Amsterdam Schiphol to the city: when the train is enough and when it is not

Schiphol is about 15 kilometres south-west of Amsterdam and the railway station is directly under the arrivals hall. For a solo traveller with a backpack staying near Centraal station, the question is settled: take the train. For everyone else, it is worth reading on.

Train to Amsterdam Centraal

Frequent trains reach Centraal in about a quarter of an hour. Tickets are bought at machines or by tapping a bank card. The limits appear after the train: Centraal is the far end of a dense, canal-crossed centre where taxis are regulated and bicycles have priority. If your hotel is a 20-minute walk over bridges with two suitcases, the train has only solved half the journey.

Taxi

Official taxis wait outside Schiphol Plaza. The ride to the centre takes 30 to 45 minutes on the A4 and A10 and is metered. Avoid unofficial drivers who approach passengers inside the terminal.

Private transfer

A booked driver meets you in the arrivals hall, loads the luggage and takes you to the hotel door, including addresses in the canal belt where a taxi may not be allowed to stop for long. The price is fixed at booking and the free waiting time is 45 minutes from landing. It is the sensible choice for families, groups of three or more with luggage, early-morning or late-night flights, and for hotels in Amsterdam Zuid, the museum district or outside the city.

Arriving at Schiphol: what to expect

• One terminal, several piers. All arrivals exit into the same hall, Schiphol Plaza, where your driver waits with the name board.
• Passport control for non-Schengen arrivals can take time at peak hours. Mention a long-haul arrival in the notes if you want extra waiting planned.
• The airport is busy with transfers: keep your phone on in case the driver messages you about a meeting point.

Beyond Amsterdam

Schiphol is the airport of the whole Randstad. Private transfers to The Hague, Rotterdam, Utrecht, Leiden and Haarlem are common, as are transfers to the port of Amsterdam or IJmuiden for cruise passengers and to the bulb fields in spring. For these, a fixed-price car beats the train on time and on comfort when you have luggage.

Weather and bicycles

Two Amsterdam constants. The rain makes a door-to-door car welcome; the bicycles make the last 300 metres from a taxi drop-off on foot a small adventure. A driver who knows the city stops where you can actually unload.

See the airport page for the vehicle classes and prices from Amsterdam Schiphol, with free cancellation up to 24 hours before pick-up.