Travel
The Meeting's events will be held in a number of buildings in the University of Edinburgh's Central Area. The Fiftieth Anniversary Symposium on Sunday 6th September will be held in the Playfair Library in Old College, the talks on 7th-9th September will be held in the Dugald Stewart Building, which is the home of the Department of Linguistics and English Language, and the lunches will be in other venues nearby. Precise details are given on the main page and in the participants' packs which will be given out at registration - all you need to do is find the registration desk! The University is easily accessible from anywhere in the city, and is within walking distance of the train station and all the city centre shops and restaurants. A map is available here (this is centred on Bristo Square, which is next to the Dugald Stewart Building and very close to Old College), or you could use the University's maps here.
Getting to the Meeting from the airport and city centre
For most people, travelling to the Meeting will involve either flying into or getting the train to Edinburgh and then either walking or getting a bus or a taxi to the conference venue (or to your accommodation first, perhaps). It's easy to get into the city centre from Edinburgh airport: use the number 100 Airlink bus which leaves every few minutes and which drops you off next to the main train station (this is the last stop on the bus journey). This station (called Waverley Station) is where most intercity trains terminate, too.
Waverley station is a good orientation point - it's situated right in the centre of the city, between the New Town and the Old Town, just next to Princes Street (Princes Street is the main central shopping street in Edinburgh), and there are normally lots of taxis available at the station. It's about 15 minutes' walk from the station to the University. You need to head south: walk up from the station into the Old Town along Cockburn Street and then down the Royal Mile and along South Bridge. Use this map to guide you (that should take you to Old College, which is where the Jubilee Symposium will be held, and the Dugald Stewart Building is two minutes' walk from there).
Getting to the Meeting's accommodation
If you have booked accommodation through the meeting website, you will be staying in Pollock Halls. The university's maps for Pollock Halls are here. The accommodation is next to Arthur's Seat (the extinct volcano, now in Holyrood Park, on the edge of the city centre) and is about 15-20 minutes walk from the Meeting's venues. Use this map to guide you from Old College to Pollock Halls (and vice versa).
Edinburgh: orientation and information
The University's Central Area, where the Meeting will be held, is situated in Edinburgh's Old Town, a few minutes' walk from the Royal Mile. Central Edinburgh is made up of the New Town, to the north, and the Old Town, to the south, with Princes Street and (Princes Street Gardens) in between. You should make sure that you have the chance to walk round the city while you're here - it's stunning. Walk up and down the Royal Mile to the castle at the top and the Scottish Parliament at the bottom, walk around the New Town (which starts at Princes Street and carries on northwards for several streets), or walk up Calton Hill or around Holyrood Park.
Some further useful information about Edinburgh can be found here:
- the Lonely Planet website for Edinburgh has some general information about the city
- the Edinburgh Tourist Information website also has some handy information about the city (click on 'City & Area Guide')
Alternative accommodation
If you would like to book alternative accommodation, to get a more luxurious or cheaper room, there are many alternatives available in Edinburgh. The easiest way to find somewhere is to use one of the many internet accommodation search sites. If you try Trip Advisor, you'll find lots of details and some interesting comments about the hotels (not always to be trusted, but you can probably go by the average opinion). Enter your check-in and check-out datesThe
Grassmarket Hotel
This one may be quite loud (the Grassmarket is a popular drinking
area), but seems quite cheap, and is 10 minutes'
walk from the conference venue
This is in the ugliest building in
Very central in Edinburgh, maybe a little jaded (about 20 mins' walk)
Looks fine (very close to the conference)
Fine if faceless (about 10 mins' walk)
Express
By Holiday Inn
Looks new and quite nice, may be a bit loud (about 10 mins' walk)
Travelodge Edinburgh
Central
Faceless but probably fine (about 15 mins' walk)
May be quite loud (it's on the Grassmarket), but seems quite cheap
(about 10 mins' walk)
More pricey, but meant to be nice, well situated (about 10 mins' walk)
Hostels
The cheapest option would be to stay at one of the many hostels in Edinburgh. These have some very cheap accommodation: under GBP10 in a dorm with a shared bathroom, and several have private rooms for around 20 pounds, too. There are a number of hostel searching websites, which should help you to see what's available, and to book accommodation:
hostelworld
hostels.com
There
are hostels all over Edinburgh.
The following, listed on the hostel websites above, are all quite close
(10-15 minutes' walk) to the
conference venue:
Castle Rock Hostel
Argyle Backpackers
Royal Mile Backpackers
smartcityhostels Edinburgh
Euro Hostel Edinburgh
Halls
Edinburgh Backpackers
St Christopher's
The
main YHA hostel in Edinburgh
is new and looks nice, although it's a bit of a distance from the
conference (30 minutes' walk). There are lots of buses, though.
Contact details
A dedicated email address for the LAGB 2009 organisers has been set up. If you have any queries, please email lagb2009@ling.ed.ac.uk.The main page for the 2009 Meeting is here.
The homepage of the Linguistics Association of Great Britain is here.