Location:

Stanford University: http://www.stanford.edu
Stanford Maps: http://www.stanford.edu/search/maps
Local weather: http://www.wunderground.com or weather.com

Transportation:

For getting to the Bay Area, you can fly into San Francisco (SFO) or San Jose (SJC).

To get from the airport to Palo Alto/Stanford, you can take a door-to-door shuttle, such as South & East Bay Shuttle. You don't need to book these, just follow the signs to the door-to-door shuttles at the airport. The cost is ~$30/person from SJC and ~$40/person from SFO. (Taxis are ~$60 from SFO and ~$50 from SJC).

It is also possible to take public transportation from the airport. Both airports involve taking a shuttle (SJC)/BART (SFO) to the train station then taking the train to Palo Alto. Once at Palo Alto you can walk to campus or take the free Marguerite. If you are staying at the Cardinal Hotel it is an easy walk from the train station.

Caltrain:The Caltrain services the entire peninsula from San Francisco to San Jose. Traveling to San Francisco takes between 40 to 60 minutes and costs $5.25 each way. The San Francisco stop is at 4th and King near to the financial district.

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART): BART operates throughout the northern part of the peninsula (the southernmost station is located in Millbrae, which can be reached via the Caltrain) and in the East Bay, including Oakland and Berkeley. From Millbrae, the San Francisco International Airport is one stop away.

Marguerite shuttle is a free service for transport around Stanford campus and between Stanford and Palo Alto. You can also rent a bike at the Palo Alto Bike Station or the Campus Bike Shop.

For more directions on getting to Stanford campus and maps of the local area, click here.

Dining options:

Stanford University campus hosts a number of restaurants and cafes, many of them within easy walking distance from institute classrooms.

In addition to eateries on campus, downtown Palo Alto is an easy 30-minute walk from campus and offers an array of different restaurants. For a list of local restaurants, try here You can also try some of the many sites available for restaurant reviews (and reviews of other local offerings), such as citysearch or yelp. There is also more information on local city guides, museums, theatre, places of interest, outdoor activities and news.

Other resources:

For more local information, including child care/activity options, browse the Institute's comprehensive local info pages: http://linginst07.stanford.edu/localinfo.html.