Travelling to Amsterdam

Amsterdam Schiphol Airport is the main airport in the Netherlands, located about 18km (11mi) south-west of the city. Since the Netherlands is such a small country you might also consider flying to another Dutch airport or a nearby Belgian or German airport. From these countries you can easily take a train to Amsterdam. However, flying to Schiphol Airport is the most convenient way.

Travelling from Schiphol Airport

From Schiphol Airport there are several ways of travelling to the city. You can go by train to Amsterdam's central station which lies in the heart of Amsterdam. The train leaves the train station every 15 minutes and takes about 15 to 20 minutes to take you to your destination. You can also travel by KLM bus which takes you from Schiphol airport to several hotels. This bus leaves the airport about every half hour. A taxi takes 20-45 minutes.

Useful links: 
www.schiphol.nl (Dutch Airport)
www.ns.nl (Dutch Railway Company)

Travelling in Amsterdam

Within the city there are several ways to travel. For example you can travel by bus, ferry, metro, train and tram. But if you want to travel like a true Amsterdammer you rent a bike. We would not like to encourage you to travel by car in the city because the city simply isn’t build for this and there are almost no parking spaces. 

A very fun way of travelling in Amsterdam is watercycling on the canals, but you should be aware of the other traffic! You are not very fast on a water bike.

Another way of getting around is simply walking through Amsterdam. Amsterdam is relatively small. Most attractions are within walking distance. Be careful not to walk on the bike lanes, though. You could be run over by impatient cyclists.

Of course you can read up on all these forms of transportation on this site under travelling in Amsterdam.

Travelling from Amsterdam

If you want to escape the busy and crowed city or you would like to see more of Europe while you’re here there are several ways to do this.

Amsterdam Centraal is Amsterdam's main train station which has regular and efficient connections throughout the country and to all neighbouring countries.

There are also train-ferry services to Britain, but you can also catch the Eurostar train through the North-Sea tunnel.  Ferries also run between Amsterdam and Norway.