forwardho Posted July 20 #26 Share Posted July 20 Just left the port today with HAL shuttle . We didn’t leave until 9:30 and got to the airport at 11am. We booked a night at the Sheraton and they checked us in by 11:30. Flight was cheaper on Sunday rather than Saturday. Great to relax and not worry about flight at the end of vacation 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julia Posted July 20 #27 Share Posted July 20 Q. Why are international flights from Rotterdam soooo expensive? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rotjeknor Posted July 20 #28 Share Posted July 20 2 hours ago, RedIguana said: Any advantages or disadvantages using NMBS vs NS? When you board in Belgium , except for the Eurostar, it’s the NMBS that you’ll have to use since they are the national train company. As the NS is in the Netherlands among various smaller regional carriers who use the same tracks. When the NS or NMBS or for instance the Deutsche Bahn pass the border there are usually changes in staff . Or sometimes a locomotive. But other than that you won’t notice that you are in a different country. I would advise you to buy a one way from Brussel to Utrecht and look for a multi day pass for use in The Netherlands or , imo even better, use your creditcard for travel on public transport. Almost any bus, train, tram and subway has the possibility to just check in / check out with your bank card/ credit card. Easiest way to go . https://www.ovpay.nl/en 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rotjeknor Posted July 20 #29 Share Posted July 20 21 minutes ago, julia said: Q. Why are international flights from Rotterdam soooo expensive? Depends on where you want to go….😁 I recently flew to Edinburgh RT for less than 125 euros. Rotterdam Airport is basically for shorter European flights not intercontinental. It has a good connection with several London Airports, we used British Airways in the past to fly , via London, to the US starting in Rotterdam. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powlan Posted July 20 #30 Share Posted July 20 No. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rotjeknor Posted July 20 #31 Share Posted July 20 1 hour ago, powlan said: No. To what ? 🤓 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julia Posted July 20 #32 Share Posted July 20 2 hours ago, powlan said: No. 21 minutes ago, rotjeknor said: To what ? 🤓 Hahahaaaa.... answering the original question! 😂 And thank you @rotjeknor for the local information! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ichiban Nekko Posted July 20 #33 Share Posted July 20 5 hours ago, forwardho said: Just left the port today with HAL shuttle . We didn’t leave until 9:30 and got to the airport at 11am. We booked a night at the Sheraton and they checked us in by 11:30. Flight was cheaper on Sunday rather than Saturday. Great to relax and not worry about flight at the end of vacation Thank you @forwardho for sharing this. We are taking the Rotterdam TA in April to Rotterdam, arriving April 26 (king's Day/Easter weekend). We originally booked our nonstop air home departing Schipol that day with a 12 noon departure. After reading your post, we reconsidered our options and rebooked our flight for the next day (fewer miles 😀) and reserved at the Hilton Schipol so we are in place for our flight the next day. Bonus: This now gives us time to take in the Rembrandt Museum (under renovation when we were last in AMS in 2013) and a Rijsttafel dinner before taking the train back to Schipol for the night. -Cat & Dave 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iamthesea Posted July 21 #34 Share Posted July 21 7 hours ago, rotjeknor said: Depends on where you want to go….😁 I recently flew to Edinburgh RT for less than 125 euros. Rotterdam Airport is basically for shorter European flights not intercontinental. It has a good connection with several London Airports, we used British Airways in the past to fly , via London, to the US starting in Rotterdam. I have learned two new things reading this thread. Did not know that there was an airport in Rotterdam. We will have to look into that for our next trip when planning our pre and post cruise days. This past May, we took the HAL transportation from Rotterdam back to AMS, and then took a short flight to Frankfurt, Germany for a few days. We picked this route because we could get Business Class for much less than flying straight in/out of AMS. Also learned about looking at flights into Brussels instead of AMS. In 2003, after our cruise from Amsterdam, we took the train to Antwerp and used that as a home base for travel to Bruges. We took the train all the way back to AMS to fly home. 3 hours ago, Ichiban Nekko said: Thank you @forwardho for sharing this. We are taking the Rotterdam TA in April to Rotterdam, arriving April 26 (king's Day/Easter weekend). We originally booked our nonstop air home departing Schipol that day with a 12 noon departure. After reading your post, we reconsidered our options and rebooked our flight for the next day (fewer miles 😀) and reserved at the Hilton Schipol so we are in place for our flight the next day. Bonus: This now gives us time to take in the Rembrandt Museum (under renovation when we were last in AMS in 2013) and a Rijsttafel dinner before taking the train back to Schipol for the night. -Cat & Dave We stayed at the Schipol Hilton after our 2003 cruise out of Amsterdam. We always stay over a few days after a cruise when overseas. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pboyd Posted July 22 #35 Share Posted July 22 Thanks for all this info! My itinerary says debarking at Rotterdam is at 7:00 AM, and I'm wondering if I really can get off that early or very shortly thereafter, and will I have immediate access to my luggage? My flight is at 11:30 and from what everybody has said, I wouldn't try it if the cruise transportation bus didn't leave before 8:30 or 9:00. I'm wondering if cabs to Schipol are readily available curbside for an immediate departure from the terminal? I would hope to be in a cab by at least 8:00 and at Schpol by 9:00-9:30. . Also, if a cab is iffy, would a private car service be a better/safer if more expensive choice? I recognize that road/airport construction could be the wild card here. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayward Son Posted July 22 #36 Share Posted July 22 32 minutes ago, Pboyd said: My flight is at 11:30 Still way too early for us at Schiphol Airport from Rotterdam. You will have to carry your own bags off the ship, and 7:00 is arrival time, not disembark time, which will be somewhat later. Then, if you can immediately jump in a cab/Uber/car, have perfect traffic on a summer Saturday morning (unlikely), quickly and easily check your bags and get through security and to your boarding gate (even less likely) -- then you might make your flight. I wouldn't bet the ranch on it. Pay extra for a later flight if you have to, and enjoy some peace of mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruiseaholic78 Posted July 22 #37 Share Posted July 22 On 7/20/2024 at 11:05 PM, Ichiban Nekko said: Bonus: This now gives us time to take in the Rembrandt Museum (under renovation when we were last in AMS in 2013) and a Rijsttafel dinner before taking the train back to Schipol for the night. -Cat & Dave this will also give you a taste of the Dutch celebrating Kings Day https://www.gettyimages.nl/fotos/koningsdag have fun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare VMax1700 Posted July 22 #38 Share Posted July 22 6 hours ago, Pboyd said: Thanks for all this info! My itinerary says debarking at Rotterdam is at 7:00 AM, and I'm wondering if I really can get off that early or very shortly thereafter, and will I have immediate access to my luggage? My flight is at 11:30 and from what everybody has said, I wouldn't try it if the cruise transportation bus didn't leave before 8:30 or 9:00. I'm wondering if cabs to Schipol are readily available curbside for an immediate departure from the terminal? I would hope to be in a cab by at least 8:00 and at Schpol by 9:00-9:30. . Also, if a cab is iffy, would a private car service be a better/safer if more expensive choice? I recognize that road/airport construction could be the wild card here. Thanks Have you checked the transfer offer? Check on HAL website under Shore Excursions. The tab for Rotterdam on Disembarking day should offer tours and transfers. On our last cruise to end in Rotterdam there were 3 options for transfer times. However you are dependant on everyone else being as prompt as you. There were plenty of taxis outside the terminal but I would go with a private transfer. Get a quote online from staxi.nl. we have used them to/from Rotterdam and they are reliable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare VMax1700 Posted July 22 #39 Share Posted July 22 If you can carry your own suitcases off it will be much quicker as you won't be dependant on being able to find them in the baggage claim area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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