THE SYMPOSIUM VENUE, COSTS AND BOOKING

The Symposium will take place in Tsarskoe Selo (a suburb of St. Petersburg, also known as Pushkin) in a palace built for Prince V. P. Kochubei in 1911-1914, designed by architects Aleksandr Tamanyan and Nikolai Lansere. Tsarkoe Selo was a summer residence of the Tsar, and is well known for its many palaces, including the Katherine Palace which houses the famous Amber Room.

The venue is an education centre of the Polytechnic University, and the whole Palace will be made available to the Symposium. The co-location of the hotel accommodation, the restaurant, and the lecture theatre within a single building will greatly facilitate discussion and socializing among the delegates. The venue is only 20 mins from a Metro Station. Details of the facilities at the Palace can be found at:

www.mtcenter.ru/en/index.html

and a picture gallery can be found at:

www.mtcenter.ru/en/gallery/index.html

Alternative hotels in Tsarskoe Selo and St Petersburg will also be offered, although please note that hotel rooms in central St. Petersburg are considerably more expensive. Additional days can be booked if you would like to extend your stay after the Symposium or arrive earlier. Given that July is high season in St Petersburg, if you would like to stay at the Palace please book by 31 March 2009 by emailing the local organizing committee (iutam.2009@gmail.com) with your requirements.

The dates for the Symposium are:

Welcome reception: Sunday 5 July Technical meeting days: Monday 6 July to Thursday 9 July

In planning your expenses, please note that the IUTAM Symposium has a registration fee. This fee covers printing costs, coffee breaks, the welcome reception, the conference dinner, a city bus tour, and a copy of the Proceedings (a hardbound book by Springer). A fee for accompanying persons will be charged only for social events. Every effort will be made to keep the registration fee, the reduced fee for students, and the fee for accompanying persons as low as possible, with an absolute maximum of USD 500.

The rates for rooms in the palace are now available:

Single room rate 2500 RUB = 57 EUR
Double room rate 3000 RUB = 70 EUR
Higher quality room rate 4500-5000 RUB = 100-120 EUR

Breakfast in included in these rates. In addition lunch and dinner are available at 8 EUR and 7 EUR respectively. We must order and pay for lunch and dinner in advance - please let us know if you wish to take your meals at the Palace. It is hoped that all delegates would take lunch.

The symposium fee is 280 EUR or 380 USD for a regular participant and 100 EUR or 140 USD for an accompaying person. (This sum can also be paid in roubles. This information can be useful from the countries with another currency, e.g. UK. A cash machine (ATM) is at the symposium site). The conference fee should be paid in cash at the registration desk on site. No credit card is accepted. A receipt by the Russian Academy of Sciences with the stamp will be provided.

Both credit cards and cash are accepted in the hotel at the conference site (palace).