The joint-conferences event is to be held in Lausanne
Lausanne is a relatively small city (app. 130'000 inhabitants) that you can discovery on foot.
Yet it has some major attractions that you may really like. So, plan to spend time in Lausanne beyond the event, e.g. coming the week-end before or staying over the week-after.
If you love Nature
Lausanne is located in a beautiful scenery. Right on the Lake of Geneva, with the Alps in front, the view on a nice day may be just fabulous.
You can enjoy it at best scrolling in the park along the lakeshore in the early morning (before sessions start) or at sunset (after the sessions).
If you love Skiing
End of March is still ski season, and going for a ski day from Lausanne is extremely simple. Many places for downhill ski are reachable from Lausanne
in app. 1h-1h30 Cross-country skiing is even closer: Les Rasses (Jura) is less than one hour away. Equipement rental is available both in Lausanne and in the ski resorts.
If you love the Olympics
Lausanne is considered the capital of the Olympic games as the Olympics Committee has its headquarters in the city.
Moreover, Lausanne hosts the Olympics museum, a top attraction that drives scores of tourists from all over the worls.
See its description at the official Olympic website.
If you love the Arts
Lausanne has a stunning museum you will not easily find elsewhere. It is called Collection de l'Art Brut,
located just in front of the conference venue building. Visit it and you will be impressed.
Other museums worth a visit are
L'Hermitage, for fine arts, and L'Elysée, for photography.
If performing arts have your preference, check the schedule of the Ballet Béjart , the world famous dance troupe lead by late Béjart.
If you love Gastronomy
Very close to Lausanne is one of the best restaurants in the world. The Restaurant de l'Hotel de Ville in Crissier, better known as Philippe Rochat's restaurant, is a really unforgettable culinary experience... if you can afford it in terms of money and in terms of time (no fast serve).
If you love Ontologies
Nicola Guarino will be giving a seminar on March 29-31 at the University of Lausanne.
The seminar is organized by CUSO and the Information System Institute of the University of Lausanne.
Detailed information on the seminar is available here.
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The joint-conferences event is to be held in a conference centre named Palais de Beaulieu
Where
The conference will be held in the fourth floor of the Palais de Beaulieu, an exhibition and conference centre that is very close to the city centre.
Please note that although the organization of the conference is being coordinated by EPFL, the conference is NOT held at EPFL.
The conference venue is walking distance (5-15 minutes) from hotels in the city centre.
From hotels in Ouchy (lakeside) you can take the
city metro uphill to Riponne and then walk, or take bus number 2 (at Ouchy stop) towards Desert and get out at Beaulieu stop.
From the train station take bus 21 (to Blecherette) or 3 (to Bellevaux) and get out at stop "Beaulieu".
The lausanne bus map is available here.
Given the small size of the city, wherever you are it will take you less than 30 minutes to get to the conference.
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Money
Swiss Francs (CHF), but Euros and Credit Cards are accepted. In April 2009, 1.00 CHF = 0.66 EUR, 1.00 EUR = 1.51 CHF
Language
Swiss French, but English, German and Italian are frequently spoken.
Other cities or places close to Lausanne
Within one hour from Lausanne you can reach Geneva, Neuchatel, Montreux and the Chateau de Chillon, Neuchatel, Gruyere, Martigny, ...
You can reach Zurich and Basel in app. 2.5 hours. Interlaken, Grindenwald, Luzern, Zermatt and St. Moritz take a bit longer.
Direct trains can take you to Paris and Milano in less than four haours.
