Practical Information (travel and site access, accommodation, catering)

The information given below will help you in organising your visit and stay in Grenoble.

Reminder: the registration on line will be available from mid-November.

Travel to Grenoble & site access information
Accommodation & catering
What to do in Grenoble

Travelling to Grenoble and site access information

ESRF

The European Synchrotron
71 avenue des Martyrs

38000 Grenoble
France

The ESRF is located in Grenoble in south east France, about 3 hours by high-speed train from Paris, 2 hours by bus from Geneva, and 1 hour by high-speed train from Lyon.

Travel arrangements

Keynote Speakers and VIPs

Their travel expenses will be covered by the ESRF up to a maximum amount set by the organisers (they should contact the organisers in case of doubt),
Their travel arrangements should be made by the ESRF Travel Office provided that the request is made through their electronic registration form (specific "Travel" page).

UDM Invited Speakers (Users' talks) - Regular participants - PostDoc/PhD students

They are requested to make their own travel arrangements to and from Grenoble, and to cover their travel expenses.

How to reach Grenoble and the EPN site

Arriving by train, by plane, by car, by local public transport: click HERE for complete information.

Map access to EPN site.

Local public transport

Tramway & bus network in Grenoble

Tram line "B" (timetable)

It allows easy access - even at night - downtown Grenoble -> ESRF -> Grenoble downtown,
its terminus - 'Grenoble Presqu'île' - is situated just 350 metres from the site entrance;
it serves downtown Grenoble, including the bus and railway station;
A timetable of the tram "B" will be given to all participants in their envelope.

Purchase of bus & tramway tickets for local public transport

You can can buy a pass for the tramway & bus network in Grenoble (TAG):

in the “Agences de Mobilité” (the closest is Avenue Alsace Lorraine, not far from the railway station),
in the newspapers and tobacco shops,
and in the automates at each tram stop (payment in cash or with a credit card)

The cost of one ticket (valid 1 hour) is 1,60€. A 10 trips pass costs 14,50€.

Airports

Airports closest to Grenoble are :

Passport and visas

Please check with the nearest French Consulate or your travel agent well in advance of the meeting for up-to-date information.

We can provide you with an official document ("Convention d'Accueil d'un Chercheur ou d'un Enseignant-chercheur Etranger") to apply for a French visa: consult our information page on "Visa Requirements" and send the requested information to obtain a "Convention d'Accueil" directly to the event organizers.

We will accept the requests for a "Convention d'Accueil" to apply for a French Visa ONLY from those participants who registered for the User Meeting 2019, and who payed the registration fee.

Site Access and Badge

The EPN site is a restricted area and you will be asked to report in at the site entrance on arrival.

You will need to produce proof of identification. Since 1st September 2018 the driver's licence is no longer accepted as ID for entering the EPN site, even for French nationals. A valid passport or a valid national identity card (i.e. not expired) are now the only acceptable form of identification for all those wishing to access the site. Please ensure you have valid identification with you.

You will be given a badge and a lanyard at the site entrance : please wear this badge and lanyard on site over the whole period of the event. This badge is also your site access badge: you will be asked to present it at the site entrance each time you wish to enter on site during the period of the event.

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Accommodation & Catering

Accommodation at the Guesthouse

For security reasons, the ESRF Guesthouse is NOT available for accompanying persons; moreover, children under 16 are not permitted on site

The Guesthouse will be exceptionnaly open during the period of the User Meeting, from Sunday 3 February to Thursday 7 February (4 nights), to accommodate the participants:

Keynote Speakers, Invited Speakers (users' talks), VIPs and User Organisation Committee members will have priority for accommodation at the Guesthouse,
The remaining rooms will be available for the participants of the User Meeting (regular participants and students); the rooms will be allocated on the "first come, first served" basis.

Keynote speakers - Invited Speakers (Users' talks) - VIPs

Their accommodation expenses will be covered by the ESRF up to 4 nights.

User Meeting regular participants and PostDoc/PhD students

The rooms will be allocated on a first come, first served basis; the participants who cannot be accommodated in the Guesthouse on site will be immediately informed so that they can make their own bookings (see below "Hotels")
The cost of their stay at the Guesthouse will remain at their charge,
The cost of a night per person - breakfast included - will be:
- for a single room: 42,72 Euro
- for a double room: 35.82 Euro

The requests for accommodation arrangements must be done through the electronic registration form ("Accommodation" page)

Accommodation in hotels

The ESRF will NOT pre-book rooms in hotels.

The participants who cannot be accommodated in the Guesthouse on site or who wish to stay in hotels downtown, will have to make their OWN BOOKINGS.

A list of hotels is available here. Prices might change slightly in 2019. This table presents a list of hotels with which we are accustomed to work, conveniently located in the center of Grenoble, near bus and tram stops or near the train station. The ESRF benefits from special room rates in some of them (please specify that you are coming to the ESRF User Meeting).

More hotels on the Grenoble Tourist Office's website: www.grenoble-isere.info

Reminder

> the Tram B is joining downtown Grenoble to the "Avenue des Martyrs" in 15 mn, therefore public transportation between downtown hotels and the ESRF will be easy.

Meals

The registration fee covers:

3 lunches at the ILL/ESRF restaurant on site (lunch tickets will be in the envelope given at the registration desk)
During the shutdown for EBS, the canteen is closed at night: the meal tickets are for lunches ONLY (Monday to Wednesday).

For other meals, participants are free to make their own arrangements (a list of restaurants will be available at the meeting reception desk. Consult also the Tourist Office web site).

coffee breaks organised during the three days of the event
'Soirée Bistrot' on Monday 4 February (under the marquee)
User Meeting dinner on Tuesday 5 February (after the poster session)

Note: Possibility to take the tram B (stop "Grenoble Presqu'île" close to ESRF) which joins the Avenue des Martyrs to Grenoble downtown in 15mn.

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Grenoble information

Time out - Grenoble Area Activities

Consult the Tourist Office web site for complete information on Grenoble (discover the city, what to do, restaurants, hotels, practical information,...).
Details of places to visit and ski resorts are available at Grenoble-Isere Tourism.

The TOURIST OFFICE is located:

14, rue de la République - Grenoble
Tel.: +33 (0)4 76 42 41 41
Fax: +33 (0)4 76 00 18 98
E-mail: welcome@grenoble-isere.inf

You may also find useful information on the local French websites below:

Cinema - Timetable can be found there www.cinema-grenoble.com

or in Le Petit Bulletin, a copy of which is usually found at the entrance to the canteen. "La Nef" and "Le Club" usually show films in the native language with subtitles.

Bike hire - Bikes can be hired from Metro Vélo at Grenoble rail station. Details: http://www.metrovelo.fr/metro-velo-uk.php

Walking - SIPAVAG is an organisation which manages waymarked footpaths in the Grenoble area. You can catch a bus or tram to the start of all the marked paths.

Taxis Grenoblois - Tel: +33 (0)4 76 54 42 54.