Venue

1. WHEC2022 at

La Fira-Palau de Congressos (Palacio de Congresos)

La Fira-Palau de Congressos Image resource: La Fira Palau de Congressos. Francisca Campos

The UNESCO WHEC2022 conference will take place at La Fira de Montjuic-Palau de Congresos (Palacio de Congresos), located in Av. Reina Maria Cristina, s/n, Barcelona, 08004.

The "Palau de Congressos" is the main venue of the congress located in the "La Fira de Muntjuic" exhibition centre, right in the city centre. It is located next to the Plaça d'Espanya (Plaza de España) in Montjuïc Park, full of green areas and Olympic facilities, and a short distance from Las Arenas Mall. It is easily reachable by metro: red line (L1) green line (L3) and pink line (L8) (and stop at Espanya station).

The building is composed of the Fira Auditorium for 1600 people, where the opening and the closing plenary sessions will be hosted, ten parallel rooms and a 2000 m2 exhibition area on the minus one floor.

Registration will occur on the ground floor at the main entrance (Av. De Rius i taulet, see the map below). In this space, you will also find the youth exhibition area that includes youth activities, live art productions by students and young artists, a photo gallery by UNHCR, the WHEC2022 Creathon and speaker corners for HEDTalks, among others.

At the exhibition area (-1 floor), participants will find the booth area (e.g. universities, youth associations, entrepreneurs, HED-TEC Companies, International organizations, etc.) and the speaker corners for HEDTalks. You will find hands-on sessions, workshops, HED Talks, and innovative practices there. A networking space and snacks for purchase will also be available in the exhibition area.

La Fira de Montjuic-Palau de Congresos

Av. Reina Maria Cristina, s/n,
Barcelona, 08004

2. WHEC2022 at

CaixaForum Barcelona

La Fira-Palau de Congressos Image resource: Caixa Forum

The CaixaForum Barcelona, located in Av. Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia, 6-8, 08038 Barcelona, is the second venue for the WHEC2022 (walking distance 2 min from La Fira), where relevant sessions of the official Agenda and side events will be hosted in the Auditorium CaixaForum, room 1, room 2 and room 3.

The building is a cultural centre managed by La Caixa Foundation and occupies the construction of the former Casa Ramona, a modernist-style factory designed by Josep Puig i Cadafalch at the beginning of the 20th century, later refurbished for its new use as a cultural centre. Currently, CaixaForum Barcelona offers an extensive programme of exhibitions and cultural and educational activities aimed at all audiences.

CaixaForum Barcelona

Av. Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia, 6-8,
Barcelona, 08038

About Barcelona

translateLanguage

The official languages of Catalonia are Spanish and Catalan. However, Barcelona is a multicultural city where you can easily speak in English or French.

euroCurrency

The official currency is the Euro (€). It is not common to accept other currencies in cash in Barcelona. However, you can pay easily with a credit card, and ATMs are easily found throughout the city centre, as well as at the Barcelona Airport.
There is also a ‘Change Money’ service close to the University of Barcelona.

storefrontShops and malls

The opening hours of shops and malls are typically 9.30 h – 21:00 h (with variations depending on the area).
Although these are the regular opening hours, you can find restaurants and stores open all day in more touristy areas.

Lunchtime in the city usually is between 13.30 pm and 15.30 pm and dinner between 20:00 h and 22.30 h. During the conference, lunchtime will be 12:45 to 14:30.

phoneUseful emergency numbers

112 All emergencies
092 Local police
061 Medical emergencies

thermostatWhat to wear and bring

In May, the weather in Barcelona varies, which can offer everything from sunny days to clouds and rainfall, although usually, you will find more sunny days than rainy.

At this time of year, the temperature ranges from 18 to 25 degrees.

You can check the weather here.

gpp_maybeSecurity

Barcelona is no more dangerous in terms of theft than any other large European city. However, please keep an eye on your bags and wallets and never put your bag on the back of a chair, on the table in a bar, etc. Take special care in the Metro and bus.

local_hospitalHealth and safety

Check information about travelling to Spain to know more about requirements depending on your country of origin. You can also consult other practical information about protocols for COVID-19 when travelling to Catalonia. For COVID-19 test appointments, you can request it online here.

It is the responsibility of each participant to have insurance to cover expenses in case of accidents or illness. The organizers will in no case cover the cost of insurance or any costs associated with these eventualities. For medical services, Hospital Clínic is a public hospital close to La Fira Montjuic, and Hospital Quirón is a private hospital. Public hospitals in Barcelona are of high quality.

electrical_servicesSocket

In Spain, the standard voltage is 230 V, and the frequency is 50 Hz. The plugs and sockets are type F. Be sure to bring a proper adaptor to plug in your electronic equipment as needed.

_Getting around Barcelona – City / Public transport

directions_walk
Walking

Barcelona is perfect and well prepared for walking, and it is the best way to visit the centre: The Old Town, streets in the Gothic Quarter, Barceloneta and the beach, the fantastic Palau de la Musica Catalana, La Sagrada Familia, Casa Batlló, La Pedrera, El Born district and La Ciutadella Parc.

directions_bus subway
Buses and Metro

The Metro is the best and fastest way to move around. You can buy a 24h unlimited ticket, T-DAY (ten trips for 10,50€) or a single ticket (2,40€) that you can buy on the bus or in the metro, with your credit card or cash. All metro tickets can be combined with the bus and train network.

Remember that public transport is the most sustainable system! See Barcelona public transportation website for detailed information. For more general sightseeing, we recommend the Tour Bus, which has two different routes and visits all the highlights of Barcelona.

local_taxi
Taxi

Otherwise, taxis are easy to find throughout the city. Other companies such as Cabify or Freenow are also available in the city through their telephone apps.

For detailed information about routes, visits, tickets, etc. visit the Consortium of Tourism website.

_Hotel Accommodation

For those attending in-person in Barcelona, participants (including panellists) are expected to cover their own expenses for travelling, lodging and all related costs.

Barcelona presents a great offer of hotels nearby La Fira, where you could reach the venue within walking distance. However, as the city is hosting some relevant events in May, it may be possible that those hotels have reached their maximum capacity. If that is the case, please, consider that hotels in Barcelona from three stars are of good quality and La Fira is very well connected by public transport.

_Participants reaching the city centre from BCN Airport

UNESCO participants will need to arrange their own transportation from the airport to the place they are staying in Barcelona.

For all the information regarding how to reach and leave the airport, please visit: https://www.aena.es/en/barcelona-airport/public-transport.html

OPTION A – AEROBÚS

AEROBÚS is the quickest option to reach Barcelona city centre, and the average trip is 30 minutes. A bus leaves the airport every 5 or 10 minutes from 5:35 h to 01:00 h, the single ticket costs 5,90 €, and the return ticket costs 10,20 €. There is an AEROBÚS stop at both terminals T1 and T2. You can buy the ticket online from the staff, bus driver, or ticket vending machines. The AEROBÚS service is not integrated into the fare system; you will need to buy another ticket once in the city centre if you require another means of transportation to reach your final destination.

For further information, please visit: https://www.aerobusbcn.com/en

OPTION B – METRO

Metro line L9 Sud connects the airport terminals T1 and T2 with the city of Barcelona every 7 minutes. The journey takes you 32 minutes and operates every day from Monday to Thursday (5:00 h to midnight), Fridays and eves of public holidays (5:00 am to 2:00 am), non-stop on Saturdays and from 5:00 h until midnight on Sunday. An airport ticket to Barcelona city centre costs 4,60 €. The Airport Metro station is not integrated into the fare system; you will need to buy another ticket once in the city centre if you require another means of transportation to reach your final destination.

For further information, please visit: https://www.barcelona-airport.com/eng/barcelona-airportmetro.php

OPTION C – City Bus 46

The Bus 46 (Plaça Espanya – Airport) routes between the airport, both terminals T1 and T2, and Barcelona city. The operating hours are from 4:50 h to 23:50 h, and the frequency varies throughout the day: they leave the airport every 15 or 30 minutes. A single ticket costs 2,20 €. You can buy the ticket from the bus driver or at ticket vending machines. City Bus 46 is integrated into the fare system; you can buy integrated tickets or the Hola Barcelona Travel Card at ticket vending machines.

For further information, please visit: https://www.tmb.cat/en/barcelona/buses/-/lineabus/46

OPTION D – Taxi

There is a taxi station central at the exit of both the terminals T1 and T2 at the airport. The price is around 35 €, and it takes 20 minutes to reach Universitat de Barcelona in the city centre.

If you need help for hotel details and logistics, please contact whec2022@gruporic.com for further information.
They will be pleased to assist you!