Information for delegates and accompanying persons

Corfu (Kerkyra)

The island of Corfu is part of the Ionian cluster of islands and it is situated on the northern part of the Ionian Sea. Corfu is a famous tourist resort and one of the most attractive islands of the Ionian cluster. The island of Corfu (Kerkyra) has been blessed with unparalleled natural beauty as it pulses with wonderful coasts, idyllic sites, fertile plains and verdurous spots. Apart from this fact, Corfu has been also blessed by history, a fact that is reflected all over the magnificent landscape that throbs with archaeological sites, castles, monasteries, buildings and traditional settlements of irresistible charm.

Its history along with the natural beauty of the island have made it the ideal spot for holidays and has been a popular resort since the beginning of tourism. Corfu is connected with Athens (the capital of Greece) by plane (50 minutes).

Corfu, the capital of the island (36,293 inhabitants) is one of the most impressive towns in Greece. It demonstrates not only an excellent natural habitat but also interesting monuments of history and art. It is divided into: 1) the old town with the Venetian buildings and those of the English order, the mansions 2) the modern town.

Getting to Corfu

By Airplane:
In the summer, Corfu is a major tourist destination. As a result, there is a large number of low-cost charter flights from many European cities to its airport Ioannis Kapodistrias, which is located 2 km away from the capital of the island. Furthermore, there are frequent flights from the airport Eleftherios Venizelos at Athens. The duration of that flight is 50 minutes. Corfu is also connected with the town of Thessaloniki.

The national flag carrier OLYMPIC AIRLINES flies to Corfu three times a day with good connections to its international network, while Greek regional start-up airline AEGEAN flies twice a day.

Corfu is however well served from May through to October with charter flights from all major European charter airlines, offering good connections to most U.K., German, French, Belgian, Dutch, Swiss, Austrian, Scandinavian, and East European cities.

By Ferry:
A more adventurous alternative route is with the ferry from Italy, but this requires additional traveling days. During the summer there is daily connection to Italy (Venice and Trieste) by ferry. Furthermore, from the town of Patras there are several itineraries for the island of Corfu, throughout the year. The duration of the journey is 7 hours. You can also visit the island of Corfu from Igoumenitsa (1 hour and 15 minutes).

By Bus:
From Athens to the island of Corfu, via Igoumenitsa (and then ferry), there are bus itineraries all through the year. The duration of the journey is 11 hours. From Thessaloniki there are also bus itineraries for the island of Corfu. The duration of the journey is 8 hours.

Location

The conference will be held in Corfu Holiday Palace (five-stars) at the edge of Corfu town, in the Kanoni district, overlooking the Ionian sea on the one side and the lake on the other.

Close to the hotel are a number of cafes and restaurants enjoying the views the location offers, while a great choice of food and beverage facilities can be found all over Corfu town. Getting there can be either done by taxis, which can be ordered at the hotel reception, or with the frequently running local busses.

The airport is a ten minutes taxi drive away from the hotel.

Speaker information

UM2007 provides laptops OR PCs (windows XP with office software) and data projectors in all the conference and workshop rooms. Overhead projectors (OHP) and flipcharts may be available upon request. Speakers are advised to contact the corresponding session chair before the beginning of their session.

Posters

16 poster boards will be available throughout Wednesday, June 27, in the poster session area. Poster Boards dimensions: 200x120 cm. Presenters are encouraged to put their poster up well before the beginning of the session.

Internet Access

There is free 24/7 wireless access to the Internet around the UM2007 conference and workshops area.

Lunches

Lunch will be served at the Restaurant of Corfu Holiday Palace Hotel, according to the schedule. Participants will be given a lunch-ticket for each day and they have to hand it to the restaurant's cashier, in exchange for their lunch. There will be a limited number of additional tickets for sale at the price of 21 Euros each (children less than 12 years pay half price). The tickets can be bought at the conference secretariat.

Reception

The conference reception, includes a buffet dinner and will be served at the restaurant of Corfu Holiday Palace Hotel on Thursday, 27th at 20:30. Each participant will be given a reception ticket, which must be given to the restaurant's cashier, in exchange for dinner. There will be a limited number of additional tickets for sale at the price of 25 Euros each (children less than 12 years pay half price). The tickets can be bought at the conference secretariat.

Currency

Greece has joined most other E.U. countries in the introduction of the EURO as its currency. Other currencies are not widely accepted, while they can be exchanged at exchanges and Banks. Banks operate from 08:00 through to 14:30 from Mondays to Thursdays, and 14:00 on Fridays. The current rate to the U.S. dollar is approx. 1 EUR=1.3 USD.

Opening Times

Corfu being a holiday destination enjoys long opening hours for shops, especially in the summer months. Shops open between 09:00 and 09:30 in the morning and stay open up to 22:00 with an afternoon break usually from 14:30 to 17:00.

Electricity

Greece uses standard 230 V European sockets, which makes adaptors for delegates travelling with U.K. and U.S. electrical appliances a necessity.

Transportation

Bus line No 2 "Mantouki-Kanoni" connects Corfu Holiday Palace with the Corfu city centre, every half hour. The bus stops are close to the hotels that host most of the UM2007 participants. Please ask at your hotel receptions for information about the bus stops and the timetable.

Conference Dinner

The conference dinner will be held on Thursday, 28th at 20:30. It will be held in the Achillion Palace Gardens, which is located at Gastouri, a village set amid beautiful scenery on a green hillside, 10 kilometers from the conference place. It was built for the Empress Elizabeth of Austria, the renowned Sissy, in 1890-91 by the Italian architect Kapita. The Empress had a soft spot for the Homeric hero Achilles, and so named her palace after him. The neoclassical building is set amid magnificent gardens. The back part of the garden is dominated by the statue of "Achilles Dying", a creation of the German sculptor Herter. The participants will depart from Corfu Holiday Palace Hotel by buses at 19:15 and will return around 23.00. Each participant has been given a ticket, which will be collected by the members of the Organizing Committee. There is a limited number of additional tickets for sale at the price of 35 Euros each. The tickets can be bought at the conference secretariat by Wednesday, 27th noontime.

Excursions

Additional excursions are organized by Dafnis Travel Agency for the participants of the conference:

1) SIGHTSEEING CORFU TOWN
Tuesday 26th June 2007, Afternoon

The first stop on the excursion will be the MON REPOS. MON REPOS is an elegant villa built for the British High Commissioner, Frederic Adam, in 1824. Later on it became a summer residence for the Greek Royal Family and Price Philip was born there in 1921. After MON REPOS we will visit a part of old Corfu Town with the church of St. Spyridon, patron saint of Corfu. The sights of the town, the town hall, the king's palace and the aristocratic houses are witnesses of a glorious past. Finally we will have time for a walk through the old part of the town and it's nice shops.

Price 25.00 Euro per person. Children 5-12 years 50% discount 0-4 years free.

2) NORTH OF THE ISLAND
Full day tour. Saturday 30th June 2007

A very interesting tour to the picturesque coastline of PALEOKASTRITSA and a visit of the well known monastery there. On the way to Bella Vista, up on the hill, we will have the chance to enjoy the magnificent view of PALEOKASTRITSA with its bays. After passing through the village Makrades and the hill of Panteleimonas (with a short stop), from where we have a view of both the north and the south part of the island, we will travel through old villages and our next stop will be in the fishing village Kassiopi for lunch (not included in the price) and swim. Then we will drive along the northeast coast with a view to the mountains of Albania. During a stop we will see the beautiful bays of Kouloura and Kalami. The return will be on the east coast of Corfu.

Price 38.00 Euro per person. Children 5-12 years 50% discount 0-4 years free.

For more info on the excursions please contact with Mr. Nikitas Tsirintanis.

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