Newsletter#1

14.02.2022

Covid related aspects

 

As we all know, the EGC was already cancelled two years in a row due to the worldwide spread pandemic. However, things seem to be getting better recently but it’s still too early to decide if we can go ahead and organize the congress this summer. We have set our deadline for such a decision at the end of April. In the mean time we continue our preparations and hope for the best.

In case of a congress cancellation all entry fees will be refunded, taking transfer costs into account. This is also valid for accommodation reservations, nevertheless we can only assume responsibility for the places where we have reserved accommodation ourselves. Otherwise we strongly suggest that participants should clarify this aspect with the hotel where they intend to stay.

At the end of January 2022 we have 130 registered participants from more than 20 countries, which is showing the good will of many go players to finally gather on an EGC.

 

Main venue and playing halls

 

The central venue where we will hold most activities is the recreation area called Loisir, next to the town’s football stadium. Except for the European Championship all other events will take place in the Loisir area with the sports hall as the main venue.

Just outside the sports hall there is a large patch of grassland where we will build a terrace where people will be able to get food and drinks, play or analyze their games, socialize and have fun together.

The terrace will have two big screens that will be used for live transmissions from the European Championship and top boards from the Open tournament, as well as photos and videos from the event and other general info.

Close to the terrace we intend to have a few small tents for pro activities as well as a bigger tent for the info point.

The stadium will be available for daily football matches and other sports. There are as well a tennis court and a small basketball field, playing grounds for children and various fitness equipment.

The European Championship will be held at Vanatorul hotel, surrounded by forest and silence. This facility is built on a hill about 10 min walking distance from Loisir. We want that players that participate in this important tournament to have a perfect environment for playing their games.

 

Accommodation

 

You can find a lot of info on accommodation in Vatra Dornei on our website. There are some places reserved for organization, VIP and European Championship. Those are Casa Bucovineana (mainly for our organization team), Vila Seva and Hotel Kaban (mainly for VIP) and Vinatorul hotel (mainly for EC).

Some accommodation will be available at these locations, if you are interested to stay there you should contact the organization team.

Very important!!!  Vatra Dornei is a highly sought for summer holiday destination. You should reserve your accommodation as soon as possible, otherwise it may be close to impossible to find a place in Vatra Dornei or even the surrounding area. We are here to help, for any additional information and support on accommodation don’t hesitate to contact us.

 

Travelling

 

We will provide shuttle buses that will pick up participants arriving at airports. We highly recommend Cluj or Suceava airports as the best options to arrive in Vatra Dornei.

Our partner for travel support is the Sincarom Company, you can find more info about them on our website.

Starting with the month of May we will provide registration forms for detailed info like shuttle bus service, bike rental, trips and other relaxation activities.

 

Relaxation activities and trips

 

We have recently updated our website with a trip section. If there is a group that wants a specific customized trip, it is possible to organize it as long as you contact us in advance.

There are a lot of relaxation activities possible in Vatra Dornei as well as in the Suceava county. We are collecting all the info and will update the website as soon as we are ready.

We will also have relaxation tournaments during the congress: Football (daily activities possible), Tennis, Basketball, Poker, Board Games etc.

 

Organization team and Call for volunteers

 

Our organization team has various layers. Since expected costs for this category are quite high, we need to identify with precision tasks and total number of people needed.

The team will have Local (people living in Vatra Dornei), National (Romanian people from outside Vatra Dornei) and International composition.

We will use local volunteers for tasks that don’t involve Go knowledge (for example managing the sports activities, organization of Poker, Bridge, Board games tournaments, bike rental management etc.) and general logistic needs.

Last year we launched a call for volunteers in Romania. Soon we will be ready to launch a call for international volunteers. We will give priority to people who will be part of the Ukrainian and France congresses organization team in 2023 and 2024 in order to help them get much needed experience.

The prerequisite for being part of the team will be good knowledge of English language and basic knowledge of Go game.

There will be two types of volunteering: half day (either in the morning schedule or the afternoon schedule) for which we will guarantee accommodation at Casa Bucovineana and full day schedule, in which case we provide full board (accommodation and 3 meals per day).