Getting to Manchester
Manchester is well-connected for both national and international travellers.
Air
Manchester Airport is nearby and has many international connections. It’s 15 minutes by train (or 1 hour by tram) from the airport to Manchester Piccadilly station and a ticket costs £5, or less at off-peak times. Most fast trains from the airport call at Manchester Piccadilly as their first stop, and from there it is a 20 minute walk to the venue. You can also catch a train that stops at Manchester Oxford Road, which is a 10 minute walk from the venue.
Liverpool Airport is 50 minutes from Manchester by a combination of local bus and train. Take a look to this page for more info.
All the London airports are connected to Manchester by rail, but the train connections can be expensive. Check train prices before booking your flight and make sure to book the train as far in advance as you can (tickets are typically available three months in advance).
Bike
There are many open bicycle racks at the Brooks Building and The Shed. There are also bike lockers available at Brooks — bring your own padlock. Ask in the Brooks Building reception desk for the lockers.
Manchester recently gained a city bike hire scheme, accessed through the Mobike Android app
Bus
Bus connections are available from many cities in the UK and Western Europe. Megabus and Flixbus are good budget options.
Train
There are several train stations close to each other in the city centre. Most long distance services go to Manchester Piccadilly.
To check UK rail connections, use the National Rail Enquires website. Buying an advance ticket for your journey is strongly recommended because prices are usually very high if you buy the ticket on the day of travel.
EuroStar run services via Brussels or Paris to London St. Pancras station. Nearby London Euston station has trains to Manchester that take just over 2 hours. EuroStar sell direct tickets to Manchester.
If you want to make the journey by train from further afield, The Man In Seat 61 and bahn.com are useful resources.
Car
Roads in England and the centre of Manchester can be congested, particularly at peak times.
Car ferries run to various UK ports. Calais to Dover is the quickest crossing (1½ hours); it’s around 5½ hours drive onwards from Dover to Manchester.
There’s no tax to temporarily bring EU registered cars into the UK.
There is very limited pay-and-display parking available at the venue itself. If you need this contact guadec-organisation@gnome.org and we can organise a permit.
Boat
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Ferry services run to various UK ports, most of which have rail connections to Manchester (usually long and expensive). Connections include Amsterdam (NL), Belfast (UK), Calais (FR), Dublin (IE), Rotterdam (NL), Santander (SP), and Zeebrugge (BE). These are generally slow (overnight or longer). Ferrysavers can find good deals on tickets.
SailRail offers boat+train packages from Dublin via Holyhead.
You can also get to Manchester by canal boat, if you have time.
Visas
If you are from outside the European Economic Area or Switzerland you will need a UK “Standard Visitor” visa. These take 3 weeks to process. The GUADEC organizers can provide you with an invitation letter for the conference.
Accommodation
On-site Accommodation
The deadline has now passed for booking rooms at the University.
The accommodation includes bed linen, towels, cushions/bedrunners, tea and coffee, toiletries, and wifi. Meals are not included but breakfast and lunch will be available for purchase in the Brooks Building. There are kitchens in the houses but pots, pans and crockery are not provided.
Check in is between 14:00 and 18:00 on the day of arrival. It is possible to check in after 18:00 but you will need to let us know in advance so that we can inform the University when you will be arriving. Check out must be done between 06:00 and 10:00 on the day of departure. Again, if you need to check out before 06:00 please let us know in advance.
The street address of the reception building is:
48 Bonsall Street
Manchester
M15 6GW
Hotels
Visit Manchester’s booking service is now closed (the deadline to book was 29th June 2017).
The Premier Inn at Deansgate Locks is very close to the venue and is a good budget option.
If you want to save money by sharing a twin room but don’t have anyone to partner with, we recommend adding your details to the accommodation collaboration page.
For other options, HostelBookers lists all of Manchester’s youth hostels, and AirBnB have various apartments available.
General info
Electrical sockets in the UK are different from European and American ones: see the picture opposite. The mains voltage is 230V.
UK weather is unpredictable — be sure to bring warm clothes and waterproofs, as well as summer gear.
If you want to go hiking in the Peak District then be sure to bring appropriate gear.