Jaszowiec (reads: Yashovyets) is a part of Ustron health resort town, located in the Silesian Beskid Mountains in the Southern part of Poland, about 30 km from Bielsko-Biala, 120 km south-west from Kraków (Cracow). Accommodation will be provided at the recreation house "Gwarek" in single and double rooms with bathrooms. The conference fee includes accommodation and meals, starting from dinner on Sunday, September 6, until lunch on Friday, September 11, and social events.

You can also plan to arrive earlier in Jaszowiec, just after the BIADS'98 Conference. Several rooms in the "Gwarek" hotel will be available for the participants of EDS'98 from Thursday, September 3, at their own cost.

The remote location of the meeting and the timing of the programme schedule provide a unique opportunity for a truly one-week workshop atmosphere. A time between lunch and afternoon session is set aside to offer a possibility of discussing and exchanging ideas and to have a relaxing walk in the mountains.

The weather in the first half of September is usually warm and pleasant, with the temperature reaching up to 24C and rather cool nights. Nevertheless, sudden changes including rains and drops of day temperature under 10C are not exceptional. The sport shoes for mountain hiking are recommended.

TRAVEL INFORMATION

Depending on your choice of travel to Poland, we would like to recommend the following convenient connections to Jaszowiec from several major Polish cities.

The nearest international airport to Jaszowiec is located in Kraków, 120 km from Jaszowiec. You can also travel through the international airport in Warszawa (Warsaw), 400 km from Jaszowiec, and the domestic airport in Katowice, 90 km from Jaszowiec.

From Warszawa, Kraków or Katowice, Ustron-Jaszowiec can be conveniently reached by train. We recommend the InterCity Train No. IC 1407 from Warszawa Centralna Station (departure at 15.05) to Bielsko-Biala (arrival at 18.43). The same train can be caught in Katowice (departure at 17.47). When you come through Kraków we recommend to take the Fast Train No. D 37100 from Kraków Glowny Station (departure at 15.35) to Katowice (arrival at 16.56) where you can change to the train IC 1407 to Bielsko-Biala.

On Sunday, September 6, the conference bus will be waiting for the participants in front of the railway station in Bielsko-Biala (at the parking lot on the right hand side of the station) starting from 18.30 up to 19.10. The bus will be labeled with the conference logo on yellow paper.
 

Participants, who will not travel with this bus, can take a train. The nearest railway station to Jaszowiec is Ustron-Polana (the third train-stop in Ustron) on the railway line Katowice - Wisla. The path from Ustron-Polana to the conference hotel (about 2 km) is clearly indicated by tourist signs. Taxi is also available at the station (price: about 20 PLN).

There are also bus connections (PKS bus line) from Katowice and Bielsko-Biala with bus-stops near the stations. Taxi is available from Bielsko-Biala to Jaszowiec at a cost of about 100/160 PLN (30/50 USD); prices for day/night service.

Detailed timetables for train connections to and from Ustron Polana can be searched on the Deutsche Bahn WWW page: http://bahn.hafas.de/bin/db.s98/query.exe/en

When coming by car, take the road E75 (Katowice - Cieszyn), exit in Skoczów, direction Wisla. In Ustron take the main road through the town (direction Wisla), go almost to the end of the town and turn left to Jaszowiec. The turn is just after a crossing with the railway line. Then follow the tourist signs. The conference hotel "Gwarek" is signposted. There is a guarded parking lot at the hotel.

Polish currency is zloty (PLN). At present, approximate exchange rates are 3.5 PLN for 1 USD, and 2 PLN for 1 DEM.

Participants from certain countries may need a visa to enter Poland. On request, they will be provided with a letter of invitation confirming their participation at the conference which should be presented in the nearest Polish consulate.