Lucerne enjoys a relatively mild climate with an average temperature between 12°C and 20°C at end of May / beginning of June. The nearby mountains tend to retain clouds and the average monthly rain at this time of the year is around 140 mm. It is therefore advised to have a light coat and an umbrella at disposal.

Technical visits and pre-and post meeting tours will lead the participants to the Alps up to 2’000 m a.s.l. and, in some cases, even higher. Temperatures can drop at these altitudes to the freezing point, especially in the early morning. Warm clothes are recommended for these visits and tours.

The shops in Lucerne are generally open from 9:00 until 18:30 from Monday to Wednesday and until 21:00 on Thursday and Friday. They close at 16:00 on Saturday.

The price of goods includes the VAT which is presently 8%. For purchases above 400 CHF a refund of the VAT can be obtained by foreigners upon presentation of the purchase bills.

The central location of Lucerne makes it easy to be reached from most points in Switzerland. Lucerne is linked by highways and railway lines to all major Swiss cities. The international airports of Zurich, Basle and Geneva are only a short distance away from Lucerne and are also well connected with fast trains:

Zurich Airport :  65 km Basle Euro-Airport :  110 km Geneva Airport :  250 km

An optional transfer by train in 1^st or 2^nd class will be available for a nominal fee at the Zurich Airport to all participants which have indicated their flight number, date and time of arrival. 

Swiss International Airlines is proud to be the Official Carrier for the 79^th Annual Meeting of ICOLD in Lucerne and is offering special Congress fares to all participants. Reductions of up to 25% depending on the fare type, route and space availability can be granted.

Congress fares are valid on the entire SWISS route network for flights to Switzerland, including flights operated by partner airlines under a LX flight number. Fares are bookable starting end of June 2010 for a travel period extending 14 days before and 14 days after the event.

For further information and booking go to www.swiss.com/event and use the following event code: 8563-8966-2491-5756.

Please use the following link:

Most hotels in Lucerne are at walking distance from the venue of the Annual Meeting (5 to 10 minutes by foot). For more distant hotels and in order to give the opportunity to our guests to discover the city and its surroundings on their own, the official badge delivered at the registration will entitle every participant to use the public transportation system of Lucerne free of charge for the duration of the Annual Meeting.