Spotlights

Spotlight

Amsterdam

Getting There

Flying into Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport (AMS), the Netherland's main international airport and the hub of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, is convenient on most major US carriers. Continental (www.continental.com), Delta (www.delta.com), Northwest (www.nwa.com), United (www.united.com), and US Airways (www.usairways.com) all serve the airport. Numerous international airlines, like British Airways (www.ba.com), Air France (www.airfrance.com), Lufthansa (www.lufthansa.com), and Icelandair (www.icelandair.com) also offer frequent flights. From New York, a non-stop flight is about 7.5 hours; from Los Angeles, expect about 11.5 hours.

If you're flying into Amsterdam from another European country, bargain fares on KLM (www.klm.com), easyJet (www.easyjet.com), Transavia (www.transavia.com), and bmibaby (www.bmibaby.com) can be found. Trains from Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, England, and the Czech Republic serve Amsterdam Central Station directly. Check the Nederlandse Spoorwegen site (www.ns.nl) for schedules and fares or try Rail Europe (www.raileurope.com) and Eurostar (www.eurostar.com).

Getting into Amsterdam
A few easy options make traveling from Schiphol Airport into the city center a breeze. Almost as soon as you exit customs, you'll walk into Schiphol Plaza. Trains (www.ns.nl) run from platforms below the plaza into Amsterdam Central Station (every 10-15 minutes; 4€) and take about 20 minutes. Be sure to buy your ticket from the service window before heading down to a platform. You can also find the Connexxion desk in the plaza. These shuttle buses travel to almost any hotel in the city from the A7 platform outside the arrivals hall (every 30 minutes; 6am–9pm; 033/339-4741; 12€). Another choice, the Schiphol Travel Taxi 038/339-4768; www.schiphol.nl) is a shared minivan service that you can book online 48 hours in advance and will take you to your hotel (reservations required; open 24 hours; 21€). Taking a regular taxi is by far the most expensive route at 40€ for the 30-minute ride from Schiphol Plaza (www.Schipholtaxi.nl).