MPC 2015 - Travel and local information

Check this page from time to time, we may add details as people request them. As a start, see advice about airport choice below. Note that Köln and Cologne are the same city.

By airport code:

CGN:

This is Cologne/Bonn airport. It is 30 street kilometers from the conference hotel. Taxi takes 20 minutes and costs between 50 and 60 Euros. Alternatively, during the day there is a direct local train connection to Königswinter. It takes 28 minutes to Königswinter train station and costs less than 10 Euros. Tickets must be bought at a ticket machine before entering the train. The train leaves at x:51 from platform 4 of the underground train station at the airport. The range of x depends on the weekday, on Sunday it is from 8 to 19. Outside those hours, train travel from that airport to Königswinter is less convenient, but possible (except during the deep of night). Contact us if you need further information about this.

FRA:

This is Frankfurt airport. It is too far from Königswinter for a taxi trip being advisable. Instead, our recommendation is to go via fast train to Siegburg train station, and from there to Königswinter (options for this are described below). Fast trains from the train station at Frankfurt airport to Siegburg train station take 38 or 48 minutes, run once or twice an hour during the day (less frequently during the night), and cost around 60 Euros (less with advance booking and some special offers). Tickets must be bought online or at a ticket machine or counter before entering the train. Siegburg train station is 20 street kilometers from the conference hotel. Taxi takes 15 minutes and costs around 40 Euros. Alternatively, there are local train connections to Königswinter. They involve an intermediate stop and change of train in Troisdorf, the fastest connection takes 28 minutes overall. The cost is less than 10 Euros (or can be included in the ticket from Frankfurt to Siegburg by a small plus). Contact us if you need further information about any of this.

QKL:

This is not actually an airport, it is the airport code of Cologne train station. But some airlines sell tickets to QKL that actually are comprised of:

  • Flight to Frankfurt airport.
  • Fast train from Frankfurt airport to Cologne train station. This is one of the fast trains mentioned above. It stops in Siegburg.
This gives you the same onward options as in the FRA item above. Moreover, it can be more convenient than buying flight and train ticket separately: the airline takes responsibility for the whole connection (also in case the train is running late on the return trip, for example) and you will (have to) sit in a separate train coach reserved for airline passengers. Also, you will normally not have to collect your baggage at the airport and carry it to the train station in Frankfurt, instead you can collect it at the train station and only carry it down to the train platform (ask your airline at check-in). The combined ticket sold by the airline might (or might not) be cheaper than buying flight and train ticket separately. Sometimes it might even be cheaper than just a flight ticket to Frankfurt (for the very same seat, on the very same plane, sold by the very same airline). The train connection from Siegburg to Königswinter will not be included, though. Also, on the return trip you will have to make sure that you do online check-in and have a boarding pass with you before entering the train from Siegburg to Frankfurt.

DUS:

This is Düsseldorf airport. There are various train connections to Königswinter. They typically involve an intermediate stop and change of train in Köln, take about 1.5 hours overall, and cost around 20 Euros. Contact us if you need further information about this option.

others:

There are additional airports (some served mainly by low-cost carriers) in a coach/train travel range between 2 and 3 hours from Königswinter: DTM, HHN, NRN. Contact us if you need further information about these options.

Note: On some flight search or booking sites, even when you search for airport Köln or Cologne/Bonn or CGN, you might be offered QKL connections. Similarly, when you search for Frankfurt or Düsseldorf, you might be offered HHN or NRN connections instead of FRA or DUS connections. So check carefully before you book, whether what you get is what you want.

Train connections can be found via Deutsche Bahn TravelService.

From Königswinter train station, it is a 15 minutes walk to the conference hotel:

For booking the hotel, see registration.