Welcome to MünsterWe are looking forward to welcoming you to Münster! Münster (official page/Wikipedia) is a historic, yet lively city with around 300.000 inhabitants. Over 50.000 of these are university students. In 2004, Münster was awarded the LivCom-Award "The World's Most Liveable City" in the category of cities between 200.000 and 750.000 inhabitants (see here for more details). Conference venueThe conference will be held in the north wing of the main university building (Schloss). Directions on how to reach the venue can be found, e.g., here. |
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Travel
Getting to Münster
Getting to Münster by car is easy as the city is served by two major highways (A1/A43).
Münster is a major train hub on the Hamburg-Cologne track. It is served
by long-distance (IC) and high-speed (ICE) trains, e.g., from Frankfurt
airport. Please check the web page of the Deutsche Bahn
for connections and fares. Make sure to select "Münster (Westf) Hbf" as your destination; "Munster (Örtze)" (no umlaut in Munster) is a completely different, far-away place.
Travel times to Münster by train:
- Cologne: 2:00 hrs.
- Hamburg: 2:15 hrs.
- Düsseldorf Airport (DUS): 1:30 hrs.
- Frankfurt Airport (FRA): 3:15 hrs.
Münster Marketing offers a flat-fee train ticket for traveling to conventions in Münster. See this page and this form for more information. For those arriving from Düsseldorf Airport (see below) is will be cheaper to buy a regular ticket.
If you arrive by plane, there are four possibilities:
- The geographically closest international airport is Münster-Osnabrück (FMO). It is served by Lufthansa, Turkish Airlines, and several charter airlines (see here). There is a bus connection to/from Münster train station (35 mins. travel time, one-way fare approx. 7 Euros [subject to change]).
- Dortmund International Airport (DTM) is served by a variety of (mainly low-cost) airlines. From the airport, there is no direct train connection to Münster but you can get there via Dortmund main station or Holzwickede station (one-way fare starts at 18 Euros [subject to change], please check here for more details; you may need to buy a ticket on the bus). A full timetable for Oct. 12 and 13 (in German, subject to change) is provided here. ("Ab" = "Departure", "Zug" = "Train", "An" = "Arrival", "Umsteigen" = "Change trains", "Dauer" = "Duration", "Verkehrstage" = "Runs only on" [01: runs on both days, 02: runs only on Oct. 13])
- Düsseldorf International Airport (DUS) is served by a variety of airlines. From the airport train station, there is a direct train connection to Münster (one-way fare approx. 28 Euros [subject to change]). A full timetable for Oct. 12 and 13 (in German, subject to change) is provided here. ("Ab" = "Departure", "Zug" = "Train", "An" = "Arrival", "Umsteigen" = "Change trains", "Dauer" = "Duration", "Verkehrstage" = "Runs only on" [01: runs on both days, 02: runs only on Oct. 13])
- Frankfurt International Airport (FRA) is one of the largest European airports. It is served by virtually all major airlines. From Frankfurt, you can either take a commuter flight to Düsseldorf or take a long-distance train to Münster (one-way tickets start at approx. 70 Euros [subject to change]). A full timetable for Oct. 12 and 13 (in German, subject to change) is provided here. ("Ab" = "Departure", "Zug" = "Train", "An" = "Arrival", "Umsteigen" = "Change trains", "Dauer" = "Duration", "Verkehrstage" = "Runs only on" [01: runs on both days, 02: runs only on Oct. 13])
Getting around in Münster
The hotels for which we have block reservations are within walking distance (ten to twenty minutes) from the conference site. However, we expect that we will be able to provide every participant with a free ticket for public transport upon checking in at the registration desk.
Accommodation
Hotel Reservations
We have arranged for a number of block reservations at hotels that are close to the conference site or to the train station/central bus terminal. Rooms range between 42 Euros and 90 Euros per night (excluding breakfast). All reservations are on a first-come, first served basis. Please access the booking portal of Münster Marketing through https://bit.ly/WIPSCE_ISSEP (note that the prices shown are for four nights excluding breakfast).
In addition to the above hotels, for which we have block reservations, there are other hotels, some of them more upscale than the above, that are a little farther from the conference site but also very nicely located, e.g., next to the lake. If you are interested in learning about these hotels, drop the local organizers a line.
Accommodation Tax
Starting July 1st, 2016, the City of Münster raises an accommodation tax of 4.5% on overnight stays in hotel, holiday flats, on camping sites or comparable facilities. Accommodations necessitated by business travel, educational, or training purposes are exempt from the tax.
You will find all the necessary information here. The web page is in German, there is an English form, though: "Confirmation of Exemption from Accommodation Tax". If you want to be exempted from paying the tax, please fill out this form (tick "A" for "income from employment"), print, and sign this form .The organizers will prepare corresponding "Confirmation of the employer, business trip approval or comparable evidence" and send it to everyone after the early registration deadline. For everyone who registers later, we will hand out the documents on-site.
Questions? Please contact Jan Vahrenhold (Institut für Informatik, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster).