18–20 June 2026, Royal Holloway University of London

The event will include keynote addresses by Olivia Zorab, composer for theme parks including numerous attractions and areas in Lost Kingdom at Paultons Park, and Gregory Camp, Senior Lecturer at the University of Auckland and author of Music in the Disney Theme Parks, published by Routledge.

We will also be spending time collaboratively devising approaches to mapping theme park sound, as part of our ‘sonic cartographies’ theme. We are planning a day for sound walking and mapmaking between two days of traditional conference activities to put these methods into practice, and to evaluate our findings.

For those interested but unable to travel to the conference, there will be a livestream viewer option to watch the conference remotely, and the papers will be hosted on our online repository after the conference. We look forward to your participation in any way you feel able!

Programme Available Here

Organizers:

Tim Summers (Royal Holloway University of London)

Carissa Baker (University of Central Florida)

William Ayers (University of Central Florida

Registration Link

Coming soon!

Location & Travel

The conference will take place at Royal Holloway University of London, at the Egham Campus, in the Moore Auditorium.

By Train:

The conference venue is within 15 minutes walking distance from Egham Station, which is about 40 minutes from London Waterloo Station.

By Air:

We are 7 miles away from London Heathrow. Taxis are available and the journey is quick, but a cheaper option is to take bus 8/8A from Heathrow Terminal 5 (heading to Slough) which goes to the College.

Royal Holloway, University of London
Egham Hill
Egham
Surrey
TW20 0EX

Local Taxi Firm: Ace Cars of Egham; Uber is also operating in the area.

International Visitors

International visitors may need an ETA visa. Please check the UK Government website for details: https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/tourist-short-stay-visas

Accommodation

You can find accommodation options on sites like Booking.com and Hotels.com, but here are a selection of local accommodation options that may be suitable:

The Hub – on-campus accommodation

Egham Travelodge

Other options:
Wheatsheaf Hotel, Virginia Water
Savannah Bed and Breakfast, Virginia Water
The Boleyn Hotel, Staines
Travelodge, Staines
The Swan Hotel, Staines