Long layover at Schipol?

Passing through in September. I will PM you.

That’s very kind of you Frank. 👍🏻

Bless you, Frank! What a great use of the forum.

Thought I would just leave my jacket at home, save 6oz, and use hers. Creative packing. Maybe we are on to something. Just stash luggage in Europe to used later.

This is a workable idea. But needs some refinement. Sort of geocaching in major European airports. We will one up Mr. Steves -- no carry-on.

There is a business in here somewhere! What if there were shops in European airports where you could rent rain jackets, hiking poles, hiking shoes-sort of like ski rental shops at ski resorts. The credit card deposit would cover losses and you’d have the option of returning the gear to your departure airport. I’d just as soon pay to rent rather than lug this stuff.

Sometimes people here ask for travelers to buy a replacement of something for them...or was it TripAdvisor? One request was a specific snowman ornament from Venice, I recall.
I can't keep the humor rolling, and Frank has offered, but do the lost and found items go to shelters or those less fortunate? That kind of rain jacket could be a great gift for someone who could never afford it....particularly in rainy Netherlands. Just sayin'.....

I like Alan's idea. You could pre-order sizes on-line and pick it up packed. And then return either washed or unwashed for an additional fee.

There is a huge airline lost and found facility, I think in Atlanta, when all of the lost stuff ends up and it is resold. It was featured a few years ago on one of the national TV news networks. I was told years ago that it was a good place for electronics especially laptop if they had not been locked and cameras. I am sure some of my stuff is there and hope they got a good price.

If anyone needs a pocket sized magnifying mirror, I've left them all over Europe. You're welcome. ;)

The last one was left in Cordoba, if you are going that direction, Frank.

From the Schiphol website
Things that are left behind
If the owners don’t collect their items, the items go to auction. Auctions are a kind of market where people can place bids on something they want. 40 carts worth of various lost items are auctioned off about 4 times a year. Any evidence of names or photos of the original owners are destroyed. Any packaged food we find at the airport - from chocolate to tea boxes – is sent to the Food Bank, and ends up in food packages for people who do not have money for groceries.

Frank you are my hero!!!!!

Vickie, where in Wisconsin are you. I live in Hudson and will be flying home from Schipol on September 9. If you live close to Hudson no need to have Frank ship it for you.

Thanks for the L&F details for Schipol. Now that I think about it, I have shopped for luggage at the airport store they had here....like 20 years ago.
Back to the generous traveller plan.

This travel forum is so great. There are a lot of kind, generous people on here willing to share their travel expertise and ideas, and now I see that the bigheartedness of people sometimes extends to going way out of the way to do a favor! I also love the fun that people have with this forum, and the humor on here. My request was certainly an imposition. It probably seems silly to many--my asking for this favor when I could spend $90 and buy a new jacket! But mine is just sitting there, and won't be donated to a needy person if I don't collect it but will instead be sold, profit for the airport. Frank, your immediate offer was so appreciated! Since your passage through Schipol is on the way IN to Europe instead of the way home, and you'd have to tote my property around with you on your whole trip, I've instead accepted an offer that was sent to me by private message, someone who will have a five hour layover at Schipol in just 2 and a half weeks, after a Rick Steves tour. I'm waiting to hear back from her. If she's decided it won't work out for her after all, I'd love to accept the latest offer from debneu2374. I'm in Waukesha County, not near Hudson, so we wouldn't get to meet in person but I'd be happy to have a fellow Wisconsinite send it to me. Thanks everyone!

Vickie, willing to help if your other offer doesn't pan out.

Such kind people!
And....that is a great idea to have a stash of stuff in Europe to borrow....
We could have lockers with a code, and each locker holds a different size of clothing.
No luggage at all for anyone who would join in!! ;) (Well, except undies...)

Maybe this post will never be looked at again, but if anyone sees it, I wanted to tell the end of the story. I have my jacket back! Through replies to this post and some private messages, I got about four offers, and I accepted the offer of the person who was going to be at AMS the soonest. She was going to have a five hour layover there before returning to the US after a two week Rick Steves tour. It turns out she was going to be on the Scandinavia in 14 Days tour. I had just returned from two weeks in Scandinavia. The flight from Bergen to Amsterdam on the last day of that trip was when I left my jacket on the plane. My trip was independent travel and not a tour, but the itinerary was heavily based on the RS tour. I assured my new friend that she was going to have a wonderful time! I emailed her a photo of myself taken in front of the Nyhavn buildings in Copenhagen, so she could see who she was helping. I told her that if she wanted to receive the postage before mailing my jacket, she could just let me know the amount and I'd send it to her. She replied to say that she didn't need to be reimbursed for the postage, I should simply pay it forward some day. So my jacket arrived today, and in the box was a color photo of my new friend, printed off her computer, standing in front of the Nyhavn buildings in Copenhagen. It's amazing to me that something I left in an overhead bin on a flight from Bergen to Amsterdam is now back in my possession, through the kindness of a stranger. It's so nice to have a forum where connections like this can be made. I will pay it forward as soon as possible. The world is full of nice people.

Vickie,
Thank you for sharing the oh-so-happy ending :) And, how very kind of your new Forum friend to help you out.

The world needs more happy news like this.

Many safe and happy travels to all.

This is the sweetest thing I have heard in a long time. I am so glad it worked out for you. The world is indeed full of kind people.

What a happy post! Thanks for the update!

Nuts, and we were so looking forward to using that jacket during our trip. Glad to see the follow-up. Had wondered if it all worked out. We are packing. Less than ten days and we will be in Amsterdam. Finally booked our tickets on Tuesday at least we know when we are going. Still haven't found a return but we don't come back until mid October. We are about to go silent as we don't stay very connected when we travel.

Glad you got your jacket back, Vickie. And enjoyed your trip.