local info

http://www.urbanwalkabout.com/newcastle/

You can take any (blue and white Newcastle) bus for free within the central city area (basically from Newcastle East to the end of Hunter St) between the hours of 7:30am-6pm.

Bus 100 and 226 go to the university (Maths Bus Stop) and run at 30 min frequency each. 1 hour duration ticket costs $3.60 cash. You can buy a 10-ticket pass from various places (ask a local for details).

To get to Darby St take any bus along Hunter St from Newcastle Station (only a few stops, could also walk) and walk from the corner of Hunter and Darby. Buses 310,320 go up Darby St but only runs once and hour.

to get to Beaumont St (good restaurant and pub precinct) take any bus that goes along Tudor St (ask the driver for Beaumont St) or take the 100 bus and ask for Beaumont St

taxis:

Phone 133 300. generally you cannot hail them from the street usually, you must call. There are taxi-ranks on Beaumont St (in front of the Kent Hotel) and Darby. http://www.newcastletaxis.com.au

dinner:

there are a few main precincts which have lots of restaurants

Newcastle East (not all are open Monday/Tuesday) eg: Bocardos (tapas, good), Scotties (upscale fish and chips), Grain Store (great beer selection), fancy wine bar(s)
Honeysuckle (along the waterfront, lots of choices)
Darby St (suburb is "Cooks Hill") lots of choices along this strip. Walk or bus (or taxi)
Beaumont St (suburb is "Hamilton") lots of choices, different scene from Darby. Good pubs in this strip too. To get there, you should take a bus (or taxi) its not that far, but walking along busy roads is not fun. Any bus that runs along Tudor St (lots do) or the 100 and get out at Beaumont St.

locals can suggest other spots, but these 4 are the main recommendations.

weird -- golf and pizza

cafes -- try urbanspoon for reviews. Near the conference venue: Sprocket, Good Brother, Estabar are recommended. Other cool cafes in newcastle are Suspension and Rolador (Beaumont St, close to Hamilton Station -- not close to the conference venue). Newcastle has a burgeoning cafe culture -- some really excellent places, but a random place will be terrible (eg on campus, in the suburbs, etc.).

to get to the University campus on Friday:

bus 100 or 226 (about a 40 minute trip) ask for "Maths Bus stop" (second stop once the bus enters campus)

train -- take the Hunter line (single-deck diesel trains) 5 stops to Warabrook station, then walk about 10-15 minutes across campus.

what to pack:

some nice clothes for dinner on Thursday night
if you think you’d like to join the walk/hike on Wednesday afternoon, some reasonable walking shoes, a rainjacket, and sense of adventure
if you want to brave the ocean or sea-baths, some swimmers=bathers (maybe a wetsuit for the ocean), ocean temp about 16-19C, sea-baths about 18C (http://www.newcastle.nsw.gov.au/recreation/beaches_and_pools/beach_conditions )
even though its “winter”, its pretty mild – max 15-18C and overnight min around 6-9C, see www.bom.gov.au

conference venues: Monday-Thursday we are at the Fort Scratchley conference centre. Fort Scratchleyhttp://www.fortscratchley.com.au/ is an historic site (with tours of the underground tunnels available) built in the 1880s to defend against feared Russian attack. It is a short walk from the Novotel – see map online. It is on top of a hill overlooking the ocean and harbour. The talks will be in the more modern “multipurpose centre” just in front of the cannons (they are “guns” rather than “cannons” actually – you will learn this on the guided tour). Some GAGTA8 signs will be posted at the entrance.

Friday we move to the beautiful University of Newcastle campus, which is a bus (or train and walk) from your accommodation. The bus takes about 30-40 mins: from Hunter St -- take the 100 or 226. Get out at “Maths Bus Stop” (yes, its called that). Alternatively the train to Warabrook (towards Maitland, small single-story diesel train) is quick but then you need to walk across campus, which is nice but will take 20 mins or so. You can buy a bus ticket from the driver, and for the train you need to buy it from the machine on the station. We would recommend the bus. We start a little later on Friday to allow time for travel.

wednesday activities:

The main thing on offer is a walk along the first (or last) leg of the "Great North Walk", which runs from Newcastle to Sydney. We will walk along the beautiful Newcastle coastline and then up through some bushland (forest) with some beautiful views back to the ocean. Since we don’t have that much time (sunset is 6pm or before) we need to be organised, and the plan is to take a bus back/to an end/starting point. Details will be confirmed once we know numbers and levels of enthusiasm on Monday of the conference. All walking abilities welcome – the first stretch of the walk is along “Bather’s Way” which is serviced by a bus, so you can walk some way and turn around or take a bus. There are some restaurants and cafes at Merewether (the end of Bather’s way), so for a more relaxed walk people could stop here.
Newcastle city has some nice museums and art galleries than you can stroll to, have coffee in between, and spend a nice afternoon. The main art gallery (Civic) has changing exhibitions, and a nice small permanent collection including some colonial pieces (showing how Europeans saw and painted Australia when they arrived, and how Newcastle looked back then). The museum at Honeysuckle is cool too. We will leave a packet of suggested galleries to visit at the conference.
If you want to see koalas, kangaroos and emus, Blackbutt Reserve has them. You can pat a koala ($5 at 2pm each day). A bit awkward to get to by bus, but doable (with some walking).
If you have no time on either weekend around the conference, and want to see the famous Hunter Valley wine region, then you could rent a car and check it out Wednesday. You will need to designate a (non-drinking) driver – the tastings offered are very generous, and Australia has a blood-alcohol limit of 0.05 (about 2 glasses). More wineries will be open on the weekend than midweek, so we recommend making a day of it after or before the conference. See car rental below. There is no reasonable public transport option for this.
Other suggestions will be added to the conference site, or ask a local participant!

car rental:

Aside from the big-name car rental places (Budget, Hertz, Avis, Europcar) a local company we recommend is http://newcastlerental.com.au/, they have limited hours (7-11 or noon on weekends) and you must drop off when they are open, but their price (book online) includes all insurance, and they have reliable cars. Take a (free) bus along Hunter St to the last place it is free.

Budget is on Tudor St in Hamilton (near Beaumont St), Europcar is near Wickham (a little out of the way – bus or walk), Hertz and Avis are on Maitland Rd in Mayfield, 100 bus to get to them.

You won’t need a car for the conference, just to visit the wine region (Hunter Valley) or Port Stephens (a good weekend place to visit).

sim card:

It should be possible to by a local sim fairly cheaply –Telstra (national/former govt. company), Optus, Vodafone, Virgin etc. ALDI supermarket has them cheaply too. There are various stores at Marketown (shopping centre end of Hunter St Newcastle). Sydney airport has Optus and Vodafone stores at international arrivals – Telstra has the best coverage, but any of these should give good service (and Telstra will be the most expensive).