Location
By popular demand, Outline 2011 is held at the same location as last year. This means comfy beds, complementary breakfast, indoor and outdoor facilities -all within good reach of buses, trains and planes as well as cars.
Main hall
The main hall has seats for at least 100 people bringing computers. Creative reshuffling may be in order if things get a little more busy, so avoid hogging space with large computer collection you're not planning to use for the duration.
A local network will be available for the duration of the party (both wired and wireless -just be sure to bring your own network cable for wired networking). As traditions go, we will have limited internet access and an IRC uplink for that warm, fuzzy oldskool feeling.
Like last year, we'll be offering a HD widescreen setup with more audio power than we're technically allowed to wield. You know, the usual.
Food & drinks
Outline sells food and drinks throughout the duration of the event, but it doesn't stop there. At noon we serve a breakfast/brunch for our guests and serve free coffee and tea to those who hand us a mug to fill.
Food waves
During the event, food waves will be scheduled to keep you from starving or attempting to survive on beer and nuts alone. We had some complaints about the food waves in 2009 and in 2010 we've dedicated ourselves to improving the food issue. Schedules were tighter and we introduced a little bit of variety in the form of a Hapkar. In 2011, we plan to continue in the same vein.
Sleeping facilities
Outline traditionally offers beds for its guests -bring a sleeping bag and the occasional extra pillow for comfort and you're all set for the event. We do wish to point out that beds are doled out on a "first come, first serve" principle and with current pre-order sales it looks like we'll be running out of beds sooner rather than later. Hurry and order tickets!
Alternative sleeping options
Apart from the complementary beds, people are allowed to kick things oldskool and sleep inside the main hall. Outdoors people will be happy to know that they are allowed to pitch tents on the sides of the recreational field, which might be a lot more appealing than having a 5AM demoshow act as an unintended alarm clock.
People with an even more keen desire for a good night's sleep can opt for a hotel in Eersel. We've received positive reports about Hotel de Bengel.
Getting there
By plane
Airports at Amsterdam/Schiphol, Rotterdam Düsseldorf and Cologne are between 1.5 and 3 hours from Eersel. An even better option is Eindhoven airport itself. Not every airliner will land here, but it's a mere 10 kilometers from the party location and pickups are entirely possible.
Additionally, you can consider flying to one of the Belgian airports, but train connections from Belgium to the Eindhoven area are rather bad and will most likely mean longer travel times. Should Belgium be your only viable option to travel to, please contact the organizers for a border pickup service.
For finding out how to get to Outline cheaply, consider trying http://www.lowcostairlines.nl.
By car
Eersel is situated next to the A67 (E34), which crosses paths with the A2 (E25) south of Eindhoven.
From Eindhoven (this applies to most people coming from the north / east): Whether you came from the A2 or are already on the A67, follow the A67 towards 's Hertogenbosh / Antwerpen. Take exit 32, aptly named Eersel.
From Antwerpen (this applies to most people coming from the south / east): Follow the A67 towards Eindhoven. Take exit 32, again called Eersel.
- From the exit, pass the first roundabout.
- At the second roundabout, turn right.
- After exiting the roundabout, immediatly turn left (do not drive past the petrol station)
- Turn left at the second street (Stokkelen)
- Just after the next intersection, the party place is at your right
Public transport
Public transport towards Outline 2011 is reasonably fast and straightforward: get to Eindhoven by train and from there on you can use local buses to reach Eersel. For up to date schedules, please refer to http://journeyplanner.9292.nl/. Enter busstop "Kerkstraat Eersel" as the destination to get an optimal travel advice.
Step 1: Trains
Eindhoven is easily reachable from all major train stations in the Netherlands. Do note that ticket machines for the railroad are notoriously infamous for not accepting foreign debit or credit cards and do not accept euro bills. Either make sure you have enough coins or visit the ticket desks available at the larger train stations.
Step 2: Bus
From the train station of Eindhoven, you can take bus 150 and exit at Kerkstraat Eersel. Between 09:00 and 00:00, a new bus leaves for Eersel every 30 minutes. It takes little over half an hour and puts you in the village center of Eersel. This is still 2.5 kilometers from the party place, so if you are not lightly packed and hate to hike across the countryside, you might want to contact us for a pickup service.
A quick reference sheet for departure and arrival times is available for download here.
Pickups
The minor drawback of the ideal countryside location of Outline is that unless you come there by car, it will be a lengthy trip.
However, Outline historically excels at helping weary travelers reach their destination with a pickup service. Provided you contact us and we come to an agreement in advance, Outline can pick you up from designated spots that are easy to reach by public transport, saving those last hard steps in the process.
If you know well in advance that you will arrive in Eindhoven at night, it would be very prudent to get in touch with us to arrange for a pickup. People who arrive in Eindhoven during the day are recommended to arrange for a pickup in Eersel rather than the airport and station -the busstop "Eersel Kerkstraat" is close to the party location and will more frequently visited than the other stops. The number to dial is +31 6 25590285 (will be answered by Filip aka FiXato). Please call about half an hour in advance if possible, for example right after boarding the bus in Eindhoven.