You will be staying at the Polonez Hotel, al. Niepodleglosci 36, north-central Poznań. Among other things, the hotel offers a bureau de change (see Money) open all days, and an Internet connection in each room. The hotel offers special prices for PLM participants:
single room: 150 PLN
double room: 200 PLN
VAT and breakfast included. Current exchange rate: about 4.3 PLN to a Euro. More about money see here.
TO AND FROM POZNAN [Around Poznań] [Getting to the conference venue]
By Train [By Air]
Poznań is located about half way between Warsaw (320 km) and Berlin (280 km), and there are good, frequent rail connections between those two cities and Poznań.
From Berlin: Example connections on 30 April:
|
Departure |
Arrival |
||
|
Berlin Zoo |
12:31 |
15:42 |
Poznań Gł. |
|
13:09* |
18:00 |
||
|
16:31 |
19:42 |
||
|
18:31 |
21:56 |
*Change at Frankfurt/Oder
From Warsaw: Example connections on 30 April:
|
Departure |
|
Arrival |
|
|
Warszawa Centralna |
11:30 |
14:11 |
Poznań Gł. |
|
12:30 |
15:21 |
||
|
13:30 |
16:19 |
||
|
13:43 |
17:20 |
||
|
14:30 |
17:07 |
||
|
15:30 |
18:07 |
||
|
16:05 |
18:46 |
||
|
16:30 |
19:11 |
||
|
17:30 |
20:20 |
||
|
18:30 |
21:07 |
||
|
19:30 |
22:27 |
||
|
19:45 |
22:35 |
To verify these connections, and to find more, visit the timetable of Polish Railways, or German Railways.
There are frequent daily connections with Warsaw, as well as flights from Düsseldorf, Copenhagen, Vienna and Frankfurt. The timetable is available here. However, please check with the respective airlines whether the flights are available on May 1 and May 3, as these days are public holidays in Poland.
The Polonez Hotel is very close (about 2.5 km) to the Railway Station. Bus no. 68 departing from the terminal in front of the station stops in front of the hotel (fourth stop, actually called "Polonez").
A taxi from the Station to the hotel should not cost you more than 10 zloties (2.5 euros). Note: we advise against using the taxis from the rank in front of the station, as these tend to charge non-standard fares. You can order a "radio-taxi" from the information desk in the main station hall.
Bus no. 78 connects the Airport with the centre.
A taxi from the Airport to the hotel should be under 25 zloties.
We generally advise to use the "radio-taxi" service which lets you order a taxi by phone. Recommended radio-taxi companies are 9622 (cheap), 919 (standard) and 9662 (quality).
A shuttle bus will operate between the hotel and the conference venue at the new campus in the northern suburb of Morasko (which is about 7 km to the north of the centre).
IF YOU NEED TO GET TO THE CAMPUS ON YOUR OWN
The address of the Physics Institute is ulica Umultowska 85.
A taxi to the campus from the city centre should be about 25 zloties.
To get there by public transport, you may consult the map on the Physics Institute page (bottom left, click to enlarge). Tram lines are marked in red, bus lines are marked in blue. At the railway station, climb onto the bridge in front of the main entrance (Most Dworcowy). Take trams no. 12 or 14 going in the direction of os. Jana III Sobieskiego. After about 12 minutes, get off at the stop called Kurpinskiego (black-on-orange signs). Climb the stairs to the bridge overhead, following signs for "kierunek Umultowska". Get bus no. 87 going in the direction of Os. Rózany Potok. After about 8 minutes (right after passing through a level railway crossing - impossible to miss), get off at Instytut Fizyki (the name should be shown on the display in the bus). The first building on the left hand side of the campus entrance drive is the Physics Institute.
The zloty (abbreviated PLN or zl) is the official currency in Poland. The approximate exchange rate is about 4.3 zloties to a euro (or 4 zloties to a dollar). The latest exchange rates for all major currencies are available here.
We advise against bringing travellers’ cheques as May 1 and May 3 are public holidays in Poland, and all banks will be closed. Credit cards are the best option, with a dense network of cash dispensers, accepting all major cards, in the centre of the city. There is a bureau de change at the hotel, open all days.
Polish sockets are standard European sockets, with a voltage of 220 V. All visitors coming from countries using appliances/plugs that do not work with such sockets/voltages (especially American and British guests) are advised to bring adapters, as these are hard to get by in Poland.
All European mobiles will work without problems. Polish operators use both of the two standard European GSM bands, 1800 and 900 MHz.
The international code for Poland is +48, the area code for Poznan is 61.
WEATHER
Polish weather can be quite changeable in May, although traditionally the conference has enjoyed fair, sunny weather with temperatures between 15 and 25 Centigrade during the day. Nights can be cooler. With worse luck, a raincoat and umbrella may find some use. Current forecast available here.