DCRN 2019 Conference Location
The DRCN 2019 meeting will take place at the Department of Mathematics, of the Faculty of Sciences and Technology of the University of Coimbra, in main campus "Pólo I" (in Alta, UNESCO’s World Heritage), Coimbra, Portugal, and hosted by INESC Coimbra (INESCC).
If it's your first time in Portugal, we will tell you how to get to Coimbra and DRCN 2019.
Address: Departamento de Matemática da FCTUC, Largo D. Dinis, Coimbra, Portugal (GPS: N 40°12'28.30", W 8°25'22.53")
Touristic Information About Coimbra
The history of the University of Coimbra dates back to the century subsequent to the very foundation of the Portuguese nation, since the University was established in the 13th century, in 1290.
More information about the main historical landmarks of the University of Coimbra, with references to the history of Portugal, and the appointment of all the rectors of the institution from the 13th century to the present day, can be found here.
With over seven centuries of history, University of Coimbra has a remarkable material and immaterial heritage and represents a fundamental piece on the European and world scientific cultural history. You can virtually visit the University of Coimbra here.
The University of Coimbra, one of the most relevant educational institutions in Portugal and abroad, was granted UNESCO’s World Heritage status [see here].
For touristic information, you can visit the Official tourism website, the University of Coimbra and UC World Heritage Site - University of Coimbra, Alta and Sofia to learn about all of the sights, activities, restaurants, and more available during your stay in Coimbra.
To experience a little of what Coimbra has to offer, watch below a video about Coimbra.
Visa Requirements
Portugal is in the Schengen area (comprising 26 European countries), for which foreigners may need an entry visa. If you do need it, please make sure you apply for it well in advance before your departure. In the Schengen area, you may travel freely between member countries. However, we recommend that you access the SEF (Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras - Immigration and Border Services) website and Portal das Comunidades Portuguesas. For more information or questions contact the local organizing committee.
How to get to Coimbra
The international airports are Airport of Porto (at about 100 km, north of Coimbra) and Airport of Lisbon (at about 200 km, south of Coimbra). Both airports have regularly scheduled flights to and from all main European destinations as well as major world cities [see more...]. Coimbra has no international airport.
The quickest/cheapest way will be to arrive either to Lisbon or Porto and take the train to Coimbra. To get in either case from the airport to the train station, your best bet is the metro.
From Lisbon Airport
So, if coming by Lisbon:
By Train
The recommended route is:
Lisbon Airport --metro/taxi--> Lisboa Oriente --train--> Coimbra-B
If you chose to travel to Portugal directly through the Airport of Lisbon please have in mind that this Airport is 200 km from Coimbra but it has more connecting flights from most international centres. Arrive at Portela Airport, and take the metro to Gare do Oriente.
You need to buy a metro card (Viva Viagem/7 Colinas card, costs 0,5€) and charge it with tickets (each ticket should be about 1,5€, just a ticket needed to go from the airport to Oriente, and quite a short ride, about 10mins). A new metro will arrive every 6-10 minutes depending on the time of day. There is just a single metro line at the airport, it ends at the airport and it goes through Oriente, so should be easy.
At Oriente, take the train to Coimbra:
The line goes from Lisbon to Porto via Coimbra. You can pre-book your tickets at www.cp.pt, https://www.cp.pt/passageiros/en or just buy them at the station.
A 2nd class ticket should be less than 25€ from Lisbon to Coimbra (with small variations according to the speed of the train. You should choose either Alfa (AP) or Intercidades (IC). AP trains are more comfortable than IC trains and also quicker.
You will arrive at Coimbra-B train station. You can continue travelling with your ticket to Coimbra-A (the central train station) but you will need to change trains. The connection trip takes just 4 min and there is a connection every 10-30 minutes (depending on the time of day). You can also take a Taxi to your hotel from Coimbra-B (which should cost no more than 10€).
Note that the last IC train leaving Lisbon for "Coimbra-B" departs not very late from Lisboa "Oriente" (at the moment at 21:39 but check nearer the conference date).
By Bus
By express bus: you will need to take the metro or catch a taxi to “Sete Rios” Bus Station; the journey should take approximately 15 minutes. Express buses to Coimbra run every hour (during the day) and you should expect the journey to take approximately 2 hours and a half. The price of the ticket should cost around 15 euros.
Check the website of the Express Buses Network for the timetable and prices.
https://www.rede-expressos.pt/en/default.aspx
By Airport Shuttle
A recent alternative are airport shuttles from the airport direct to Coimbra hotels (and vice-versa). The price seems competitive, but we have no direct experience with the company.
https://www.airportshuttle.pt/
By Car
By car: when leaving the airport you should take the A1 motorway to Coimbra and exit in Coimbra Sul. You should expect the journey to take about 2 hours.
From Porto Airport
Otherwise, if coming by Porto:
If you chose to travel to Portugal directly through the Airport of Porto please have in mind that although this Airport is closer to Coimbra it may have less connecting flights to most international centres. If you are flying to Lisbon you can pick a connecting flight to Porto but this will not save you time.
By Train
The recommended route is:
Porto Airport --metro/taxi--> Porto-Campanhã --train--> Coimbra-B
Arrive at Franciso Sá Carneiro Airport, and take the metro (tram) to Estação de Campanhã
Again you’ll need to buy a metro card (Andante Azul card, 0,6€) and charge it with tickets (you will need to charge with Z4 tickets, each would be about 1,95€). Again, just a single line (line E – violet line) which goes from Aeroporto to Estádio do Dragão -- Campanhã is the stop before the last. The trip will take 33 minutes and there is a new connection only every 20-30 minutes (depending on the time of day).
At Campanhã, take the train to Coimbra:
(Yes, it’s the same link as before, the line is the same just in the opposite direction)
You can pre-book your tickets at www.cp.pt, https://www.cp.pt/passageiros/en or just buy them at the station.
A 2nd class ticket should be less than 18€ from Porto to Coimbra (with variations according to the speed of the train). You should choose either Alfa (AP) or Intercidades (IC). AP trains are more comfortable than IC trains and also quicker.
You will arrive at Coimbra-B train station. You can continue travelling with your ticket to Coimbra-A (the central train station) but you will need to change trains. The connection trip takes just 4 min and there is a connection every 10-30 minutes (depending on the time of day). You can also take a Taxi to your hotel from Coimbra-B (which should cost no more than 10€).
Note that the last IC train leaving Porto for "Coimbra-B" departs early from Porto "Campanhã" (at the moment the last daily is at 19h52, but check nearer the confererence date).
By Bus
By express bus: you will need to travel by metro (line E) until the “Campo 24 de Agosto” Stop (25 minutes). From there, you can cross the square to walk to the Bus Station “Campo 24 de Agosto”. Express buses to Coimbra run every hour and you should expect the journey to take approximately 1 hour and a half. The price of the ticket should cost around 15 euros.
Check the website of the Express Buses Network for the timetable and prices.
https://www.rede-expressos.pt/en/default.aspx
By Airport Shuttle
A recent alternative are airport shuttles from the airport direct to Coimbra hotels (and vice-versa). The price seems competitive, but we have no direct experience with the company.
https://www.airportshuttle.pt/
By Car
By car: when leaving the airport you should take the A1 motorway to Coimbra and exit at Coimbra Norte. You should expect the journey to take about 1h 15m.
Once you are in Coimbra
The Department of Mathematics is located in the main campus of the University of Coimbra, known as "Pólo I".
This area is served by two city buses:
- line 103: (Estação Velha - Sto António dos Olivais (via Universidade)), which connects the main train station (Estação Velha), the centre of Coimbra to the University of Coimbra (Pólo I) and the Faculty of Economics (Sto António dos Olivais);
- line 34: (Universidade - Pólo II), which connects the two main university campuses.
Line 103 is the most convenient whenever you are in the central urban area of Coimbra (Baixa - downtown).
The main campus of the University of Coimbra is also served by other city buses. These do not go through the main campus itself, but the stop "Arcos do Jardim" is in a 2 minutes walking distance from the Department of Mathematics:
- Line 5: Pedrulha – Estádio
- Line 11, Line 11C: Arnado - Bairro Norton de Matos
- Line 24: Arnado - Quinta da Nora
- Line 24T: Bairro Norton de Matos - Palácio da Justiça
Timetables in Portuguese are available at SMTUC web page, where you can also find a route map.
You may also find the moovit app useful for getting around in public transport in Coimbra.