U.S. Semantic Technologies Symposium Series
Venue
Venue Address
MSU Union, 49 Abbot Rd, East Lansing, MI 48824
Traveling to Michigan State University (MSU)(East Lansing)
If you are flying, like many of the Big Ten Universities, East Lansing can be a challenge to get to from the air. If you are coming from the west of Michigan, there is Lansing’s Capital Region International Airport (LAN) (https://www.flylansing.com). It is 12 miles from MSU. Free hotel shuttles (arrange in advance with your hotel to see if available: see below), Uber, Lyft, and taxi service make it easy to get from LAN to MSU.
Of course, you can use LAN if you are flying from east of Michigan, but from any direction and particularly if you are also attending ICBO, then it is best to use Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW). This may be the most inexpensive. It is 25 miles from DTW to Ann Arbor; and 85 miles to East Lansing. This does make traditional ride services more costly but the Michigan Flyer (https://www.michiganflyer.com/) is a very good option since it makes a regular loop between DTW, Ann Arbor and East lansing. Check out the schedules and make a reservation (https://www.michiganflyer.com/ScheduleRoute.aspx). While the ride is 2 hours to East Lansing (30 minutes to Ann Arbor), they have WIFI, and are rarely crowded.
If you are driving, we don’t need to tell you about GPS (the venue address is next to many of the listed hotels – MSU Union, 49 Abbot Rd, East Lansing, MI 48824). Parking is easy and affordable in East Lansing (https://www.cityofeastlansing.com/ParkingDowntown/) and also check with your hotel.
For those who refuse to use GPS, MSU gives the following driving advice:
From Traverse City or Points North via I-75: Proceed south on I-75 to US-127 near Grayling. Proceed south on US-127 to East Lansing. Take the Trowbridge Road exit. Follow Trowbridge Road east to Michigan State University.
From Detroit or Points East via I-96: Proceed west on I-96 to northbound US-127; follow US-127 north to East Lansing. Take the Trowbridge Road exit. Follow Trowbridge Road east to Michigan State University.
From Grand Rapids or Points West via I-96: Proceed east on I-96 to eastbound I-69. Proceed east on I-69 to southbound US-127. Take US-127 south to East Lansing. Take the Trowbridge Road exit. Follow Trowbridge Road east to Michigan State University.
From Flint or Points East via I-69: Proceed southwest on I-69 to southbound US-127. Take US-127 south to East Lansing. Take the Trowbridge Road exit.
From Kalamazoo or Points South via I-69: Proceed east on I-94 to northbound I-69. Take I-69 north to Lansing. Take I-496 east to the Trowbridge Road exit. Follow Trowbridge Road east to Michigan State University.
From Jackson or Points South via US-127: Proceed north on US-127 to East Lansing. Take the Trowbridge Road exit. Follow Trowbridge Road east to Michigan State University.
Accommodation
MSU does offer a complete list of nearby hotels and costs (https://ctlr.msu.edu/COTravelNEW/Hotels_MSULocal.aspx). All of the ones listed are very good and are what one would expect from the designated chain.
Caution: Do check the distance from the venue (MSU Union, 49 Abbot Rd, East Lansing, MI 48824) to the hotel. MSU has one of the largest contiguous campuses in the United States so that while Candlewoods Suites is listed as On Campus – it is 3 miles from the venue. East Lansing Marriott, Kellogg Hotel, Wild Goose Inn – are all within a few blocks of the venue. There is also a new hotel next to the venue, The Graduate East Lansing (https://www.graduatehotels.com/) that is not listed yet.
However, the Graduate does appear to be the best value at $109.00 a night and across the street from the venue.
Do check with your hotel to find out about Airport Shuttles and Parking.
Dining
The conference will provide continental breakfast and some lunches but there are a number of dining options very close to the venue. Check out lansing.org (https://www.lansing.org/michigan-state-university/restaurants-near-msu/) as well as your favorite dining app or search.