Travel/Accomodation Advice

Airfares
It is a good idea to organise your airline tickets very soon. Perth is the most remote city in the world, and this does mean it can be tricky getting late booked seats and best prices. Perth is as far from Sydney as Madrid is from Moscow, or Los Angeles is from New York. Thus, Sydney may or may not be a logical through point for your trip to Perth. It has been the unfortunate experience of some recent American visitors to fly to Perth from Beijing, via Sydney, on the advice of an American travel agent who presumed that Sydney was a logical hub for Perth (actually, Perth is slightly closer to Beijing than Sydney). Our visitors were rather shocked to discover that it was another twelve hours travel to Perth and back.

Perth has direct links with many Asian and Middle Eastern hubs, and a large variety of airlines service it, so make sure that your travel agent is offering you good options. For example, Perth is literally on the opposite side of the Earth from the East coast of America, and so it may be cheaper for delegates from there to get a round-the-world ticket. These deals often also offer the advantage of free stop-overs in other places. Similarly, while Qantas/British Airways offer superb flight times/transfers from London to Perth via Singapore, the Emirates Airline flies directly out of various regional British airports, and have a shorter overall flight time to Perth.

Jet Lag/Time Zones
Anywhere in Australia/New Zealand is a long way from anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere, not only in travel time, but often also time zones. If time/budget allows, you might want to arrive on Thursday, rather than Friday, to rest up.

Dates
The conference begins on Sat 15th September at 8.30 am, and ends after the formal conference dinner on Tuesday night, the night of 18th September.

Accomodation
The conference itself will take place in the heart of Northbridge, Perth's cultural and nightlife centre. Our venue is next to the Perth Cultural Centre and Perth Train Station, and the best cross street reference is William Street and James Street, Northbridge.

A wide range of accommodation standards is available within easy walking distance of the conference venue. Suggestions are:

The Acacia - All Seasons Perth , Robinson Avenue, Northbridge, is a moderately priced hotel well regarded by previous conference attendees, is literally minutes 5 walking distance to the main conference venue, and is in a quiet street.

At the other end of the scale is "backpacker" hostel accommodation. Backpacker accommodation is traditionally used by young holiday makers on a low budget, with a high tolerance for noise, shared bathroom facilities and dormitory style accommodation, so be aware of this possibility if you are seeking cheaper accommodation.

We have personally inspected The Old Swan Barracks  "backpacker" hostel which is sensationally located 1 minutes walk from the conference venue/cafe`s, has very low traffic noise, and can cost as little as Aust$20...it is basic, old (actually a very interesting Heritage listed building), but clean. All bathroom facilities are shared. The managers are happy to organise female only shared rooms.

Other Recommendations

Hotels

Aarons Hotel
Star Rating 4, prices from $125 - $165, location: 70 Pier Street, Perth
www.aaronsperth.com.au <http://www.aaronsperth.com.au>

Saville Park Suites
Star Rating 4, prices from $140 - $330, location: 201 Hay Street, Perth
savillehotelgroup.com.au

  The Kings Hotel
Star Rating 3, prices from $75 - $129, location: 517 Hay Street, Perth
www.kingshotel.com.au <http://www.kingshotel.com.au>

Criterion Hotel
Star Rating 4, prices from $95 - $185, location: 560 Hay Street, Perth
www.criterion-hotel-perth.com.au <http://www.criterion-hotel-perth.com.au>

Hotel Ibis Perth
Star Rating 4, prices from $99, location: 334 Murray Street, Perth
www.ibishotels.com.au <http://www.ibishotels.com.au>

The New Esplanade Hotel
Star Rating 4, prices from $85 - $105, location: 18 The Esplanade, Perth
www.newesplanade.com.au <http://www.newesplanade.com.au>

Hostel/Back Packers
The Old Swan Barracks
Prices from $21 - $89, location: 6 Francis Street, Perth
www.theoldswanbarracks.com <http://www.theoldswanbarracks.com>

Perth City YHA
Star Rating 4, prices from $21 - $37, location: 300 Wellington Street, Perth
www.yha.com.au <http://www.yha.com.au>
 
Coolibah Lodge
Star Rating ?, prices from $20 - $56, location: 194 Brisbane Street, Perth
www.coolibahlodge.com.au <http://www.coolibahlodge.com.au>

Billabong Backpackers Resort
Star Rating 4, prices from $20 - $68, location: 381 Beaufort Street, Perth
www.billabongresort.com.au <http://www.billabongresort.com.au>

 

Townsend Lodge
prices from $28 - $62, location: 240 Adelaide Terrace, Perth
www.townsend.wa.edu.au <http://www.townsend.wa.edu.au>

A web search for "accommodation Northbridge" or "accommodation Perth CBD" will give you plenty to look at (The CBD "Central Business District" is immediately next to Northbridge).

This website  provides a good detailed map of streets (once you click on "Perth" and search for "suburb-Northbridge").

Do not book accommodation in Fremantle, Scarborough, West Perth, or South Perth. Although all of these will offer sensational views of ocean and river, they are all too far from the venue ie: 20 minutes by public transport. We will ensure that you see some sensational views while you are here, as part of the conference activities.