Italy trip - Amsterdam stopover - 8 hours

Yes....Amsterdam:) It's only 20 minutes to the city center by train. Amsterdam is very compact so it's easy to see a lot in a small amount of time....it's very walkable.

http://wikitravel.org/en/Amsterdam

Michael:I don't travel much internationally. Will there be problems for me (do you think) going in and out of the airport as far as security/immigration?

You won't have any problems exiting or reentering the airport. Lots of people head to the city center for a few hours from the airport everyday, though will have to go through Immigration and security, so you should allow some time for this. If you're checking any baggage it should automatically be transferred to you connecting flight to Italy. For your carry-on you can use the lockers at Centraal Station. These lockers only accept European credit/debit cards with chips in them. But you can get around this by purchasing a prepaid debit card at the airport train station at the same time you purchase your train ticket into the city center. Just ask the train ticket clerk for a "prepaid debit card for the lockers", and they'll know what you're talking about. Don't use the lockers inside the airport terminal...your two flights will be using different sections of the terminal.

Linda, I have a different take and would not call 8 hours "practically a full day". I'd say bring a book to read in the airport. Its my experience that even a short little excursion or location change consumes a lot more time than you'd expect.

Lets see whats going to happen to those 8 hours, assuming that its the time between the scheduled arrival of 1 flight and departure of the next. First off, arrival time is when the wheels touch down. Figure 45 minutes before you're actually off the plane and standing in the terminal. Now you've got to check your bags, buy a ticket, then get on the train to downtown Amsterdam. Since you're asking the question I figure you don't know where baggage claim is, how to work the train ticket machines, where the trains board, etc. You'll be able to do each of these without much trouble, just not in the 30 minutes it might take a local. I'm going to estimate an hour here before you're standing in downtown Amsterdam, maybe even a little more.

So we've got 1:45 so far. On the return trip you'll want to be at the station at least 10 minutes before the train, plus the 20 minute ride. I'm sure you've read about the recent attempted plane bombing that originated from a flight leaving Amsterdam so you can count on security being tight, figure 3 hours at least. You need to get your bags back, another 15 minutes. This takes us up to 5:30 time in transportation-related matters, leaving something like 2.5 hours in downtown Amsterdam. Less if there's any more steps in the whole routine. 2.5 hours is enough for a meal and a stroll around, but not much more than that.

Hi Linda,

I completely agree with Michael and would encourage you to go see Amsterdam. After the long flight, the last thing you are going to want to do is sit around for 6 or 7 hours. People do this all of the time and while I agree that you will want to allow plenty of time to get back into the airport, Mike's time line is a gross exaggeration of a worst case scenario. But even say it did take all of that time; it's way better than sitting at the airport.

Have fun!

I'll also agree with Michael. Schipol is quite user friendly and it is an easy journey to the central rail station. I'd definitely plan on a trip into Amsterdam.

I tend to side with Mike from Los Angeles. What could you possibly hope to see or accomplish in such a short period of time? If you want to see a little of Amsterdam, you should arrange to have an overnight layover instead. You have to think of the practicalities and logistics involved in even a short excursion as this. Anywhere along the way you could get delayed in this endeavor. Rushing out of the airport, waiting on ground transportation, finding your way back to said transportation, and then fighting your way back through security, doesn't sound like my kind of fun. And, you may very well get a second look by security because you left the airport and then came back in such a short period of time. I don't get why some folks want to try to cram so much vacation into so little time. Traveling is stressful enough as it is. Take a nap, read a book, take a laptop and grab a Wi-Fi connection, watch a DVD...instead.

I'm starting to re-think this idea of running around Amsterdam just because I have a few hours at an airport. It will be the end of a wonderful trip in Italy (3 weeks) with the last part of it, just relaxing. I should continue to do so. I'll keep hunting for good airfares. Most of the bloggers here have suggested waiting until after the first week or so of January and if the price drops, great... if not, buy any way because it probably won't drop. Almost all of my accommodations are set... Thanks everyone for your ideas and input.

Hi Linda,

I think that's the right decision--it would be stressful to try to see a couple of things in the time you have available. Here's one thing you could do while you're there--visit the

"Rijksmuseum Amsterdam Schiphol
The Rijksmuseum Amsterdam Schiphol is located on Holland Boulevard, in the area behind the passport control between the E and F Pier. The museum is open every day from 7:00 until 20:00 and admission is free. It houses a permanent exhibition of ten works by Dutch masters of the Golden Age from the Rijksmuseum's collection.

The Rijksmuseum Amsterdam Schiphol is a unique joint initiative of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The Rijksmuseum is the first museum in the world to have an annex at an airport, while Schiphol is the first airport with a museum in its terminal. The museum was officially opened on 9 December 2002 by His Royal Highness the Prince of Orange."

Have a great trip!

Linda, I'm not gonna let you off the hook:) If you stay in the airport, you'll miss this beautiful neighborhood just a five minute walk from Centraal Station:

http://tinyurl.com/ykwksdo

Five minutes away from that, and you will be at the Anne Frank House. From there you can walk to Dam Square and check out the Royal Palace and the exhibits at the Nieuwe Kerk (new church)across the street. After that walk through the Red Light Distract and check out the World Press Photo show at the Old Chruch, from there head over to the Hidden Church. You should still have time to get a bite to eat and have plenty of time left over for you flight back home. If you do start running out of time you are no more than a 30 minute walk to Centraal Station from any of these locations.

Another option is to visit the Keukenhof Garndens which are very near the airport. There are direct buses at the airport which will take you direct to the gardens and back to the terminal. http://www.keukenhof.nl/

Schiphol is a single terminal airport, simple to navigate. The bank of luggage lockers is quite central and very easy to get to, no matter which gates you are using. They use euro coins (which you will have ready since you are on your way back from Italy) - 5 or 10, if I remember well. If you leave your carryon in the terminal, you will need less time to get through security when you return. If you are changing planes in Amsterdam on the way to Italy, with a short connection, you will have time to scout the airport, locate the lockers and figure out how they work and which size you need.

The train station is adjacent to the airport, and it should take only a short time to buy tickets. Just be sure to ask (everyone speaks English) where to get the train. I think you can also use cash to buy tickets from the machines - again, you can ask people in the train station.

On your return to the airport, you don't need a lot of time, since you already have your boarding pass. You go directly to passport control and security, then retrieve your carryon and ride the moving walkway to your gate.

I think you will have at least 4 hours to see the sights in Amsterdam. You won't have time for the Rijksmuseum, but there is a lot to see that is quite near the train station. Go for it!

The problem with using the lockers inside the airport terminal is that building is split into two halves. On one side of the terminal all the gates go only to Schengen destinations, the other half non-Schengen. An immigration checkpoint separates the two halves. So when Linda arrives at Schipol from Italy she will arrive at the Schengen section and use the lockers in that section (there are banks of lockers spread throughout the entire terminal). When she reenters the airport after returning from the city center she will only be allowed to enter the non-Schengen section because her boarding pass will be for a flight to the US. She will be allowed to return to the Schengen half of the terminal to retrieve her bags in the locker, but that means passing trough three immigration checks with three lines...it will be very time consuming. Best to use the lockers at Centraal Station, or the airport parking garage.

Thank you Michael and Chani. There is a lot of information here to digest and sink in and I sure appreciate the time and effort you both have put into these responses. I still have not purchased my airfare to Italy and am waiting for another week or so to see if the fares lower. Now I know that if the best flight goes through Amsterdam, I will probably explore. Grazie

Okay, apologies for the misleading info. There used to be a manned left luggage room in the airport, on the lower level. If it is still there, that might be better than taking extra stuff on the train. I'm guessing it is still there because it accommodates large pieces for multiple days, unlike the lockers.