visitor center should quickly give visitors "perceptual superpowers". That way the actual visit later will be amplified — far richer than otherwise possible.

Warmly,
Jonathan