Travelling to Groningen

The easiest way to get to Groningen from Schiphol airport is by using a train. These are safe, run frequently, and offer free wifi. You can buy a ticket beforehand on www.ns.nl or pay by tapping your credit/debit card on the ‘entrance gates/yellow poles’ and upon exit at the Groningen Main station. If possible, we suggest that you travel by train (Groningen University advises its employees to travel by train any distance up to 500 km), either via Amsterdam or Utrecht in the Netherlands or via Hannover-Leer in Germany. There are excellent night-trains connecting Hannover and Utrecht with the North, South and East of Europe.

Groningen is a small, walkable city. Getting around the city is easiest by foot or bicycle. All conference venues including the welcome reception and conference dinner are reachable within 5 to 20 minutes walk from the city center. Therefore, once you’re here, the best way to navigate is by walking or biking. Do you want to rent a bike? There are several options, for example Fietsverhuur Groningen. If your hotel is further from the city, you can use the local buses. Again, you can pay by tapping a debit/credit card on the reader when you get on and off the bus. We strongly suggest that you do NOT try to reach the city center or conference venue by car or taxi. Cars often take longer than walking and taxis are costly.