Travel and local information
The Venue
NCPW14 will be held in Lecture Theatre 1 in Lancaster University Management School on Lancaster University's campus. The campus is approximately 3 miles from Lancaster city centre. The Management School is number 52 on the campus map.
Accommodation
On campus, there are university halls of residence accommodation. Rooms cost £45 per night for a single en suite room including breakfast. Please book via the accommodation form or here: www.conferences.lancs.ac.uk/bedandbreakfast.
Also on campus is the University House Hotel, Green Lane, Lancaster, LA1 4GJ, Tel: 08458 509508. Mention that you are visiting the university for the special university rate of about £85 per night.
In the city, 15 minutes bus ride away are several options, for full list ask Tourist Information 01524 582394, www.visitlancaster.co.uk, or try a dedicated hotel booking website, e.g. www.hotels.com
- The Sun Hotel and Bar, 63-65 Church Street, Lancaster, Lancs, LA1 1ET, 01524 66006. Lovely rooms, fabulous breakfast, from £65 per night. Cheese and good beer available all evening.
- Lancaster Central Hotel Travelodge, King Street, Lancaster LA1 1RE, from £25 per night. It's fairly new, and actually not too bad.
- Penny Street Bridge, Penny Street, Lancaster LA1 1XT, 01524 599900, from £79 per night. Lovely bar downstairs, with good local food deli boards and beer is quite good.
- Royal Kings Arms, Market Street, Lancaster LA1 1HP, 0843 1787161, Charles Dickens once ate cake here apparently, rooms from £52 per night. Live the life of a decayed aristocrat!
- The Shakespeare, 96 St Leonards Gate, Lancaster LA1 1NN, 01524 841041, from £33 per person per night.
- The Old Station House, 25 Meeting House Lane, Lancaster LA1 1TX, 01524 381060, from £40 per night.
Conference Dinner
The dinner will be at The Borough, 3 Dalton Square. The Borough is in the Centre of town and can easily be reached by local service buses and taxis.
Travel
By Air
Manchester airport is closest to Lancaster. An hourly rail link runs directly between Manchester airport and Lancaster, and takes approximately 85 minutes. Be careful because trains don't run very early or very late (but infrequent buses do) - see below for checking times. Liverpool airport is also a possibility, but travelling from the airport is a mini-adventure (bus to Liverpool centre, then train).
By Rail
There are direct rail links between Lancaster and many of the UK's major cities and airports. For train times, visit www.nationalrail.co.uk.
The X1 bus service runs every 20 minutes between the University and the Railway Station (hourly on Sunday afternoons and evenings).
Local taxi services can be contacted on: +44 (0)1524 32090; +44 (0)1524 35666 and +44 (0)1524 848848.
By Car
Leave the M6 motorway at Junction 33 and take the A6 north towards Lancaster.
For Lancaster University main campus - turn right at the third set of traffic lights on the A6 into the University main drive.
Take the first exit left from the roundabout at the top of the main drive, then the first avenue on your right.
This brings you to the Reception Lodge where security staff will direct you to your destination on campus.
If using an online route planner or satnav, please note that the university postcode is LA1 4YW.
Visitor car parking is available on campus 24/7 and is free after 6pm.
If you're visiting campus during the day then parking charges do apply and can be purchased from any of the 11 pay and display machines across campus a cost of £5 for a day.
Wheelchair accessible spaces are clearly marked across all car parking areas on campus. Blue Badge holders should park in Bowland Avenue.
A car parking permit is included if you stay in University accommodation.
By Bus
In the City: The bus station is situated on Damside Street in the City Centre. Buses (services 2, 2A, 3, 4) leave for the University every five minutes on weekdays and most services also stop at Common Garden Street. Additionally, the X1 bus service runs every 20 minutes between the Railway Station and the University (hourly on Sunday afternoons and evenings) - this service does not route via the main bus station but does have various pick-up points through the city centre.
On Campus: All buses drop off and collect passengers in the Underpass, situated underneath Alexandra Square. Additionally, services 3 and 4 serve the southern perimeter road around Alexandra Park and service X1 serve the northern perimeter road. There is also a bus stop directly outside the Sports Centre on the main drive.
There is also a daily National Express service from the campus to Birmingham and London.
By Bicycle
Lancaster was recently a Cycling Demonstration Town (2005-2011) which means it benefited from increased investment in facilities and initiatives for cyclists. It takes 30 minutes or so to cycle from the city centre to campus on the two University signed routes.
Eating and Drinking on Campus
Each college in the University has its own café bar. There is also a café in the Management School building. Other choices right by the conference venue: Wong's Chinese Restaurant (as authentic as you like), Wibbly Wobbly Burger bar. Left from the conference venue is Pizzetta Republic, and The Sultan Indian Restaurant.
Evening Meal
Most of Lancaster's restaurants are within 5 minutes walk of the City Centre. Nearly all are inexpensive. You could try:
- Sabai Thai Restaurant, 6A Chapel Street, 01524 846667
- The Gatehouse Restaurant (various), White Cross St, 01524 849111
- Quite Simply French (more expensive end of costs, can be very very good), 27A St George's Quay, 01524 843199
- The Borough (various), 3 Dalton Sq, 01524 64170
- The Sultan of Lancaster (famous South Asian cuisine), The Old Church, Brock St, 01524 61188
- The Water Witch, Canal Tow Path (if it's sunny, there's nowhere nicer to sit), 01524 63828
- Etna's Ristorante Italiano (tiny, bonkers and atmospheric), 22 New St, 01524 69551
- The Sun Hotel (it really does have lovely cheese), 63-65 Church St, 01524 66006
- Miyabi Japanese Restaurant, 6 Cable St, 01524 848356
What's on?
Lancaster is a fairly serene place, but good for folk music if you know where to look. Events are advertised here: www.citycoastcountryside.co.uk/whats-on.
Live music most nights at the Robert Gillow pub, Ye Olde John O'Gaunt pub, and the Yorkshire House pub.
Places of Interest
See www.visitlancaster.co.uk for details of local places to visit.
Lancaster has a famous old castle and priory church which are worth visiting.
Williamson Park is a beautiful park, and good place to reflect on experimental psychology, containing the Ashton Memorial (Lancaster's answer to the Taj Mahal) and a Butterfly House.
Lancaster City Museum and the Maritime Museum are both quaint. Alternatively, see how Lancastrians lived then, and in some cases now, by visiting the Cottage Museum. The Judges Lodgings contains the Museum of Childhood, as well as a famous collection of Gillow's furniture.
At Heysham (a direct bus ride from Lancaster) are two beautiful old churches. St Peters was founded in the 8th century (current building dates from 1340). Just next to it, overlooking the sea and the Lake District mountains is St Patrick's chapel, which dates from the 9th century, with some fascinating rock-cut tombs in the vicinity.
Lancaster is surrounded by spectacular scenery, hiking and climbing country. The Yorkshire Dales national park is 10 miles away. The Lake District national park is 20 miles away.
The stagecoach 555 bus takes you directly from Lancaster through the heart of the Lakes - if you've never been before, then Ambleside or Grasmere are good destinations. The Trough of Bowland Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is 2 miles away. For exceptional bird-watching, and bird-watcher watching, the RSPB centre at Silverdale is a short train ride away.
