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Getting to Cambridge

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Getting to Cambridge

Passport/Visa Requirements

Please note that the United Kingdom is not part of the European Union Schengen Area. Participants who are not European Union passport holders are advised to check visa requirements.

Overview

Cambridge may be reached by air, Eurostar, rail, car and coach. The Cambridge bus and train stations are about 25 and 40 mins walk from the accommodation and conference venue, so it is easiest to take a taxi (cost about £5). Make sure you ask for Wolfson Court (which is not the same as Wolfson College and is not on the same site as the rest of Girton College!) on Clarkson Rd.

Travelling by Air

London Stansted Airport

This is the closest major airport, about 25 miles (40 minutes by car) from Cambridge. It is well served by budget airlines flying to European destinations. For flight information contact BAA Stansted or contact the airlines directly. Cambridge is within easy reach of Stansted by rail, coach or car.

Stansted railway station is under the terminal, with services to Cambridge operated by Central Trains. They take about 30 minutes. The service operates every day, the first train departing at 05:51 (Monday to Sunday). The last direct train to Cambridge departs at 21:18 Monday to Saturday and 22:40 on Sundays. If you arrive late, you can take a Liverpool Street train and change at Bishops Stortford to a Cambridge train. This may involve a wait of of up to an hour, so it is then quicker to take a coach (see below) or taxi (cost approx £60!).

Coach services to Cambridge run at hourly intervals, and take about 45 minutes (JetLink lines 757 or 797, see GoByCoach). Tickets can be purchased from the ticket desk in the coach station area of the terminal or on board.

London Heathrow Airport

Many airlines fly to London Heathrow. The easiest way to get to Cambridge is to take the direct coach service, which runs hourly (Jetlink 787 or 797, see GoByCoach) and takes a scheduled 2.5 hours to reach Cambridge. However, there may be significant delays due to heavy traffic on the M25 London ring-road.

Heathrow is also served by the Picadilly line of the Underground which goes direct (in about an hour) to King's Cross station, from where there is a good train service to Cambridge.

London Gatwick Airport

This airport is located south of London. A fast train service, the Gatwick Express connects it to Victoria train station. From there, take the Underground (Victoria line, northbound) to reach King's Cross station, and take a train to Cambridge. There is also a direct coach service to Cambridge (Jetlink 797, see GoByCoach) which takes around 4 hours.

London Luton Airport

Some budget airlines like EasyJet use Luton airport, which is about 35 miles from Cambridge. Consult Luton Airport for a list of operating companies. There is no direct train connection from Luton airport to Cambridge, but a coach service ( JetLink 787) runs once every two hours, departing just outside the terminal building. It takes about 1.5 hours to reach Cambridge.

London City Airport

The City airport is located very close to central London, serving some major European cities. Taxis and a shuttle bus allow connections to train or coach services to Cambridge.

Travelling by Eurostar

Eurostar trains operate from Paris or Brussels via the Channel tunnel to London Waterloo. From there, take the Underground to King's Cross station to continue by train to Cambridge.

Travelling by Rail

General information about UK train services is available from Railtrack.

Regular train services link Cambridge to London. Trains depart from King's Cross or Liverpool Street stations in London. The journey time of the faster King's Cross trains (Cambridge Cruiser trains) is about 45 minutes, while the other trains take over an hour.

Travelling by Car

Follow this link for directions on how to reach Wolfson Court from the airports.

Car parking is available at Wolfson Court (the entrance is a drive just past Wolfson Court, and must not be confused with the Newton Institute car park!). You can park temporarily on Clarkson Rd while unloading, but not during the day.

Travelling by Coach

Frequent coach services operate from central London to Cambridge. These depart from Victoria coach station (near Victoria rail station) and take about 2 hours (or more at peak times). Tickets can be bought from the driver on board. Please note that delays are common because of heavy traffic in and around London. The train service from King's Cross is much better unless you are on a very tight budget.

Long-distance coach services from elsewhere in the UK are run by JetLink and NationalExpress. Stagecoach Cambus runs local services in Cambridges.