VENUE
NICOLAUS HOTEL BARI
Via Cardinale Agostino Cascia 27
70124 BARI IT +39 080 5682111
http://www.thenicolaushotel.com/
The international airport of Bari Karol Wojtyla is connected by direct flights to major European cities and international hub http://www.aeroportidipuglia.it/

LANGUAGE
The official language of the conference is English. Simultaneous translation will not be provided.​

REGISTRATION

The registration of participant for the PPP 2018 congress includes:

• attendance at all scientific sessions

• access to exhibition area

• congress kit

• lunch box for each days

• coffee breaks

• Access to Opening Ceremony (on 12th April at Nicolaus Hotel)

• certificate of attendance.

VISA
Participants coming from EU nations do not need visas to enter Italy. Most NON-EU citizens (and participants from other countries) will need a visa.
We strongly recommend you to consult the official website of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (http://vistoperitalia.esteri.it/home/en) for updated and detailed information for foreigners regarding entrance visas for Italy and permits of stay. Information is offered in English and other languages.
The application for a visa must be done at the Italian Consulate or Embassy in your country of origin or where you have permanent residence, at least 3 months prior the congress. If living in another country, you may find the Italian Consulate or Embassy willing to let you apply for a visa from there, but this is entirely up to the Consulate to decide.

OFFICIAL LETTRES OF INVITATION
Official letters of invitation, designed to help overcome administrative difficulties in certain countries, will be sent upon request after registration is complete, and upon receipt of the appropriate registration payment from the delegate.
It must be understood that such letters do not represent a commitment on the part of the Scientific Committee or Congress to provide any financial assistance. All expenses incurred in with relation to the Congress are the sole responsibility of the delegate.
Delegates requiring an official letter of invitation in order to obtain a visa to attend the Congress, should contact the Organising Secretariat at: Questo indirizzo email è protetto dagli spambots. E' necessario abilitare JavaScript per vederlo.
Please note that it is the sole responsibility of the delegate to take care of his/her visa requirements. Delegates who do require an entry visa must allow adequate time for the application procedure. You should allow approximately 12 weeks prior to the Congress, although this process may take longer in some countries.
If a delegate's visa application is turned down by the embassy/consulate, the delegate may apply to the Organising Secretariat for a refund of his/her registration fee. Full proof that the visa application was denied must be provided. For policy on hotel accommodation refunds, please refer to the hotels section.

INSURANCE AND MEDICAL CARE
The PPP - Probiotics, Prebiotics In Pediatrics Congress Organization cannot be held responsible for any personal injury or loss of/damage to private property, or any additional expenses incurred as a result of delays or changes in air, rail, sea, road or other services, weather, war or any other cause. Congress participants are advised to take out their own insurance.
The number for medical emergency service in Italy is 118.
Chemists are open from 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. and from 4:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday. The public holidays and at night, some chemists are open for emergencies.

SOME USEFUL INFORMATION

WEATHER & CLOTHING
April in Bari is generally quite mild with average minimum temperatures between 10 to 16 C and average maximum temperatures between 18 to 25 C

CURRENCY & BANKS
The Italian currency is the euro (€). There are numerous automatic 24- hour service cash dispensers in the city. Exchange counter can be found at the airport. Major credit cards are widely accepted in hotels, restaurants, and stores.

ELECTRICITY
Electrical current in Italy is 220 volts, 50-cycle AC. Italian outlets take only round-prong plugs. Appliances designed to operate on 110/120 volts need a voltage converter and a plug adapter.

TIME
The time in Italy is Central European Time (Summer Time GMT +1).

HOW TO REACH BARI FROM THE AIRPORT

Train
New train service to and from the Bari Airport, operated by Ferrotramviaria S.p.A.
http://www.ferrovienordbarese.it/

Bus
AMTAB BUS N° 16
From/to city center (A. Moro Square)
Schedule: service starts at 4.45 am and ends at 23.00 pm.
Average waiting time is 40-50 minutes.
Travelling time: 30 / 45 minutes
http://www.amtab.it/

Tempesta Bus Company
Direct connection from the airport to Bari Central Station, and viceversa (towards via Andrea Da Bari 44, five minutes after departing from railway station)
http://www.autoservizitempesta.it/en/index.php

TOURIST INFORMATION
HISTORY OF BARI
The origins of Bari are very old, but not well established. Items dating to the Bronze Age have been found in the oldest part of the town; however, most of the historians agree that Illyrians have founded the town between 1600 and 1100 B.C., coming from the Balcanian peninsula, on the opposite side of the Adriatic sea. The name probably derives from that of Barione, the leader of one of these Illyrian groups.
The first reliable information on Bari dates back to the 4th century B.C. when it went under the Roman rule. In the following centuries it had a special relation with Rome and Tito Livio underlined its strategic importance.
After the fall of the Roman Empire, Bari was involved in the war between the Gots, and late the Longobards, against the Byzantines.
In the 9th century, after many raids, the Arabs succeeded the Longobards and settled in Bari for about 30 years, setting up an emirate. It lasted until 871 when the army of Ludovico II brought back the city under the Byzantine rule, which on the contrary did not meet the people’s favour.
In 1071 the city was conquered by the Normans, led by Roberto il Guiscardo, and became part of the dukedom of Apulia and Calabria.
This was the beginning of an important period in the history of Bari. In 1087 St. Nicholas’ holy remains were taken away from Myra (Turkey) by a group of sailors and brought to Bari, where the building of a dedicated Basilica was decided and started immediately. In 1089 the remains were led by Pope Urbano II in the yet built crypt of the Basilica (the whole Basilica was completed after about 100 year).
Later on, Bari and all the dukedom of Apulia and Calabria fell under the domination of the Norman King of Sicily, whose dynasty shortly came to the end and was replaced by the Hohenstaufen Swabians; this was the period in which Frederick II (later on crowned also Emperor of Germany) reigned. He loved Apulia (he was called “puer Apuliae”) and built or restored many castles in the regions, among which the Bari castle and the famous and mysterious Castel del Monte (on the top of a hill, about 50 km from Bari).
Angevin and Aragons rulers followed for about three centuries. Toward the end of this period, in the 16th century, two women had an important role in the Bari history: Isabel of Aragon, widow of the Duke of Milan Gian Galeazzo Sforza, who enlarged the castle making there her private residence, and Bona Sforza, Queen of Poland, who established strong links between Bari and the Cracow court.
After Bona Sforza’s death, Bari was again included in the kingdom of Naples, ruled by a Spanish viceroy, and that was a long period of decay for the Apulian city and the south of Italy as well.
At the beginning of the 19th century the French came, led by Napoleon Bonaparte, and his brother-in-law Jacques Murat became King of Naples. Under Murat Bari started to grow, shortly becoming the most important city of the region. In 1808 Murat decreed the building of the new part of the city, a modern district which after him was (an still is) called “Murattiano”.
At the end of the French rule, the Bourbons came back and reigned until the unification of Italy, in 1860.
Bari is now the first city and administrative capital of the Apulia region, with about 350,000 inhabitants.

SHOPPING
Bari is a modern metropolis dominated by the rhythms of work, especially those of commerce, its main source of wealth. Due to its “vocation” for commerce, in Bari there are many shops and stores of every kind.

FOOD
The traditional cooking of Apulia owes its success to the most basic products of the region: durum wheat, tomatoes, olive oil, wine, fish and meat. Each of these staple ingredients is at the basis of numbers of dishes which make the local cuisine so varied.
The scent of the land and the sea boasts in those recipes that only in the Apulian cuisine are expressed in all its delicacies. The Gargano and the Murgia bread, the hard wheat pastas, the local grown vegetables, grapes and cherries, the extra virgin olive oil and almond sweets. All of this should be washed down with our famous local wines.

USEFUL PHONE NUMBERS