Conference Venue

Conference Venue

SaltMech X will take place at Utrecht University’s Science Park (De Uithof) to the east of Utrecht city, in the Netherlands, on 6-8 July, 2022, with registration, an ice-breaker and tours organised on the 5th of July! Utrecht is listed by the EU as one of its top cities for quality of life and by Lonely Planet in its top 10 of the World’s unsung destinations.

The conference will be hosted in the Koningsberger building, a brand new educational building with well-equipped lecture halls. Oral presentations will be held in the “Cosmos”, “Atlas”  or “Pangea” lecture theatres, which provide more than 200 seats each. The lecture theaters are surrounded by ample space for poster sessions, discussion and breaks.

Note: If (global) travel is limited or prohibited again by July 2022, we will provide a hybrid or fully-online alternative for the SaltMech X conference. In that case, you will be notified well in advance, so travel arrangements can be accommodated.

 

Email: info@saltmech.com

Hotel Accommodation

Travel arrangements are to be made by the attendees themselves.

Utrecht has a wide variety of hotels and B&B’s. We recommend using the Hotel Mitland Utrecht, conveniently located between the city centre and the conference venue at the Utrecht Science Park. From the Hotel Mitland, the conference venue can be reached in a 40 minute walk (2.9 km) or in about 10 minutes by public transport (bus no. 28 to Science Park; from bus stop Oorsprongpark to Botanische Tuinen). In addition, shuttle buses will be arranged in the morning to provide quick transport between Hotel Mitland and the conference venue at the Utrecht Science Park.

At the Hotel Mitland, a limited number of rooms will be reserved for SaltMech X attendees at a special rate (TBA), regardless of single or double occupancy, for the duration of the conference (excluding tourist tax of 5%). Breakfast is available (price TBA). Wireless internet is available throughout the entire hotel, free of charge. The use of facilities such as the swimming pool, sauna, steam bath and fitness room are included in your stay. Reservation for these rooms will be open from January until the end of April 2022. Room cancellations can be made free of charge up to 72 hrs before arrival, in case travel is limited/prohibited by the time of the conference.

Alternatively, accommodation can be found at the nearby Star Lodge Hotel Utrecht, or at one of the other hotels or B&B’s located in the city centre.

Travel Information

To and from Utrecht

Amsterdam Schiphol airport, one of the main European hubs, is the closest and most convenient airport to Utrecht. It has flights to almost 300 destinations in many parts of the world and is quite efficient. Schiphol has its own railway station; there are four direct trains to Utrecht per hour during the day, that take approximately 30 minutes to get to ‘Utrecht Centraal’. The much smaller airports in Eindhoven and Rotterdam/The Hague might offer low-budget options for European destinations, but travel from these airports to Utrecht is much less convenient and more time consuming.

All public transport in the Netherlands is paid for using an ‘OV-chipcard’. This is a great system if you live in the Netherlands, but is cumbersome for occasional visitors. The trains are operated by the Nederlandse Spoorwegen (Dutch Railways) and run at a regular and frequent schedule throughout the entire country.

To get from Schiphol to Utrecht it is easiest to get a single use OV-chipcard from vending machines that are located in the baggage hall and upstairs in the railway station (‘Schiphol Plaza’), they accept all major debit and credit cards. The fare to Utrecht is 9.50 EUR, and a small supplement is charged for a single use OV-chipcard. Tickets are not issued for a specific train, just take any train (intercity) going to ‘Utrecht Centraal’ at your convenience (4 trains/hour; 35 min journey). Do not forget to validate (check-in) your OV-chipcard at an ‘OV-chipcard pole’ which are located at the entrance to the escalators going to the platforms. Also, don’t immediately discard your OV-chipcard once you reach Utrecht Centraal, as you will need it to open the exit gates to leave the station!

It will also be possible to take a taxi outside Schiphol Airport. However, beware to not accept any rides offered to you outside the regulated taxi stand area!

 

Getting around Utrecht

Public transport

Once at Utrecht Centraal, you can take a taxi from the ‘Jaarbeurs’ side of the station to get to your hotel. Any ride within the city will cost between 20 and 30 EUR. Alternatively, there are excellent bus services from the station to anywhere in the city. To reach the Hotel Mitland Utrecht, you can take bus no. 28 from platform A. Single tickets can be bought on the bus for 2.90 EUR.

Coming by car

For those coming by car, it is possible to park at the Hotel Mitland Utrecht, though spots are limited (140 cars max.). Parking fees at the hotel are 8.49 EUR/car/night.

At the Utrecht Science Park (De Uithof) there are a number of parking locations, with Parking Budapestlaan and Parking Padualaan being the closest to the conference venue. Note that the parking areas generally fill up rather quickly and parking fees are applicable between 7am and 6pm (max. of 18 EUR/day).

Biking (the Dutch way of getting around!)

Though public transport is excellent, Utrecht is a city made for bikes. Utrecht has an extensive network of bike lanes and paths and many of them are completely separate from other traffic. bikes can be rented from Hotel Mitland. The Hotel Mitland Utrecht, the conference venue, and the city center all are approximately 10-20 minutes apart by bike. If you have a basic proficiency in biking, you will quickly get familiar with – and enjoy! – getting around this way.