Travel information

The main conference venue will be the Rochester Building and Ogden Centre West, Durham University. More information about the Venue is here. 

See some relevant pins here on Google Maps.

Please note that you will need to have cash (British Sterling) or a credit/debit card to buy the train/metro/underground tickets. If you expect a problem with this, please get in touch. Please get, and keep, the receipt if your travel costs are being covered. 

If you have a train ticket with an allocated coach and seat number, please sit in this correct seat. 

Getting to Durham

From Newcastle Airport or Ferry Terminal

You will first need to get to Newcastle Central station on the metro, and then a train from there to Durham:

For the Metro, single tickets (for zones A, B and C) should be bought at the machines on the way to the metro platform. They currently cost £4.50 (more information: here). These paper tickets are placed in the slot as you enter through the barriers. They will be needed again to exit the barriers at Newcastle Central Station. To check the timetable for the metro see: here. 

Newcastle runs a metro service (GREEN line) directly from Newcastle Airport to the Newcastle Central Station. In the airport, follow signs to the metro, go down the ramp and, just before the barriers, you will find the ticket machines. The Port of Tyne ferry terminal is a 10 minute walk from YELLOW line Meadow Well Metro Station (buy tickets from the machines at the station), which can be used to get to Newcastle Central Station. Alternatively you can take bus 327.

From Newcastle central train station there are rail services that travel to Durham which is a roughly a ~10-15 minute journey. These services include LNER, Crosscountry, and the Transpennine Express. Tickets for travel from Newcastle central to Durham can be purchased in advance online via the ticketing app “Trainline”  (you can also use this to check the timetable), or they can be bought on the day at the ticket machines in the station (there are several throughout the station). Your ticket will specify if you must travel on a specific train, or can get on any train. 

A direct taxi to Durham can to cost in the region of £60 from the airport, for example if booked through East Coast Taxis in advance (cheaper) or directly at the counter inside the airport (more expensive). For those who are having travel costs reimbursed, we do not expect to cover the costs of a taxi (we would expect metro/train) except in exceptional circumstances, please get in touch if you think you will need this. 

From London Heathrow

The Transport For London underground Piccadilly line runs from all London Heathrow terminals. This line can be taken directly to London King’s Cross station. Exiting the underground station at King’s cross, LNER runs a service directly to Durham which is a ~3 hour journey. It is recommended that tickets for this train are purchased in advance to get reasonably priced tickets. Either from LNER or from the “Trainline”. Undeground tickets can be bought on the day from the machines (this will not be needed if you have a train ticket that includes the journey all the way from London Heathrow).

Please check if you have a ticket which requires you to travel on a specific train (e.g., an "Advance" ticket). Get in touch if it is not clear for you. 

Getting Around Durham

If you prefer walking, the Ogden centre and Physics department is a ~17 minute walk from the city centre. If you are staying in Collingwood college, the department is a short (<10 minute) walk in the direction of the city.

The cheapest way to get around Durham, if not walking, is via bus. The bus station is on North Road which is just down the train station hill. Most bus services run regularly on either a 15 or 30 minute frequency. Buses servicing the Physics campus are Arriva buses numbers 6, 56, 57, and the X12 (calling at New Inn Church Street). 

Buses servicing Collingwood college is Arriva bus number 6 (calling at South Road Colleges). Not all buses announce the stops so it may be worthwhile having Google maps on hand to confirm where you are getting off the bus.

There are taxi services in Durham. Taxis from the train station take cash and card/contactless, however taxis taken from the North Road next to the bus station only take cash. Uber also services Durham and Newcastle.