Train tickets at Schiphol Airport (lesson learned)

Thanks for sharing your experience. The rest of us can learn from this.

I’ve started checking out You Tube videos along the lines of “How to take the train at AMS” before trips. It usually will explain ticketing options and often demo using the machine or app.

I found it interesting that he encouraged you to use the app. What a nice conductor! Preloading transportation apps for a trip can be really helpful. Then simply delete them when the trip is done.

Thanks for the warning, good to know!

It all ended well, but it was very confusing. We definitely
monopolized his time for the entire route and he was nothing but
friendly and kind.

Awww, isn't that nice to hear??

You can still tap in at Schiphol. You will have to use the “tap in” points on yellow poles on the ground floor before you go down to platform. They are close to the stairs down. You would also use them to tap out.

A picture of such a check in/out point can be found here: https://www.schiphol.nl/en/blog/can-i-quickly-get-from-schiphol-to-amsterdam-by-train/

In (almost) every train station in the Netherlands (including Schiphol Airport) these tap in/out poles (with or without gates) are situated before you reach the platform itself (or after the platform when leaving).

You always tap in at the starting point of your train ride. You only tap out when your train ride has finished, not when you are transferring to another train.

On board tap in/out is on bus and tram.

Tourists often make the mistake of thinking that because many stations have gates, that all stations have gates. That is not the case. Most stations in fact only have tap in/out poles, not gates.
(And in one famous case a station ended up with both, because the two operators there could not agree, and one placed poles, the other gates...)

In Europe in general you must always have paid for your trip before you board the train. And even on the platform you are technically required to have a ticket, so if you find yourself facing a train, and not having a ticket (or not having tapped in) then you need to go back up again, and orient yourself, to see how the station you are at works.

Actually, more visitors probably forget to tap out at Schiphol, having tapped in at another station and walk on into the airport, never thinking to look for the yellow poles. Not a big deal, the system just charges you the hold amount on the tap, around 20 euro.

If you have the OV Pay app set up, you can edit your tap-in and tap-outs, in case you run into a case of forgetting to tap, or a broken gate (ran into that one at a station)

The other potential mistake at Schiphol is tapping in at the poles, but getting on a Eurocity Direct train. That requires a second tap at a red pole, usually on the platform. That really only applies if you are going to Rotterdam.

Other small stations will also not have gates, you have to look for a spot to tap.

Ok now I’m reading and learning more. We were only in the Netherlands for about 12 hours so I was just planning one round trip Schiphol to Leiden. So really hadn’t thought I needed the app or even considered it because of our past tap in/out experience.. Now after reading all the responses I’m realizing the yellow posts were tap in? Oh my gosh..,more learning. We literally didn’t “see” them and when we asked the train conductor about tap in/tap out he talked about the train ticket kiosks upstairs which were so minimal and kind of invisible! He never mentioned those posts. We saw them upon our return. I told my husband to scan the QR code on our app just in case. It did nothing. But those are where we could have tapped in/out either the credit card? Who knew? Definitely never even noticed them going to the train in the first place.

After a perfect 3 week run in Switzerland and the SBB app and always having my passes ready to show the conductor, I biffed it up in Amsterdam, but we saved ourselves thanks to the conductor and learned so much more with your responses! Thanks! Signed, a car dependent Californian!

Actually, more visitors probably forget to tap out at Schiphol, having tapped in at another station and walk on into the airport, never thinking to look for the yellow poles. Not a big deal, the system just charges you the hold amount on the tap, around 20 euro.

It's much more. You will pay 33,30€ when you forget to tap out.
A missed tap in would cost 20€.

You can find the correction and boarding fee here https://www.ns.nl/en/service-and-contact/payment/correction-rate-and-boarding-rate

It's much more. You will pay 33,30€ when you forget to tap out.
A missed tap in would cost 20€

Yeah I thought it was closer to 30 euro (at least that was what I recall when I encountered the broken gate), but I could only find reference to the 20 euro online. Anyway, it was easy to go online and fix the "tap-out", the difference was refunded in a day or two.

Well thanks for this! I didn’t enter or exit via the airport on my one trip and used the app to buy tickets while there (except busses or trams). I will most likely be back and am tucking this away in my brain, hoping it stays. But what a really nice person you encountered. That made me smile this morning - an even better benefit than the knowledge.

I assume when you say QR code in the app, you refer to the e-ticket in the NS app.

This QR code indeed wouldn’t work on the yellow standalone poles. You will need to show it to the train conductor when he/she is checking your ticket and/or you will need to use it to open the gates. With an e-ticket with a QR code in the NS app you won’t need to check in or out.

https://www.ns.nl/en/travel/check-in-check-out/mobile-tickets:

What are e-tickets?
E-tickets are train tickets that you load into the NS app or take with you printed out. You do not need to check in with an e-ticket. You use the e-ticket to open gates and show your ticket to the train conductor.

Travelling with your e-ticket
You do not need to check in with an e-ticket. If you are travelling from or to a station with closed gates, you can open them using your e-ticket. Keep your e-ticket until you reach the exit at your arrival station, as you may need it to open the gates there as well.
Step one: Go to a gate and open your e-ticket in the NS app or use a printed ticket.
Step two: Hold the square code on the e-ticket against the illuminated panel on your right.
Step three: The gate will open, allowing you to enter or exit the station.
Please note: show your e-ticket only from the NS app or as a printed ticket. Only then will the gates open.

WengenK, we left your magnificent town of Wengen on Sunday. I had my Half fare cards, my BO pass, all the things perfectly set up for 3 weeks of travel in Switzerland...then 12 hours in Amsterdam and I failed!

Barney_NL, where were you when I needed you? In Haarlem, my favorite in the Netherlands. We should have jumped on the bus and gone to Haarlem for dinner! Next time!

The conductor saw our look of shame, confusion and acknowleged our sincere apology. He was really great!

Looking forward showing you around Haarlem next time you are here!

Fantastic!!!

I landed in AMS about 2 weeks ago and also checked in for one night at the Sheraton!
I had read here about buying a train ticket and don't forget to tap out. So it took me a bit to find the machines but I got the ticket from Schiphol to Amsterdam Centraal, but I didn't think about "tapping in". No inspector on that train.
When we arrived in Amsterdam Central, lots people were tapping their phone on the yellow post near the track and I thought "shoot, I have to tap out". So I tapped my ticket and it said something like "checked in" with green light.

I proceeded to the exit and had to tap the ticket on turnstiles which then let me out. I am still confused where I should have "tapped in" at AMS. I actually rushed down the stairs and caught that train as it was about to leave.

On the return, I bought a ticket at the machine and had to tap it on the turnstile so that was easy to "tap in" :-)

Still confused by the whole process. I am so glad to hear it turned out well for you and you had a friendly inspector.