Air service into Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon, is served by non-stop air service from Frankfurt, Germany, via Lufthansa, making it very convenient for many of our European delegates. Mexicana also provides service from Mexico, and Northwest Airlines has a non-stop from Tokyo, Japan. Portland is one of America's most progressive and appealing cities, where you'll discover a vibrant city of legendary urban design surrounded by natural beauty. We look forward to welcoming you and sharing our diverse array of clusters from forestry to nanotechnology, beer to bioscience.


Attendees participating in Seattle, Washington, Cluster tours
Many convenient travel options are available for attendees who want to fly into Seattle, Washington, to take advantage of the Seattle area cluster tours on Monday, October 8.

• ALL Seattle Cluster tours will meet at the Rainier Tower, located in downtown Seattle, at 8:00 am, October 8. Each registrant is responsible for getting themselves to this meeting location. The address is: 1301 5th Ave, 3rd floor, Seattle, WA 98101 (just diagonal from Rock Bottom Brewery).
  
  
• If you have not yet made your Seattle hotel reservation, you many want to consider staying in downtown. TCI has made no arrangement with any specific hotel. Here is a link to search for a hotel. Note: you need to select "downtown" in the drop down menu for Seattle. www.seattlesupersaver.com/SCVBBooking/index.asp
  
  
• FREE bus transportation will be available from Seattle to Portland immediately following the Cluster tours on October 8. You will need to bring your luggage with you to the Rainier Tower, October 8, and it will be stored in a secured location and loaded onto the buses for you. You will be arriving in Portland on the evening of October 8 and the drop off location will be the TCI conference hotel (Portland Hilton & Executive Tower). The trip should be about 3 hours but that will depend on traffic. You will need to make hotel reservations in Portland starting the evening of October 8.
  
  
• There will be NO transportation provided back to Seattle at the conclusion of the TCI conference, so you will need to find your own transportation back to Seattle if you are departing from that airport. Here are some travel links that may help you find the best mode of transportation: Portland International Airport, train, bus. Rental car also is an option.

If you do need to obtain a visa in order to enter the United States, here are some important steps to remember:

1. Review your visa status to confirm that you need a U.S. visa or a renewal of a previous visa.
 
2. Review the visa wait times information for interview appointments and visa processing at each embassy and consular section worldwide. This information is available on the U.S. Department of State web site at http://usembassy.state.gov. Visit the embassy or consular section web site where you will apply for your visa to find out how to schedule an interview appointment, pay fees and any other instructions.

3. Plan on an interview at the embassy or consulate, which is required for most visa applicants.You will need to provide documentation verifying significant economic, social and financial ties to your home country in order to demonstrate your intent to return home. You also must provide confirmation of your registration for the conference and the itinerary. As part of the visa interview, a quick fingerprint scan should be expected. Applicants who need additional screening are informed during the application process.

For general information about visiting the United States, please visit the Department of State web site at www.travel.state.gov. If you feel that you need further assistance in preparing for the interview, please contact Ms. Amy Keiter at amy.keiter@state.or.us. Thank you again and we will see you in October 2007!