By car
From Highway 401
- Take exit 278 for Hwy 8 (to Kitchener / Waterloo)
- After about 8 km exit right at onto Hwy 85 to Waterloo
- After about 8 km take University Ave West exit
- The University is about 3km west on University Ave at Seagram on the North side. You will see a large sign.
Campus parking
If you approach the U Waterloo from east along University Ave, turn right off University Ave and then immediately left. There is visitor parking on your left, marked HV on the campus map. If you approach the University from the North along Columbia Street West, take the ring road around to the south entrance and use the same parking lot. Parking is $2 an hour and requires a $10 cash or debit card deposit. Cheaper parking ($5) is also available for the day in Parking Lot C. Turn left off University Ave W, then immediately right. Although the lot says "Student Permits", in fact visitors can park there as well. Buy a permit at the blue machine. It accepts credit cards. There are also several more distant lots - see the campus map for details
By bus
From Toronto
- Greyhound has about a dozen buses a day to the Kitchener bus terminal; the trip takes 1.5-2 hours. From the Kitchener bus terminal you can take a short taxi or city bus trip to the University (see below). Some Greyhound buses (about three per day) come straight to the University of Waterloo campus, e.g. there is currently a service that leaves UofT at 9:35 am and arrives at U Waterloo at 11:10 am. Check the online schedules for more details.
- For Kitchener-Waterloo city bus schedules, see the GRT website. Buses 7D, 7E, 8, 12 and iXpress 200 go from the Kitchener bus terminal to the university roughly every half hour; the trip takes approximately 25 minutes.
From Hamilton
- Coach Canada has buses every two hours from the Hamilton bus station or from McMaster campus to the Kitchener bus terminal; the trip takes 1.5 hours. From the Kitchener bus terminal you can take a short taxi or city bus. Check the online schedules.
- For Kitchener-Waterloo city bus schedules, see the GRT website. Buses 7D, 7E, 8, 12 and iXpress 200 go from the Kitchener bus terminal to the university roughly every half hour; the trip takes approximately 25 minutes.
By air
The most convenient airport is Toronto's Pearson International (YYZ)
- If coming from Pearson by car, follow the signs onto Highway 401 West, then follow "By Car" instructions above. Travel time is an hour and 15 mins outside of rush hour.
- Airways Transit has door-to-door shuttle service and a scheduled bus service (4 times a day) to and from Pearson.
- Before booking through Pearson, it's worth checking to see if you can get a flight to Kitchener-Waterloo airport (YKF). This means flying American Airlines and changing in Chicago, or flying WestJet & changing in Calgary. From K-W airport a taxi is about $30 and takes about 30 minutes, shaving half an hour off the Toronto option.
Finding the Physics building
The Physics building is labelled PHY on the map. On foot, it can be identified by the telescope domes on the roof.