The main Amsterdam airport is ‘Amsterdam Schiphol’ (IATA airport code AMS). The airport is situated just outside the city in the south, between Amsterdam and Hoofddorp. From the airport, it’s a twenty-minute drive to the city center. The airport is in the top five busiest airports in Europe. With six runways it handles over 55 million passengers per year. From the airport of Amsterdam, there are daily flights to almost all major airports worldwide. A wide variety of airlines fly to/from Amsterdam Schiphol airport, including the low-cost airlines.
Amsterdam Airport is a spacious, modern airport with all required facilities. There are many shops, restaurants, and bars where one can spend some time while waiting for departure. As from the end of March 2016, the renewed ‘Holland Boulevard’ after customs will house two collections of both the Rijksmuseum and NEMO Science Centre.
Airport facilities include:
Free Wi-Fi: in all public areas there is a free Wi-Fi network available without restrictions on duration or data usage. The internet speed is restricted to 1 MB/s though. If you need a high-speed connection there’s also a premium network available, at a cost of €4,90 per hour. For free internet connect your device to the Airport_Free_Wifi network.
Free drinking water: across the airport, you’ll find multiple tap points throughout the airport. Also, the tap water at the toilets is perfectly fine to drink and doesn’t have a chlorine taste.
Smoking area’s: there are multiple smoking areas near the bars and gates.
Bars and restaurants: there are plenty of bars and restaurants for eating or refreshments.
Shopping area: don’t worry if you forgot to buy something. Schiphol airport has plenty of shops where one can buy items like care products, liquors, souvenirs, electronics, and magazines.
Self-service check-in: don’t feel queuing up? Use the self-service check-in kiosks.
Schiphol airport is only twenty minutes away from the city centre. There is a flawless connection with public transport as there’s a train station beneath the airport. Besides the train, one can also take a bus to the centre. Do you prefer some more luxury or privacy? There are plenty of taxis waiting for you just outside the airport.
Taxis from and to Schiphol Airport
There are plenty of taxis available from the main hall at Schiphol Airport. The taxi ride takes, just like the bus, approximately 25 minutes depending on where you need to be in the city. The airport strongly recommends ignoring people offering taxi services standing in the arrivals hall, to avoid getting scammed. The rates will be typically around €50-70. A taxi from Amsterdam to the airport should never cost over €90,-. If you feel you are being scammed call the police!
Trains to and from Schiphol
As there is a train station just under the arrivals, the train might be the most convenient option to get to Amsterdam. The train ride to Amsterdam Central Station takes about 15 minutes. There is a frequent connection to Amsterdam Central station. In the daytime, there are trains departing to Central Station every few minutes. At night time there’s just one train per hour, so this might require some more planning. Do keep in mind that during night time the connections from Central Station to other parts of the city might not be available. Therefore please check our widget to find out first.
Train tickets from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport
There are a few options for buying train tickets that have their own advantages and disadvantages. Check out the following options to see which one suits you best, as this can save you lots of money!
Please be aware that whatever option you choose you should always check in when getting on transport and check out when exiting. This is done by holding your ticket against one of check-in poles or at the gates to the railway.
If you only want to use the train to Amsterdam and no public transport in the city:
One way ticket to Amsterdam: from one of the vending machines one can purchase a one way ticket to Amsterdam Central station. This ticket will cost you €4,20 and an additional €1,- fee for the ticket.
Children till the age of 3 travel for free.
Children till the age of 11 can travel using a discounted ‘Railrunner’ ticket.
If you plan on using public transport in Amsterdam as well:
Amsterdam Travel Ticket: this ticket is available as 1, 2 or 3 day ticket. It includes your transfer to Amsterdam by train or bus and all public transport within Amsterdam. The ticket costs €15,- / €20,- / €25,- and can be bought from the AKO-stores and from the NS tickets and service desk. The stores in the main hall of the airport are op 24/7.
If you plan on using public transport in Amsterdam and the rest of Holland:
Anonymous OV-Chipkaart: this ticket is valid for all public transport within the Netherlands and therefore the best option if you plan on going outside of Amsterdam. The ticket itself costs €7,50 and then needs to be charged with credit. In able to take the train a minimum credit of €20,- is required. The trip from Amsterdam airport will cost you €4,20.
There’s a frequent bus connection between Amsterdam Schiphol Airport and the centre of Amsterdam. The bus stops in front of the main hall of the airport called Schiphol Plaza. The bus service is bus number 197 called “Amsterdam Airport Express”. Between 5:00 a.m. and 0:20 a.m. the airport express bus departs every 10 to 15 minutes. In the night time after 0:20 a.m. till 5:00 a.m. the 197 Amsterdam Airport Express is replaced by the “N97 Niteline” which drives hourly.
The bus drive takes approximately 25 minutes depending on witch stop you need. The bus stops at the following stops in Amsterdam:
Oude Haagseweg
Anderlechtlaan
Amstelveenseweg
Olympisch Stadion
Haarlemmermeerstation
Museumplein
Rijksmuseum
Leidseplein
Busstation Elandsgracht
Not sure which stop you need? Contact your hotel or use the widget below.
Bus tickets to Amsterdam
If you only want to take the Amsterdam Airport Express to Amsterdam and no public transport in the city:
One way ticket to Amsterdam: this ticket can be acquired from the bus driver when getting on the bus and costs €5,-.
If you plan on using public transport in Amsterdam as well:
Amsterdam Travel Ticket: this ticket is available as 1, 2 or 3 day ticket. It includes your transfer to Amsterdam by train or bus and all public transport within Amsterdam. The ticket costs €15,- / €20,- / €25,- and can be bought from the AKO-stores and from the NS tickets and service desk. The stores in the main hall of the airport are op 24/7.
Parking at Schiphol Airport
As for most parking facilities near airports, parking is quite expensive. Though there are several options available; the airport has its own parking facilities but there are also companies within the airport area where you can park. Parking at one of these companies is often cheaper. They can either pick up your car from the airport as you get on your flight or they offer a free shuttle service from their parking lot to the airport. Check out the following options to see which suits you best:
Central parking: maybe even more convenient than parking at the official parking facilities as your car will be picked up from the terminal. Just call them 15 minutes in advance.
Amsterdam Schiphol airport shopping at ‘See Buy Fly’ stores
Stopovers are rarely enjoyable. For those who have a stopover at Amsterdam airport, there’s the advantage the city of Amsterdam can be reached in no time. A bus trip or train ride to the center of Amsterdam will take under 30 minutes. Does your stopover doesn’t allow enough time to go into the city? Then you’ll have to spend some time at the airport. Luckily the airport offers plenty of facilities to make your time as comfortable as possible. If you’re looking to waste some time at Amsterdam Airport, go and check out the shopping areas behind customs!
The departure lounges of Schiphol airport are divided into 4 different lounges. Lounge 2 and 3 are connected lounges for intercontinental flights and have the most extensive shopping areas. Lounge 1 is meant for European flights and also offers a fair share of shops, restaurants, and bars. If you’re traveling through lounge 4 however, you’ll find a minimum amount of shops and bars. Lounge 4 is mainly used by low-cost airlines such as Ryan Air and Easyjet. We recommend not to go through customs at lounge 4 until necessary, because of the limited facilities.
Shops at Schiphol lounges 1, 2 & 3
So you have some time to spend at Amsterdam Airport? Let’s do some shopping before flying! Schiphol Airport offers a wide variety of shops and bars after customs. You’ll find a variety of shops offering products like electronics, cosmetics, jewelry and valuables, tobacco and liquor and of course Dutch specialties such as Dutch Cheese, flowers, and Herring. Luxury shoppers can eat their heart out at one of the many brand stores, such as:
There are plenty within a few kilometres of the airport. These come in handy when you want to stay within a few minutes reach of the airport. If you do have a bit more time to spend the city centre is also within 15-minute reach! To find a hotel in the area of Amsterdam airport, please use the widget below. We’ve made a selection of the best hotels within a 5-kilometre range of the airport. These hotels offer a free shuttle service to the airport, so just fill out the required date and book the hotel of choice!
Finding a ticket to Amsterdam shouldn’t be a difficult task as Amsterdam Schiphol is a big airport. There are flights to practically any desired destination by both premium and low-cost airlines. As for any flight, it’s wise not to wait too long with booking as the fares go up coming closer to the departure date. Please keep in mind the following tips when booking a flight to Amsterdam:
Amsterdam Schiphol airport is not the cheapest airport in the region: flights from less popular airports in Belgium Brussels (BRU) or Germany Weeze (NRN) can save you money. Same goes for the other Airports in the Netherlands; Rotterdam (RTM), Eindhoven (EIN) and Groningen (GRQ). Do keep in mind that if Amsterdam is your destination you’ll be spending up to €60,- for a train ticket. You will lose time waiting for the train and the train ride itself. So going to another airport might only be profitable for long flights. Especially taking the extra travel time into account.
Public transport doesn’t provide a good connection to all parts of the city at night: if you have a centrally located hotel arranged near Museum Square, Dam Square or Central Station this isn’t something to worry about. If you don’t it is as a taxi can be costly! Make sure you don’t arrive between 1:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. if you plan on using public transport.
Can you fit your Amsterdam-proof outfits in your hand luggage? The weather in Amsterdam can be cold. With most low-cost airlines you pay extra for check-in baggage. Don’t forget to add up that extra surcharge onto your ticket fee.
In order to find the best tickets to Amsterdam or one of the other airports, we recommend Skyscanner. We have been using Skyscanner a lot, and we found that they offer a complete price comparison including most airlines and ticket resellers.
Finding the cheapest flight to Amsterdam
If your focus is to get to Amsterdam for as cheap as possible you might want to take notice of the following tips to find the cheapest tickets:
Be prepared to use different airports for your flight to or from the Netherlands. If prices to Amsterdam Airport are high you might consider flying to/from:
Rotterdam (RTM) in The Netherlands
Eindhoven (EIN) in The Netherlands
Groningen (GRQ) in The Netherlands
Maastricht (MST) in The Netherlands
Brussels (BRU) in Belgium
Weeze (NRN) in Germany
(Do keep in mind that traveling from/to these airports will also cost you money)
When you search for flights on Skyscanner, make sure to search for ‘Netherlands‘ instead of ‘Amsterdam’ to include other Dutch Airports
Try and be flexible with the dates; from one day to another, prices might fluctuate a lot. Rule of thumb; flights are cheapest on Wednesdays and in early or late hours.
On average, booking 8 weeks before departure will get you the best ticket price.
Be prepared to book two one-way flights instead of a return ticket. Sometimes airlines offer very cheap one-way flights to lure travelers. The cheap one-way flight is then compensated with an expensive return flight.
Amsterdam Schiphol Airport reviews
Want to inform other travelers about your experience at Amsterdam Airport? Leave your review below! How was the service? Were there long queues for customs? What did you think of the airport facilities? Were there enough seats? Did you feel safe? Post a review below and it will be posted after manual revision!
Reviews
Robin Wilkie
No use at all
Why have you not said where the free water taps are located in the airport !! Surely that is the most important piece of information required !!
27 May, 20242
Constantin
Thank you very much
Thank you very much for the information provided, the video is very informative.
18 September, 20200
Daan
Excellent Airport
I love Amsterdam Airport it’s modern, has plenty of (free) facilities; tapwater, wifi etc. And uses latest technology such as automated border checks and body scanners.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
The main Amsterdam airport is ‘Amsterdam Schiphol’ (IATA airport code AMS). The airport is situated just outside the city in the south, between Amsterdam and Hoofddorp. From the airport, it’s a twenty-minute drive to the city center. The airport is in the top five busiest airports in Europe. With six runways it handles over 55 million passengers per year. From the airport of Amsterdam, there are daily flights to almost all major airports worldwide. A wide variety of airlines fly to/from Amsterdam Schiphol airport, including the low-cost airlines.
