One could argue that Utrecht is the Netherlands’ most charming city. Set in the heart of the Netherlands, Utrecht is a beautifully well preserved vibrant student town. With no less than a millennium of history, Utrecht is proud of its age-old traditions. the Netherlands’s fourth largest city is the kind of town you can visit at any time of the year. If you are keen on UNESCO-protected architecture, then Utrecht’s churches and ancient sunken wharf cellars will be a real treat. Of course, visiting a city isn’t just about seeing all of the sights: with the social tours that we will offer next year you’ll be able to get to know the real Utrecht, which you can thoroughly explore in a few days in your free time while attending next year's symposium.
Utrecht has a compact, historical city centre and an extensive range of shops, restaurants and landmarks. Thanks to its compact location, affordable accommodations and good connections to the public transportation network, Utrecht is also the ideal point of departure for discovering the Netherlands. Within an hour of travel, you can experience all of the Dutch icons and be eye to eye with endless fields of flowers, castles, windmills and beautiful art.
The inner city of Utrecht is best reached by public transport. You simply take the tram, bus, (train) taxi or rent a bicycle at the station. City buses are entering the centre from all directions. An extensive network of city buses ensures that every district is easily accessible. However, a bike is a fun and relaxed way of getting to know Utrecht. So do just as the locals do: get to know the car-free centre and surrounding neighbourhoods by bike. Utrecht is nicely compact and, in no time, you'll find the most beautiful urban parks or find yourself in the middle of the woods.
Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, just like city of Amsterdam is in very close proximity to Utrecht. It is about 50 km from the aiport, 35 mins drive or just under half an hour by train from Utrecht Central station.
Amsterdam and Schiphol Airport are just 30 minutes by train; Rotterdam and The Hague at 45 minutes. Daily international trains from and to Brussels (2 hours), Cologne (2.5 hours) and Paris (3.5 hours).
