In line with our goals to reduce this meeting’s carbon footprint, we encourage delegates to use public transport to attend where reasonably possible.
Getting to Bristol
Rail: Bristol’s main train station is Bristol Temple Meads. Temple Meads has good rail connections to the rest of the country, though you may need to change at Birmingham New Street if coming from the North. The station is a short walk from the centre of the city and most of the accommodation options. There are a number of bus options connecting Temple Meads to the university and conference venues. Consult The Trainline and National Rail for route advice and ticket prices.
Coach: National Express, Megabus and Flixbus all run long-distance coach routes to Bristol from various locations. When making your booking, check the drop-off point: National Express takes you to Bristol Bus & Coach Station, Megabus and Flixbus go to Bond Street. These locations are very close to each other and to the university.
Air: Bristol Airport has daily flights to numerous cities across Europe, including connections to major changeover hubs such as Amsterdam. The airport is connected to the city centre by the Bristol Airport Flyer bus service which is inexpensive and runs regularly.
Car: For delegates wishing to travel by car, Bristol is located in South West England and is connected to the M4, M5 and M32 motorways. Please note that parking within the city centre is extremely expensive, and we are unable to organise on site parking at the University.
Getting to the university
The University is located north of the city centre and is a 30 minute walk from the Bristol Temple Meads station or a 20 minute walk from the Bus and Coach Station. Taxis are readily available at Bristol Temple Meads but are less common from the Bus and Coach Station.
The two main locations for the conference are the Wills Memorial Building and the Life Sciences Building. We recommend searching for these by name if using Google Maps.
Both locations are located uphill from the city centre and the gradients can be very steep. There are buses which will drop you off opposite the Wills Memorial Building, but the Life Sciences Building is poorly served by buses from the centre, and accessing this building will require walking up some steep inclines. We have secured generous funding from the Company of Biologists to provide taxis for any delegates who would find this a problem.
Accommodation
We recommend staying centrally, close to the University and Bristol’s famous harbourside.
Bristol is well-equipped with reasonably-priced accommodation close to the conference venues (see below). These options are walkable from Bristol Temple Meads train station and are all less than one mile from the conference venue. AirBnBs are also available, but check the distance from the venue and travel options before booking, because bus coverage of Bristol is very patchy..
Selected hotels and hostels with price per night:
Travelodge (Bristol Central Mitchell Lane): ~£70-90
Premier Inn (Finzels Reach, Haymarket, King Street, Lewins Mead): ~£60-90
Youth Hostel Association Bristol: £20-40 shared room, £45-90 private room.
Harbourside Hostel: £18-20 shared room.
The Bristol Wing (hostel): £30 shared dorm, £50 shared room, £63 single.