LUMI-G hackathon October 2024¶
Local information¶
Venue: HOEK38, Leuvenseweg 38, 1000 Brussel, just behind the Belgian parliament and almost next to the Flemish Parliament. This is the building of the main scientific funding organisation for fundamental research in Flanders, FWO-Vlaanderen, who also sponsors the VSC - Vlaams Supercomputer Centrum, the local organiser for this hackathon.
The venue can easily be reached walking from the central station. Hotels near the Central Station or Grote Markt/Grande-Place are good options as you are both within walking distance of the venue and close to a nice area to spend some time at night.
The main airport of Belgium is Brussels Airport from which one has 6 trains per hour to the central station. Both Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam and Paris Charles de Gaulle have direct train connections to Brussels, but you will have to change trains in the Bruxelles Midi (Brussels South) station or, for some trains from Amsterdam, Bruxelles Nord (Brussels North). There is also an airport that is sometimes called Brussels South Airport but that one is really a significant distance from Brussels. A shuttle bus may be the best way to get to Brussels from there. Ryanair is one of the biggest companies serving that airport.
Most buses and all trams and metros in Brussels are operated by MIVB/STIB. Some lines that come from outside Brussels are operated by De Lijn (Flanders) or TEC (Wallonia), but most likely you will not need those buses. The easiest way to pay for the MIVB/STIB busses, trams and metros is likely contactless payment with your bank or credit card or certain smartphone payment systems.