Venue

The venue will be Monash University's main campus in Clayton, in the South Eastern suburbs of Melbourne. Melbourne is the second largest city in Australia, with a population of around 4 million.

Useful Links

• Here is a Campus Map. Talks will take place in Engineering lecture theatres E2 and E5, in building #32 (grid reference C3).
• The Visit Melbourne Website gives a number of tourist attractions and places to visit in Melbourne and further afield.
  
• The City of Melbourne Website lists events occuring around the city area and provides useful links to maps and other visitor information.
  

Travel Information

Most likely you will arrive at Melbourne's main airport (Tullamarine), which has 3 main terminals all within easy walking distance of each other. The airport is about 25km North West of the centre of Melbourne. The conference venue is at Monash University's main campus (Clayton), which is a similar distance South East of the centre of Melbourne. If you arrive by train from interstate you will reach Southern Cross Station. Whichever way you arrive the following are your options for getting to Monash University's Clayton campus are detailed below.

Travel to Monash from Melbourne Airport

• Airport Bus Dandenong provides transport direct from Melbourne Airport to Mannix College (see Campus Map F3) where many conference people are staying. Bookings are essential. Make sure you check the schedule for pick-up times, because they are not frequent. Cost is $25 one-way.
• Melbourne SkyBus provides transport between Melbourne Airport and Southern Cross Station. Travel time is roughly 20 minutes and bookings are not required in advance. The SkyBus runs so frequently that you do not need to worry about the schedule. Cost is $26 for a return ticket (valid for a return trip within 3 months) or $16 for a one-way trip. From Southern Cross Station follow the directions below.
• Taxis are located outside Airport Terminals 1 and 3. An approximate cost can be calculated using the Taxi Fare Estimator but it will be of the order of $100 and one hour to travel to Monash Clayton or to accommodation nearby.
• It is possible and cheap, though very slow, to travel to Monash via standard public transport only (i.e. avoiding the skybus). To do this catch the 901 bus to Broadmeadows station, then a train to Southern Cross station, and proceed as below. If considering this option you will need to buy a 2 hour Zone 1+2 ticket ($6.00) from the bus driver when you board, and that ticket will suffice for your whole journey. You can check the schedule using the Public transport journey planner. The stop where you catch the 901 is across the road (called Service Road) beyond terminal 4 (a considerable distance to the right once you exit from the main terminals). Initially follow the signs for Tiger airways.

Travel to Monash from Southern Cross Station

If you get the skybus from Melbourne airport or arrive by interstate train, you will reach Southern Cross Station.

Buy a "2 hour zone 1 full-fare" metcard (for $3.80) from the ticket machine or manned booths. You will need to feed this ticket into the slot to have the barriers open for you. (NB. If you arrive on Sunday you can buy a "Sunday Saver" ticket instead. It costs $3.20, but is not sold by the machines so you need to find a manned booth.)

You should take a train towards Cranbourne or Pakenham. These trains typically leave from Platform 11 or 12. TV monitors at the station will list the stops that the next train makes.

You will be on the train for a bit more than half an hour.

You should get off the train at Huntingdale station (so check before boarding that the monitor lists this stop).

Walk down the ramp and turn left, then walk up the ramp.

Cross the road at the pedestrian lights.

Then transfer to either the 601 or 630 buses (whose stops are straight ahead of you), or the 900 bus (which stops nearby, to the left of where you crossed the road).

All three bus routes run to Monash University Busloop (see Campus Map E2), and take only 5 minutes to get there. The ticket you bought for the train is also valid for the bus (you don't need a new one). Insert the ticket into the green box when boarding.

Mannix College is directly across the main road that the bus turned off to enter the busloop.

Note that the above instructions suffice to get you to the main campus or to Mannix College. If you are staying other places nearby that are not within walking distance, you should check the Public transport journey planner. It is very likely that you will need a Zone 1+2 ticket ($6.00) rather than just the Zone 1 ticket that suffices to get to Monash. See Metcard fares for further information on ticket prices.

Driving yourself to Monash

If you are renting a car, ask the car rental staff for a 'Melways Street Directory'.

From the Airport you will need to travel down the Tullamarine Freeway (Highway 43). After travelling over the Bolte Bridge veer left onto the M1 and follow this Freeway (the South Eastern Freeway) all the way to Blackburn Road turnoff. (Map 70 on the Melways Street Directory). Turn right into Blackburn Road, follow Blackburn Road to Wellington Road intersection. Turn right into Wellington Road. Monash University will be on your right, and Mannix College will be on your left.

Please note that the Tullamarine Freeway and South Eastern Freeway both have significant tolls (despite their names!) for which you will need to ring up the advertised number to pay. Locals use electronic tags in their cars to pay the tolls.

Parking at Monash

During the conference and in the weeks before and after it, parking is free (even without a permit) in the BLUE permit zones in:

• the N 1 multi-level carpark (map reference B2 in the map linked above); and
• the SE 4 multi-level carpark (map reference E5 in the map linked above).

The former of these is the closest to the venue for the talks. Parking anywhere else on campus (including other blue zone areas) requires a permit.

If you are staying at Mannix college you can park a car there, but you will need to ask Mannix for a parking permit when you arrive.

Travel around Monash

Public transport information is available at Metlink. In your conference bag you will receive a map that shows the local bus and train routes.

Food on Campus

There are a number of food outlets on campus. These are located in the Campus Centre (see Campus Map D3, Building 10) and Building 30 (see Campus Map C2). Other popular campus venues are the cafe in Building 75 (see Campus Map D1) and the Den in the underpass of Building 4 (see Map E3). Monash publishes a Good Food Guide which lists some of these outlets.

More details of food outlets will be provided in your conference bag.

Shopping in Melbourne

Discounts at Chadstone Shopping Centre

If you are a overseas, interstate or country (live more than 50km from Chadstone) visitor, you can collect a free Visitor Passport from the Customer Service Desk at Chadstone Shopping Centre. This gives discounts of up to 30% at over 200 stores. You are required to provide proof of your visitor's status such as driver's licence or passport.

Queen Victoria Market Tours

The Queen Victoria Market is a great place to shop, eat or simply to experience a part of Melbourne's history. A number of tours are available including historical tours and the Foodies tour. Details are available here.

Things to do

Walking tour of arcades and lanes of Melbourne

Spend a pleasant 1.5 hours investigating the best hidden secrets of Melbourne's historic arcades and lanes. Free maps and information are available here.