About Banff: Banff is a small town located in the Rocky Mountains, in the province of Alberta (Western Canada), in the heart of Banff National Park. It is a major tourist attraction both in the summer for hiking and sightseeing and in the winter for skiing. Surrounded by mountains, woods, and the beautiful Bow river, it offers magnificent sceneries all year. Banff features a large variety of hotels, restaurants, and shops, as well as museums and art galleries, all within an easy and short walk from the conference hotel. Major tourist attractions around Banff include waterfalls, glaciers, mountain lakes, Banff Gondola (you'll love the views!), hot springs, the Banff Springs Hotel, Lake Louise, and the Icefields Parkway connecting Banff National Park with Jasper National Park. Wildlife can be seen in and around town throughout the year.

Accomodation and Venue: ALT/DS 2015 will take place at the Banff Park Lodge (http://www.banffparklodge.com/) and guest discounts will be provided for the nights 3/4, 4/5, 5/6 and 6/7 October 2015 under Group Reservation Bookings at the above webpage (Group ID: #21909 and Password: #37005754); if you are planning to arrive earlier than 3 October 2015 or to leave later than 7 October 2015, please contact the Banff Park Lodge by email to info@banffparklodge.com or telephone +1-800-661-9266. Please book prior to 20 August 2015 for enjoying the special room rates reserved for ALT/DS 2015.

Season: October will be low season in Banff, so that hotel rooms will be available at lower rates than in the main season. Most shops and restaurants in town will be open, but not as crowded as at other times.

Banff is very easy to reach: It is just a 90 minute drive (130 km) away from Calgary International Airport, and shuttles drop off visitors right at their hotels. Calgary International Airport is the destination of direct flights from major airports around the globe, including for example San Francisco, San Diego, Chicago-O'Hare, Seattle/Tacoma, Phoenix, Frankfurt, London-Heathrow, Amsterdam, Tokyo-Narita, Toronto-Pearson, Vancouver, and many more. Bus service to Banff is also available from Edmonton International Airport (400 km) and from Vancouver International Airport (850 km).

See the webpages of Brewster transportation (http://www.explorerockies.com/) and Banff Airporter (http://www.banffairporter.com/) for shuttle schedules and shuttle reservation. For more information on Banff, visit http://www.banff.ca/. For information on tourist visa, see http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/index.asp.