Hello,
So I was thinking of taking the train back to Amsterdam from Paris the day before I fly home. I would be flying out of Amsterdam. Is that not advisable? How often do they cancel? Should I maybe give a few day buffer. I was thinking of taking Thalys
Thalys is now Eurostar. They've got very frequent trains running, so the odds of them canceling for a whole day is likely slim. Should that happen, you could always fly.
Not a bad idea. We did it two years ago from Brussels. Stayed at one of the hotels a Schiphol. No problems.
Why are you going to Amsterdam? If it is only to catch a flight home, you could do it but why? It would be cheaper and more convenient to fly home from Paris.
@Frank: It would depend on where OP is flying home to. For me, for example, Delta has AMS-PDX non-stop. Flying out of CDG would not make much sense if OP was heading to where there is a direct AMS flight and not a direct CDG flight.
Actually, we flew\\booked MUC-AMS the day before our AMS-PDX last December. Should not have been a problem except we were caught in the southern Germany snowmageddon tha weekend and were trapped in MUC for three extra days. Fortunately we were able to extend our hotel night by night and re-book AMS-PDX day by day w/out extra charges.
When in Amsterdam, we've stayed at a business hotel out by the airport. The rooms are incredibly large and the price is better than anything within the center city. The airport has a train station stop downstairs.
Vander Valk Hotel Schiphol picked us up at the airport and carried us back the next morning to catch our flight.
https://vandervalka4schiphol.guestreservations.com
It's maybe as nice a hotel room we've ever stayed in.
I think the Amsterdam-Paris train is reasonable the day before flight. I think it stops right at AMS.
You will, with a very high probability be just fine.
And if somehow something does prevent you from getting to Amsterdam the day before, well, that is what you have travel insurance for...
I don’t have travel insurance and I got the plane tickets through Expedia.
@Frank
I am flying to AMS to begin with
I have done the Eurostar (Thalys) to London and/or Brussels several times to catch a flight home. I do go the day before and I don't wait until the FINAL train of the day.
In several years of doing this I have had ONE problem. During the "Brexit" mess it was taking 4 -5 hours to get through immigration at Paris to go to London. Now I had time to wait, but I was solo and standing there for 4 hours without any way to take a bathroom break etc...was not appealing so I developed Plan B. Thalys to Brussels and Eurostar from there to London... Didn't turn out to be as costly as I expected since when I sent Eurostar my refund request they "accidentally" refunded the entire ticket price :) Now on that same trip there was a woman in line who was sobbing hysterically and begging the exhausted and frustrated staff for help. By the time we cleared immigration and got to a train her flight from LHR would have left.. They would not move her up in the line and I understand why...it would have stared a riot!
You are are of course going to get the "expert" advice on why you entire travel arrangements are 'wrong' (from people who have no idea if they are or aren't. I know mine are not LOL!)
I am glad that the Van der Valk Hotel Schiphol must have remodelled as it now sounds wonderful. We were there maybe 10 or 15 years ago when they still had round bathroom-door like door knobs on the door with a metal key and we weren't as comfortable as we would have liked to be. Still fine other than that, but it sounds so much better now. That's good to know because it is convenient for me and I'd been avoiding it.
Does anyone else have an opinion on this?
That's exactly how I would and do, do it. I usually get to my departing city the day before my flight, if I'm not already there. I do take a morning train so I have options if something happens to my train. Anything can happen, but this is my 'safe' way of getting to my departure city. The train would be preferable to flying to Schiphol, IMO. The train is a nice relaxing and easy end to your vacation.
I think it’s totally fine and would not give it a second thought. As others have said, I would not take the last train or even the second to last.
