flahagan Posted February 21 #1 Share Posted February 21 I will be ending a Norwegian fjords cruise on May 11 and have booked the HAL transport from Rotterdam to Schiphol. I need to book my flights but would like to know how much time I would need. There are flights out at 10:35, 1:00 PM and 5:00 PM. Any advice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swin26 Posted February 21 #2 Share Posted February 21 Flight ease only allows for flights noon or later, so even if you are not using flight ease, I would avoid the 10:30 flight. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare kazu Posted February 21 #3 Share Posted February 21 23 minutes ago, flahagan said: I will be ending a Norwegian fjords cruise on May 11 and have booked the HAL transport from Rotterdam to Schiphol. I need to book my flights but would like to know how much time I would need. There are flights out at 10:35, 1:00 PM and 5:00 PM. Any advice? You need at least a 3 hour window at Schipol for an International flight. Since it’s a HAlL transfer (which takes longer than just grabbing a cab), I would take the 5 pm flight. The 1 PM flight SHOULD be do-able provided the ship is cleared in a timely manner, etc and Schipol is not too bogged down. It can take a lot of time to get through Schipol’s security. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flahagan Posted February 21 Author #4 Share Posted February 21 Just now, swin26 said: Flight ease only allows for flights noon or later, so even if you are not using flight ease, I would avoid the 10:30 flight. That's what I was thinking. Sound like the 1 PM flight would work best, although it means a 6 hr layover in Atlanta - ugh. The 5 PM flight arrives back in Daytona at midnight, same as the 1 PM flight, with a 2 hr 15 min layover in Atlanta. But that would mean a long day in Schiphol. Decisions, decisions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swin26 Posted February 21 #5 Share Posted February 21 If you take the 5pm fight, it may be possible to take a HAL Amsterdam excursion that drops you off at the airport later. You could also take the train into Amsterdam from the airport- it is very simple. There is also a place near the Amsterdam central station to have luggage held 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boatmad Posted February 21 #6 Share Posted February 21 Take the 5 pm flight. If you have extra time in an airport, Schiphol is a good choice for food and people watching. However, you may not have as much extra time as you think. That airport is a bear with lines and security. Last trip took us 4 hours to get through. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Vict0riann Posted February 21 #7 Share Posted February 21 Last time in Rotterdam we took the HAL transfer with a tour of Rotterdam, it was great to not have a full day in Schipol Airport! They had other tours as well, connected with the transfer, one was to Kinderdyke, which I would have liked but it was too long for us to make our flight in time. I think they did not appear until after we were on board. This next cruise, our flight is 12:10 to Reykjavik, so I'm hoping we can get to AMS speedily! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare VMax1700 Posted February 21 #8 Share Posted February 21 Our next cruise ends in Rotterdam on May 5th and there is an excursion available to Keukenhof for the flower gardens. May 11th is just about the final day of the show this year, so you could take this transfer (departs ship 7.30 am) and drops you to Schiphol for flights after 3.30pm. There is also the option of the Kinderdyke tour. I would not chance the 10.35 flight even if the ship docked in Amsterdam which would be closer! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flahagan Posted February 21 Author #9 Share Posted February 21 1 hour ago, boatmad said: Take the 5 pm flight. If you have extra time in an airport, Schiphol is a good choice for food and people watching. However, you may not have as much extra time as you think. That airport is a bear with lines and security. Last trip took us 4 hours to get through. I'm thinking the same way. I like having the opportunity to shop for some good cheeses to bring home and I'm really not a fan of Atlanta airport. Since I'll be spending a few extra days pre-cruise in Amsterdam and going to Keukenhof then (tour on May 3rd), I'm really not interested in more touring before the airport. Plus, I spent several days in Amsterdam this past August. Thanks for the input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iamthesea Posted February 21 #10 Share Posted February 21 (edited) We enjoyed walking around the airport and going in the different shops. Some last minute gift purchasing, etc. There are also a few places to eat. After our last cruise (to the Norwegian fjords on the N. Statendam) which disembarked in Amsterdam, we stored our luggage at the airport and took the train for a 2 night stay in Antwerp. From there we took a train for a day trip to Brugge. Our last night in Europe was spent back in Amsterdam at the Hilton AMS before taking an early morning flight back to the states. They have a really nice lobby with a good bar. Also, a very nice restaurant! It would be good to stretch your legs before your flight by heading over to the Hilton via the airport walkway. It's about a 10-15 minute walk with your luggage, and all under cover with a few of the walking escalators. I am really surprised that you have not purchased your flights, yet. We are heading back over on May 7th for a cruise out of Rotterdam. We purchased our airline tickets back in August. They were pretty expensive back then. I cannot imagine what the pricing looks like now! I think that I will look it up. 😉 Edited February 21 by Iamthesea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKJonesy Posted February 21 #11 Share Posted February 21 ANYONE - I heard of security headaches at Schiphol. Does anyone know if booking a security time slot is only for Clear? Has anyone done this? https://www.schiphol.nl/en/page/timeslots/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SDARCH Posted February 21 #12 Share Posted February 21 30 minutes ago, Iamthesea said: Amsterdam at the Hilton AMS Just booked this one this morning. Glad to hear your good impressions. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuthC Posted February 21 #13 Share Posted February 21 Of the three choices you listed, I would take the 5:00 PM flight. I would not chance missing the 1:00 PM flight, as I would find it too tight. If I didn't want to get in at midnight (and I would not be happy at that hour, with my body on Amsterdam time), I would stay over one night and take an earlier flight the next day. Going through security in that airport can seem to take forever. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flahagan Posted February 21 Author #14 Share Posted February 21 Thanks everyone! As for getting in at midnight, I only live 8 minutes from our little airport, so no problem. As for not getting my flights yet, I just booked this trip yesterday, a last-minute gift to myself for my 80th birthday! And actually, the fares I'm getting aren't bad at all compared to what I paid for last August. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruiseaholic78 Posted February 22 #15 Share Posted February 22 9 hours ago, flahagan said: Thanks everyone! As for getting in at midnight, I only live 8 minutes from our little airport, so no problem. As for not getting my flights yet, I just booked this trip yesterday, a last-minute gift to myself for my 80th birthday! And actually, the fares I'm getting aren't bad at all compared to what I paid for last August. Good for you have a great cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Mary229 Posted February 22 #16 Share Posted February 22 18 hours ago, AKJonesy said: ANYONE - I heard of security headaches at Schiphol. Does anyone know if booking a security time slot is only for Clear? Has anyone done this? https://www.schiphol.nl/en/page/timeslots/ I have not but it sounds like it is worth doing. AMS can be a real headache. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iamthesea Posted February 22 #17 Share Posted February 22 That's great! I did a mock booking of our flights and they have gone up $2000 each! YIKES!!! 17 hours ago, flahagan said: Thanks everyone! As for getting in at midnight, I only live 8 minutes from our little airport, so no problem. As for not getting my flights yet, I just booked this trip yesterday, a last-minute gift to myself for my 80th birthday! And actually, the fares I'm getting aren't bad at all compared to what I paid for last August. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flahagan Posted February 22 Author #18 Share Posted February 22 20 minutes ago, Iamthesea said: That's great! I did a mock booking of our flights and they have gone up $2000 each! YIKES!!! Holy Moly, that's a huge increase! I just finished booking my flight and I fly r/t DAB - AMS with 1 stop in ATL and for main cabin I paid $1277. I'm satisfied so I won't look anymore, lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iamthesea Posted February 22 #19 Share Posted February 22 (edited) That is a decent fare. DELTA? We also fly in and out of ATL from our home airport, TRI. Fares are always more from here. Occasionally, we will drive to Atlanta and stay at my daughters overnight, but that's still a 5 hour drive to their house, plus another 1+ hour to ATL. When factoring in everything, it usually doesn't save us all that much. Perhaps we should fly to DAB before heading over seas. 😀 We stopped flying Main class a good while ago for comfort and sleep purposes. It was Comfort Plus with an occasional Business class seat depending on how long we were going to be in the air. Last May, we flew Premium Economy to AMS. It was a step above Comfort+ and not too bad (think the old First Class seats.) For this upcoming trip, we found a deal in PE going over, and in Business class on the return. I checked every week to see if we could use Delta points to upgrade to Business for the flight over. Finally landed on a good offer. We are now flying Business round trip for less than $3000 pp. That's still higher than in the years past, but that same flight is now over $5000 pp. Airfare has gotten ridiculous since Covid! Edited February 22 by Iamthesea 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flahagan Posted February 23 Author #20 Share Posted February 23 8 hours ago, Iamthesea said: That is a decent fare. DELTA? We also fly in and out of ATL from our home airport, TRI. Fares are always more from here. Occasionally, we will drive to Atlanta and stay at my daughters overnight, but that's still a 5 hour drive to their house, plus another 1+ hour to ATL. When factoring in everything, it usually doesn't save us all that much. Perhaps we should fly to DAB before heading over seas. 😀 We stopped flying Main class a good while ago for comfort and sleep purposes. It was Comfort Plus with an occasional Business class seat depending on how long we were going to be in the air. Last May, we flew Premium Economy to AMS. It was a step above Comfort+ and not too bad (think the old First Class seats.) For this upcoming trip, we found a deal in PE going over, and in Business class on the return. I checked every week to see if we could use Delta points to upgrade to Business for the flight over. Finally landed on a good offer. We are now flying Business round trip for less than $3000 pp. That's still higher than in the years past, but that same flight is now over $5000 pp. Airfare has gotten ridiculous since Covid! Yes, it's Delta. I have only two airline choices out of Daytona - Delta through Atlanta and American Airlines through Charlotte. Delta is usually my best choice. I love having only one stop for international flights! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lais Posted February 23 #21 Share Posted February 23 How about the train? I’m researching this now and the train is only about 30 minutes directly to the airport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare ski ww Posted February 23 #22 Share Posted February 23 8 hours ago, lais said: How about the train? I’m researching this now and the train is only about 30 minutes directly to the airport. We are also taking the train from Rotterdam to the airport. Don't have to rush off the ship, we have a 5PM flight home so not in a rush. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henk123 Posted February 23 #23 Share Posted February 23 You have to take a cap from Rotterdam port to the trainstation. Puplic transportation is not relax with suitcases Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimdee3636 Posted February 23 #24 Share Posted February 23 I apologize for going slightly off-topic, but is Schiphol a nightmare even if you're only flying INTO the airport? We're taking a Rotterdam-to-Fort Lauderdale HAL transatlantic in 2025, so we'll be flying to AMS but not going through security lines. However, we'll still have to deal with customs, immigration, baggage claim, and God-knows-what else. Is Schiphol worse than any other big European airport in terms of arrival hassles? Thanks. Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare cruisemom42 Posted February 23 #25 Share Posted February 23 On 2/21/2024 at 1:39 PM, boatmad said: Take the 5 pm flight. Although keep in mind that you will need to clear customs in ATL airport. That means standing in line, and possibly grabbing your luggage and rechecking it. You just want to ensure you have enough time for that if your arriving flight is a bit delayed....? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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