How to reach Leuven

Airports

The nearest airport is Brussels International Airport. There is also an airport in Charleroi (also known as Brussels South) which has cheaper flights (e.g. Ryanair), however Leuven is most easily reached from Brussels International Airport.

Brussels airport (Zaventem):

By train:
Entering the arrival hall, go to your right. You will find escalators and elevators going to LEVEL -1. Level -1 is the train station of the airport. There are two trains an hour leaving from the airport to Leuven (NOT Louvain-La-Neuve!). On both trains Leuven is the first stop after 14 to 16 minutes of riding. At the train station in Leuven you can walk, take a bus or a taxi to the hotel, depending where your hotel is.
By taxi:
a taxi takes about 25 minutes from Brussels Airport to Leuven. A single journey will cost about 70 euro. Always take a taxi at the official taxi stand.

For more info on Brussels Airport, go to: http://www.brusselsairport.be/en/

Charleroi airport (“Brussels South airport”, 45km south to Brussels)

There is no train station at the airport (Brussels South railway station is in Brussels and not at Charleroi!)
There are buses from the airport to the railway station (bus line A). You can purchase a ticket at the bus stop (door n°2) to Charleroi South railway station.
In Charleroi South Railway Station you can buy a ticket to Leuven (NOT Louvain-La-Neuve!). The travelling time will be between 80 and 95 minutes.

For more info on Charleroi or Brussels South airport, go to: http://www.charleroi-airport.com/
For more info on time tables for buses go to:
http://www.charleroi-airport.com/en/passengers/acces-and-parking/by-rail-bus/index.html
For more info on time tables for trains to Leuven (select Charleroi South Railway Station and not Brussels South Railway Station!), go to: http://www.b-europe.com/Travel

By train

By train Leuven (NOT Louvain-La-Neuve!) is only 20 minutes from Brussels, 45 minutes from Antwerp, 30 minutes from Liège, 90 minutes from the Belgian coast and at 2 to 3 hours from cities like Düsseldorf, Paris, Amsterdam, Calais,…
Travelers from France and England can easily take the Thalys, the Eurostar or TGV. The Thalys also comes in from the Netherlands and Germany. There is a 4 daily direct connection from Frankfurt to Liège and Brussels with the ICE. Most international trains make a stop in Brussels South railway station (=“Bruxelles-Midi”,“Brussel-Zuid”) . From this station (as from every main station in Brussels) it is easy to catch a train to Leuven. A train ticket from Brussels to Leuven will cost you between 3€ and 6€. There are at least two trains an hour to Leuven. The ride to Leuven from Brussels railway stations will take you about 30 minutes.

The train station of Leuven is conveniently situated at the edge of the city centre. The conference venue is in the centre of the city and is situated at an acceptable walking distance from the railway station. You can also take a bus (expl. nr. 2) to get to the conference venue. Get off at Fochplein (= end of Bondgenotenlaan). Then take Tiensestraat for about 300m; the conference is indicated (large porch) on your left (opposite to Hotel Mercure Leuven Center). The courses are held on the engineering campus in the neighbouring town of Heverlee. To get from Leuven to the campus in Heverlee, take bus nr. 2 (direction Heverlee Campus) or 616 (direction Zaventem) from Leuven railway station. Get off the bus at "Campus Arenberg II" after approx. 20 (when taking bus nr. 2) or 10 (when taking bus nr. 616) minutes.
Information about the schedules is available on the websites www.delijn.be for bus transport and http://www.b-europe.com/Travel for train transport.

By car

From Brussels or Liège

To get to Aula De Somer
Take the E40 motorway, then the E314 motorway (follow “Leuven Hasselt Genk”).
Take the exit “Leuven”. Continue and turn right just before the 4th traffic light. Do not go under the bridge and be aware of pedestrians and cyclists! Continue. Enter the city via “Naamse Poort” (=first traffic light, Delhaize supermarket and Total petrol station at your right side), by turning left. Continue. Aula De Somer is at Deberiotstraat (= 5th street on your right). Continue for 100m. Please note that there is very few parking in this street. We advise you to park your car at Ladeuze parking and walk to Aula De Somer.
To get to College De Valk
Take the E40 motorway, then the E314 motorway (follow “Leuven Hasselt Genk”). Take the exit “Leuven”. Continue and turn right just before the 4th traffic light. Do not go under the bridge and be aware of pedestrians and cyclists! (GB and Delhaize supermarkets are at your right hand side). Continue. Enter the city centre via the “Tiensepoort” (=third traffic light), by turning left. (Parking Ladeuze is already indicated) Continue. The conference venue (=Rechtsfaculteit-De Valk) is at 500m on your left.
To get to the course location:
Take the E40 motorway. Leave the E40 highway Brussels-Leuven-Luik at the exit "Leuven-E314" (A2). Leave the E314 immediately, at the exit nr. 15, "Leuven", and turn right at the third traffic lights. You are now in the Celestijnenlaan, and the Department is some 500m ahead, at your right-hand side, just across the bridge over the river Dijle. Our building is easily recognizable by the winch in front of it.

From Hasselt or Aachen

To get to Aula De Somer
Take the E314/A2 motorway (follow “Brussel, Leuven”). Take the exit 15 “Leuven”. Continue and turn right just before the 4th traffic light. Do not go under the bridge and be aware of pedestrians and cyclists! Continue. Enter the city via “Naamse Poort” (=first traffic light, Delhaize supermarket and Total petrol station at your right side), by turning left. Continue. Aula De Somer is at Deberiotstraat (= 5th street on your right). Continue for 100m. Please note that there is very few parking in this street. We advise you to park your car at Ladeuze parking and walk to Aula De Somer.
To get to College De Valk
Take the E314/A2 motorway (follow “Brussel, Leuven”). Take the exit 15 “Leuven”. Continue and turn right just before the 4th traffic light. Do not go under the bridge and be aware of pedestrians and cyclists! (GB and Delhaize supermarkets are at your right hand side). Continue. Enter the city centre via the “Tiensepoort” (=third traffic light), by turning left. (Parking Ladeuze is already indicated) Continue. The conference venue (=Rechtsfaculteit-De Valk) is at 500m on your left.
To get to the course location:
Take the E314/A2 motorway. Leave the E314/A2 highway at the exit nr. 15. Turn right at the third traffic lights. You are now in the Celestijnenlaan, and the Department is some 500m ahead, at your right-hand side, just across the bridge over the river Dijle. Our building is easily recognizable by the winch in front of it.

Parking in and near the city centre of Leuven

It is very hard to find a free parking spot in the City centre of Leuven (The maximum length of stay is usually limited to a maximum of 2 hours). Most of the streets in the city centre of Leuven have parking meters and the police and “stadswacht” regularly patrol the streets in order to give out fines to illegally parked cars.

Visitors are therefore advised to park their cars in one of the following:

PAYING parking lots:
- Parking Ladeuze: 740 parking spots, underground
  Address: Ladeuzeplein 20, it’s entry is indicated from the “Tiense Poort”
  Tel.: (+32) 16 31 07 07
  Opening hours: 7 days a week, 24 hours a day
  This is just opposite the conference venue
- De Bond: 385 parking spots at the railway station, underground
  Address: Martelarenplein 18 (entry by way of the tunnel)
  Tel: (+ 32) 16 58 43 90
  Opening hours: 7 days a week, 24 hours a day
  10 minutes walk from the conference venue
  This parking is a P+R parking: with your parking ticket you can get a free bus ticket to the city centre. Just show your parking ticket when entering the bus.
- Sint-Jacobsplein: 338 parking spots, overground
  Address: Sint-Jacobsplein
  Opening hours: 7 days a week, 24 hours a day
  Pay between 09.00 - 21.00
  20 minutes walk from the conference venue
FREE parking lots outside of the ring:
- Parking Bodart: 165 parking spots, overground
  Address: Veilingweg
  30 minutes walk from the conference venue

How to reach Heverlee from Leuven by bus

The courses are held on the engineering campus in the neighbouring town of Heverlee. To get from Leuven to the campus in Heverlee, take bus nr. 2 (direction Heverlee Campus) or 616 (direction Zaventem) from Leuven railway station. Alternatively, you can also take bus nr. 2 (direction Heverlee Campus) from stops in the city center. Get off the bus at "Campus Arenberg II" after approx. 20 (when taking bus nr. 2) or 10 (when taking bus nr. 616) minutes.
Information about the schedules is available on the website www.delijn.be.