Conference Information 1. Conference location and how to get there The conference will be held at the Plantahof, an educational agricultural centre in the town of Landquart, situated about 10km east of Chur, the district capital of the Canton of Grisons. This is east of Zurich, in the German speaking part of Switzerland. Link: http://route.search.ch/?route=zuerich+to+landquart 1.1 Arrival by airplane Zurich is the closest international airport. Directly within the airport (lower level) is the national railroad (SBB) station. Tickets to Landquart (or Maienfeld) can be bought at the ticket-machines or the SBB-counter. One-way or return ticket is your choice, there is no discount for return tickets. The price is CHF 19.50 one-way and you have to change trains at Zurich main station, to the train for Sargans-Landquart-Chur. There are two fast trains every hour, leaving Zurich at 37 and 12 minutes past the hour, usually departing from Platform 7 or 8. The journey takes 1h 04 or 1h 20 min respectively. From the Landquart train station to the Plantahof it is a 15 min. walk - or a taxi ride, or take the bus towards Igis. Tell the driver you want to get off at the stop near Plantahof. http://www.gr.ch/de/institutionen/verwaltung/dvs/lbbz/dienstleistungen/tagungszentrum/ Documents/anfahrtsplan.pdf If you are booked into the Swiss Heidi Hotel in Maienfeld and intend to travel directly there from Zurich you must change at Sargans from the fast train to Chur to a local train which stops in Maienfeld. The fast trains to Chur don't stop at Maienfeld. The hotel is located about 150 meters from the train station. http://www.swissheidihotel.ch/pagina/anreise If you plan to travel within Switzerland by train before or after the congress, please check the ticket offers by SBB: http://www.sbb.ch/en/leisure-holidays/holidays-- short-breaks-in-switzerland/swisstravelsystem/swisstravelsystem-buchung.html 1.2 Arrival by car 1.2.1 Destination Plantahof Leave the motorway A13 at the Landquart exit 1.2.2 Destination Swiss Heidi Hotel Leave the motorway A13 at the Maienfeld exit 2. Accommodation We recommend two alternatives: Conference Centre Plantahof or Swiss Heidi Hotel in Maienfeld. 2.1 Plantahof The Plantahof is an educational centre and has the necessary infrastructure for lodging 80 people in twin bedded rooms. It is not a hotel with a 24h service. The organizing committee will lend a helping hand in case of any problems. After dinner the Bee-Bar will be open for lively conversation.
Rooms There are 40 quiet and spacious rooms with two beds in two comfort classes: - Rooms with shower and toilet (Offer 1). - Rooms with washbasin, shared facilities for shower and toilet (Offer 2). Reservations Please make your reservation for staying at Plantahof through the conference secretariat (Linus Kempter) and not the Plantahof office. The prices quoted include room, breakfast and dinner. Reservations are only for two people per twin room, but a separate registration form must be completed for each person... 2.2 Swiss Heidi Hotel Maienfeld Recommended as the alternative to the Plantahof. Located about 6 km from the conference centre in the town of Maienfeld. Participants can benefit from a special price: 5 nights for the price of 4. Please make reservations directly with the hotel, mentioning SICAMM. For other durations kindly arrange the price with the Hotel management: Swiss Hotel Heidi: www.swissheidihotel.ch Transportation for conference participants and accompanying persons to and from Plantahof will be organised, although there is also a direct rail link between Maienfeld and Landquart. 2.3 Arrival Thursday, August 30th 2012 Please plan your arrival for late afternoon. This will give you ample time for congress registration at the Plantahof and getting ready for the excursion on Friday. There will be no dinner provided at the Plantahof on Thursday, but there are several Restaurants in the vicinity. On Thursday evening around 07:00 pm there will be an orientation meeting at the Swiss Hotel Heidi in Maienfeld for those staying there. Conference registration for hotel guests will be possible at that time. 2.4 Other accommodations Please let us know if you decide to stay at any other hotel. Transportation from other hotels to the Plantahof could be a problem and that is your responsibility. 3 Excursions, Friday, for all attendees Three different all-day excursions will be offered. They will all lead to technically, touristically as well as culturally interesting places. In order to adjust to the capacity of the buses we might be forced to shuffle applications around. 3.1 Excursion A: Liebefeld - Vinelz This excursion will lead us to the Swiss Bee Research Institute in Bern-Liebefeld. We will spend the morning learning about the national and international activities and results of this research group. Afterwards we drive towards the west, close to the Lake of Bienne. In the town of Vinelz we will have lunch and meet Ernst Hämmerli, a dedicated beekeeper and queen breeder. We will also visit his educational bee path
which he set up to raise public awareness of honeybees. The return to Landquart will be direct. It will be a long and intensive day. http://www.agroscope.admin.ch/imkerei/ 3.2. Excursion B: Glarus In the year 1977 the whole of the Canton of Glarus was declared by public vote a protected area for the Black Bee, which has helped in preserving an original Mellifera population into the future. We will visit this beautiful mountainous area and visit the local educational apiary and the nearby public educational bee path. After an Aperitif we will continue to the town of Elm and will enjoy lunch in the form of a local specialty. In the afternoon we will visit a typical Swiss bee house with one of the oldest Mellifera populations. Along the way we will have a full view of the Sardona tectonic arena, which was declared an UNESCO world heritage site in 2008. www.elm.ch 3.3 Excursion C: Säntis At the foot of this famous viewpoint mountain we will visit our largest mountain mating yard. In the morning we will visit the educational apiary and have a close look at the breeding hives and in the meeting room hear about the manifold activities of the Säntis breeding group. In the separate laboratory the artificial insemination equipment will be shown and explained. For lunch we will ascend by funicular to the top of the Säntis and, if the weather allows, will enjoy a beautiful view of the surrounding area. In the afternoon we will take a leisurely walk to the mating station (approx. 1 h). A shuttle bus will also be in operation. We will have an opportunity to see the mating hives and inspect the drone producing hives in the bee house. Return will be via the Toggenburg valley to Landquart. http://www.saentisbahn.ch/ 4 The Congress In reference to the conference title, Towards a bright future with the Dark Bee the selected talks will be interesting and varied in content. Specifically the Dark Bee, its breeding, endangered state and efforts for sustainable solutions are themes that occupy us the most. The dates are chosen so local beekeepers will be able to attend. Included within their conference fee, each attendee will receive a set of conference documents, two coffees and a lunch on the premises. The conference language is English, but as a novelty for a SICAMM conference we will offer simultaneous translations into both German and French. This should make it very attractive for all beekeepers to attend, not only for scientists. These additional costs will be covered by sponsors. 5 Conference Dinner What would a congress be without a culinary dinner and cultural show? The salt in the soup would be missing! We are pleased to offer such a gala evening at the Plantahof and look forward to a large attendance. A local band will play and provide an evening full of atmosphere with mostly traditional music.
6 Beekeeping at the Plantahof On Monday afternoon we will pay a visit to the bee house at the Plantahof. It is operated by dedicated beekeepers and offers classes for beginners, queen breeding and general counseling in beekeeping matters. We will get to know the Swiss hive and its special mode of operation. 7 Touristic excursions, Tuesday, for all attendees The canton of Grisons is one of the most popular touristic destinations in Switzerland. It includes the Engadin valley with famous St. Moritz, the Top of the World as it is also called. We will reach the Engadin by train starting in Landquart to Chur and then on via the Albula route. This is another UNESCO world heritage site. The train climbs in slow speed up to 1789m, moving from one side of the valley to the other, passing through many winding tunnels and over the impressive Landwasser viaduct. At Pontresina in the Engadin valley we change to a cable car railroad ending on top of the 2453 m high Muottas Muragl mountain with its splendid view of the surrounding countryside. Lunch will be at the panorama restaurant. The return trip will be via the Vereina tunnel to Landquart. Link: http://www.rhb.ch/unesco-welterbe.1060.0.html 8 Program for accompanying persons For people not participating in the congress we will organize trips and visits to nearby tourist attractions on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. 8.1 Saturday September 1st 2012: Glarus and Freuler Palace We will drive along the lake Walenstadt to Glarus. In the town of Näfels we will visit the Freuler Palace. Kaspar Freuler was a mercenary in France and upon his return in 1642-1647 built this palace. Today it houses several museums, all related to the social and cultural history of Glarus. In the textile museum we can observe the history of the Glarner scarf, an export hit at the beginning of the industrial revolution. Fine weather permitting, we will continue with a boat ride on Lake Walenstadt, set between high mountains. With rainy weather we will visit the town of Glarus. Don t miss the chance to taste the local specialty, the Glarner Pastete, a sweet pastry made from almonds and prunes. - www.freulerpalast.ch - www.walenseeschiff.ch - www.glarus.ch
8.2 Sunday September 2nd 2012: Tamina gorge - Heididorf We will visit some places well known from the famous children's story Heidi written by Johanna Spyri and the thermal spring at the Tamina gorge. A special bus will bring us to the old spa of Bad Pfäffers at the very end of the Tamina gorge where we can see the source of the 37 C (98 F) hot water emanating from the rock, collected and then guided to the former baths. Lunch can be had at the Restaurant. In the afternoon we will continue to Maienfeld and on to Oberrofels for a visit to the Heidihaus - www.altes-bad-pfafers.ch - www.heididorf.ch 8.3 Monday September 3, 2012: Chur, district capital city of Canton Grison Oldest town in Switzerland, Alpine city, biggest shopping opportunity between Zurich and Milano - these are the attributes that Chur likes to be decorated with. In the morning we will have a guided tour through Chur, visiting the old town, the bishop residency as well as the 12 th century Romanesque cathedral. The afternoon is free to enjoy on your own or go shopping. www.churtourismus.ch 9 Recommendations for clothing In all technical and tourist excursions we will hike in the countryside or on public footpaths. For reasons of safety and comfort we recommend sturdy footwear. In Switzerland it is always a good idea to carry a raincoat and a sweater with you.