Logistics

This information is only for participants at OpenCon in Toronto, November 2nd-4th. Participants at satellite events should consult their event pages, or contact their hosts for logistical information. Information on the program of OpenCon, including detailed room info and times can be found here.

Key Info

Conference Hotel: Holiday Inn Toronto-Yorkdale - Website and Map

Conference Venue: York University - Website and Map

Emergency Contacts: Email Nick Shockey (nick [at] sparcopen [dot] org) or Nicole Allen (nicole [ at ] sparcopen [ dot ] org) with URGENT in the subject line

Packing

Alongside everything you would normally pack you might consider packing t-shirts (especially open-related), badges, stickers and other merchandise. Also, leave a bit of room for the t-shirts, stickers, badges and other merchandise you’ll pick up at the event. These are frequently exchanged at OpenCon and provide a great way to bond with other attendees. If you can, please do bring a laptop or tablet and any peripherals (including travel adaptors) needed.

Most places in central Toronto will take bank cards for payment, however some do not accept foreign cards. It would be wise to have 80 dollars in cash in case of emergencies.

Dress

The meeting is generally informal, and participants are encouraged to wear whatever they will be most comfortable in.

Traveling

If you’re not a frequent traveler, the Mozilla travel guide is a fantastic resource to learn some tips. It is also worth browsing the Wikivoyage page for Toronto if you’ve never been.

Conference Venue

The conference venue is located at York University. Different parts of the conference will be held in different buildings, with more information listed on our program.

Conference Hotel

The conference hotel for OpenCon is the Holiday Inn Toronto-Yorkdale located at 3450 Dufferin St, North York, ON M6A 2V1, Canada. Hotel rooms have already been reserved and assigned for all participants receiving a travel scholarship. All rooms booked for scholarship recipients will be double occupancy unless arrangements otherwise have been made with the organizers. If you have concerns about your accommodations for OpenCon, please email Joe [at] Sparcopen [dot] org.

The hotel provides breakfast and has free Wifi. Check in is at 3pm, and checkout is 12pm. Their phone number is +1 416-789-5161.

The number of accessible rooms are limited, so please request these if needed. The ground floor is barrier-free ensuring easy access to the ground level. Elevators are available. More on the hotels accessiblity can be found here.

Feeling Comfortable at OpenCon

We strive to make OpenCon as welcoming and inclusive as possible for everyone. At the venue will we provide:

Lanyards designating those who prefer not to be photographed
Gender-neutral bathrooms
Gender pronoun ribbons
Quiet room for prayer and meditation
A maternity room
A supply of painkillers, feminine hygiene products, and first aid supplies incase you need them

OpenCon will is a fragrance-free space. This means we’re asking participants minimize or not use scented products such as perfume, heavily scented lotions, etc… to be considerate of allergies and chemical sensitivities for other participants may have.

Please inform us if there are other ways we can accommodate you during your time at OpenCon. We want you to feel comfortable, rested and stress free!

Getting to the Conference Hotel

Attendees will need to find their own way from the airport to the conference hotel. Detailed instructions to do this are below. To return to the airport, simply reverse the instructions.

From YYZ (Toronto Pearson Intl Airport):

Exit the airport. Walk toward arrivals and follow the signage indicating public transportation. The bus is across from 950 Dixon Rd.
Take the 52 Lawrence West bus toward Lawrence Station for 37 stops.
Get off the bus at Lawrence Ave West at Dufferin St.
Head west and walk about 2 minutes to the Dufferin St. stop
Take the 29A Dufferin bus towards Wilson Station for 5 stops
Get off the bus at Dufferin St. and Jane Osler Blvd. Northside
Head north on Dufferin St for about 3 minutes
Turn left, turn right, turn left, then turn right. You should arrive at the Holiday Inn Toronto-Yorkdale

There is also a Go Transit bus that departs directly from the Yorkdale Bus Terminal, which is directly below the Yorkdale subway station you've been using to get to the conference. The one-way fare is CAD $6.95 and tickets can be purchased at the Go Transit kiosk in the station. To look up the timetable, click here to access the online trip planner and enter "Yorkdale Bus Terminal" in the From box and "Toronto Pearson International Airport" in the To box. The bus runs approximately 1-2 times per hour during weekdays.

From Union Station:

Exit Union Station. Walk for about 5 minutes, heading east on The Path - Skywalk
Turn right toward Front St. W
Walk for 100m then take the stairway up to 0
Walk for 41m then head north toward Front St. W
Turn right onto Front St. W
From the Union Station subway stop, take Line 1 (Yonge-University) to Vaughan Metropolitan Centre Station for 13 stops
At the Wilson Station, switch to the 929 Dufferin Express bus towards Exhibition (Dufferin Gate)
Get off at the Dufferin St. at Jane Osler Blvd. Yorkdale stop
Head east on Jane Osler Blvd. toward Dufferin St.
Turn left onto Dufferin St, turn left, turn right, turn left, then turn right. You should arrive at the Holiday Inn Toronto-Yorkdale

Getting to Receptions and Dinners

Groups will be arranged to official conference receptions and dinners from the conference hotel and other venues. More details will be given on the day.

Getting to the Conference Venue

From the Conference Hotel

Participants staying at the conference hotel will be led in groups on the Metro to conference venue in the mornings.

If you have mobility needs that would prevent you from walking moderate distances (a few blocks) or taking stairs, the organizers will provide a taxi to and from official conference venues. This can be requested when you register, or after by emailing [email protected]. Please let us know as soon as possible to ensure we can plan ahead.

From the Hotel

Walk out of the lobby and straight across the parking lot toward the street. There will be a building labeled Hudson’s Bay straight ahead.
Go through the gate to the sidewalk and turn right. At the crosswalk, cross the street toward the Hudson’s Bay building.
Walk through the large parking lot, and enter the door that says Yorkdale above it.
Walk straight through the mall for about 10 minutes. The path will curve around to the right.
You will eventually come to an open area with a Starbucks. Turn left just after the Starbucks and walk down the hallway towards the metro.
Walk straight through the doors and follow the path to the turnstiles. Enter your tokens in the turnstiles on the far left.
Go up the escalator to the platform marked Northbound.

The mall doors open early in the morning (by 6:00am) and you can enter via the entrance on the subway side until at least midnight (and get out the other side), however, you may not be able to get back in the doors near the hotel after 9:30pm (you can always walk around outside, though).

Board the next Northbound train and go 5 stops to York University Station.
Get off at the York University stop.
Leave the metro stop by the left hand side set of stairs.
As you exit the metro, cross the street in front. The venue will be directly in front of you, and you should see OpenCon signs.
Come on in!

Parking: There will be parking available at the venue. For more informaton see: https://parking.info.yorku.ca/daily-rates/

Food

Catering during the conference will take into account dietary restrictions. If you indicated a dietary restriction during the OpenCon registration process, your needs will be accommodated.

Emergencies and support

Please don't hesitate to contact us, or any of the listed numbers, in case of an emergency during any part of your OpenCon experiance (including traveling to & from Toronto )

Emergency Contacts: Email Nick Shockey (nick [at] sparcopen [dot] org) or Nicole Allen (nicole [ at ] sparcopen [ dot ] org) with URGENT in the subject line

Police, Fire & Ambulance: 911
On Campus Security: https://security.info.yorku.ca/contact-us/
Sexual Violence Response, Support & Education: http://thecentre.yorku.ca/

Got Questions?

We want to ensure attendees have their questions answered before OpenCon, and can arrive prepared, relaxed and comfortable. If you have any other questions, please send [email protected] a message, we'd love to hear from you.