How to find your way to Nijmegen and the Quantum Gravity group:

The Quantum Gravity group can be found at the second of wing 8 of the Huygens building which is located at

Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ Nijmegen

Once you have entered the Huygensbuilding through the main entrance, you go left, towards the elevators, or go all the way to the end of the left hall, to the staircase. Go to the 2nd floor. Our group is located in wing 8 (which is written above the orange doors). Our secretariat is at room HG02.823.

• Coming to Nijmegen by train
• Coming to the department by bus
• Coming by car

If you are travelling by train, one of the following situations will apply:

• From Schiphol Airport, take a train to Utrecht Central station, where you change trains. There are direct trains to Nijmegen Central station every thirty minutes. The journey will take an hour and a half in total.
• From the south (Paris, Brussels, etc.), you will have to change trains at the first station in the Netherlands, Roosendaal. You take the intercity train to Arnhem, and get off at Nijmegen. There is a train every thirty minutes, and the journey will take about an hour and a half.
• From the southeast (Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, etc.), the train will take you through Germany along the Rhine until you arrive in Arnhem. Trains between Arnhem and Nijmegen run every 10-15 minutes. It only takes a quarter of an hour to get from Arnhem to Nijmegen.
• From the northeast (northern Germany, Scandinavia, etc.), the train's itinerary will include cities such as Hanover in Germany. Hengelo is the first station in the Netherlands. Do not get off there, but continue for half an hour until you get to Zutphen, where you change trains for Nijmegen. You should arrive in Nijmegen after approximately 40 minutes.
• By boat from overseas (England, Ireland), you will probably arrive at Hoek van Holland. At Hoek van Holland you should take the train to Rotterdam Central station, where you change trains for Breda. In Breda, board the train to Arnhem, and get off at Nijmegen. The train journey takes between 2 and a half and 3 hours.

Once in Nijmegen, you can either continue by train to Nijmegen Heyendaal station, which is only 5 minutes from the department on foot, or take a bus (see below).

By train, take the (Veolia) short-track train that leaves every 8 minutes past the whole hour and 8 minutes past every half hour, from track 1b from Nijmegen Central Station to Station "Nijmegen Heyendaal". From this station, walk south wards, and cross the 'Heijendaalseweg' at the crossing with the traffic lights, to the 'Huijgensbuilding', which is the large green building you see on the picture above.

When travelling by train, keep three things in mind:

• Always check at the railway station (or if possible at home) to verify that the travel information mentioned above is still correct. To find out about train times, routes and tickets in the Netherlands, please look on www.ns.nl, and choose 'English'.
• In the Netherlands, trains do not run all night. If you arrive on a very late international train, it is possible that you will not make it to Nijmegen that day. The latest possible arrival time ranges between 0.30 A.M. and 1.30 A.M.
• Do not buy a ticket every time you change trains. In most European countries, you will be able to buy a ticket to Nijmegen in your hometown. If this is not the case, buy a ticket to Nijmegen at the first station in the Netherlands you enter, regardless of how many times you may have to change trains. This will save you much time (and money).

Once you have arrived at Nijmegen Central Station, the easiest way to get to the university is by bus. There are many direct lines from the station to the university (3, 9, 10 en 11), amongst others the 'Heyendaal Shuttle'. Get off at stop 'Station Nijmegen Heyendaal' after only 6 minutes. Ask your bus driver to announce your stop, as it is not clearly indicated. The Huygens Building, in which the dept. of Astrophysics is located, is only a minute away on foot.

In bus, tram or metro (and also by train) in the Netherlands, you can either buy single fare tickets or use a 'OV-chipkaart', a Public Transport Chip card, which you have to buy, in advance, at a train station and, to which you should transfer credit (through the same machine with which you bought the card or at the ticket counter) to be able to travel with it. Travelling with the OV-chipkaart, make sure you check in and check out!! When you check-in, the boarding rate of € 4,- will be automatically deducted from your card. When you check-out, the boarding rate will be set back, and the actual travel fare will be deducted. When you do not check-out, you will pay the full boarding rate of € 4,-!

Nijmegen is a city in the eastern part of the Netherlands, a mere 10 kilometres from the German border. It is located on the banks of the river Waal, the main tributary of the Rhine. With a good road map, Nijmegen should be easy to find. In Nijmegen, follow the 'Universiteit' signs. See this simple map of Nijmegen and this campus map.

All on-campus car parks are equipped with barriers and point-of-pay terminals. Regular parking cost € 1.00 per hour and a maximum of € 5.00 per day. After 6 pm and during weekends regular parking is free. It is most convenient to park your car at P11 (which is right underneath the Huygens building) or P12 (a few minutes on foot).

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