Amsterdam Airport

[HeidiInTheAlps]

Line to the Anne Frank house isn't too bad in off season, or first thing in the morning.

 

[Serafina]

Or in the evening. When we went, we were out for a walk in the city, decided to go check it out, and waltzed right in. Was probably an hour before closing, but that was sufficient time for us.

 

[SkiGAP]

Oh, and don't get me started on Paris / Charles de Gaulle. All the issues of Heathrow, plus half the staff are always on strike at any given time.

Ha! You guys are naming many of the airports through which I must regularly connect. Throw Frankfurt and Munich in the mix and it's almost a complete set (but Munich airport is great, of course - though I am biased). From Toulouse, you can get to a huge range of European destinations (and a few North African ones) directly, but if you are going far, like to Asia or the Americas, you are connecting. And I travel often.

 

[segacs]

All of that is better than connecting in the US, mind you. The US doesn't have transit status for passengers, so everyone is stuck going through customs and waiting in miles-long customs lineup. I finally got my NEXUS/Global Entry card just to make that much less of a pain. Also, US airports treat everyone like criminals, and the food and amenities tend to be terrible.

Connecting in Toronto/Pearson is a pain, too, because they make you claim your luggage, carry it to the other terminal, and re-check it.

Oh, and don't get me started on the ridiculous liquids restrictions that make it near-impossible to bring home a bottle of wine from your travels.

 

[Serafina]

For six years I had a commuting relationship with Mr. Serafina - I was in Madison, WI and he was out in Western MA. All connections went through O'Hare, and most trips featured Logan. I consider myself a veteran of overtaxed, nightmarish airports in areas prone to weather foul enough to ground all flights. It is true about US customs treating everyone (not just foreign nationals) like criminals. Makes it such a joy to come home again. But the airport immigration checkpoints are a cake-walk compared to crossing the Canadian border in a car, especially if you look like you're educated and affluent. We get harassed every. single. time by the Candian guards - and we've been told that this is retaliation for the amount of grief dished up to Canadian nationals by the US guards, and that they pick educated and affluent people because we're the most likely to write letters complaining to our Congressmen, and that activity though Congress is the most effective way to stop the Canadians from getting harassed. Don't you just love the thinking of professional diplomats?

One of the things I liked best about Schipol was that I was NOT harassed by any official. Everyone had the sanest possible attitude. Also, that airport is very well marked for people trying to make their way through it. I speak and read French, and I still get lost in DeGaulle, Clearly, I speak and read English, but can't ever find my way around Heathrow because there aren't signs. My Dutch is limited to "Dank u wel" and I had no trouble at all getting around Schipol. Or anywhere else in the Netherlands, for that matter, although I do have some Choice Remarks involving the booking of international trains out of Centraal Station.

 

[Serafina]

Oh, and don't get me started on the ridiculous liquids restrictions that make it near-impossible to bring home a bottle of wine from your travels.

​

 

[Jenny]

Huh, we have never, ever had an issue at the border. Not at Sault Ste Marie, Port Huron, Buffalo, or whatever little bitty place we went through on our way to Lake Placid.

 

[segacs]

Huh, we have never, ever had an issue at the border. Not at Sault Ste Marie, Port Huron, Buffalo, or whatever little bitty place we went through on our way to Lake Placid.

The liquid restrictions are for air travel, mainly. Land travel's still okay. But if you fly anywhere with liquids, most of the time you can't take them carry-on. Even Duty Free purchases are subject to being confiscated if you fly through the wrong combination of airports.

 

[Jenny]

Oh, I didn't mean the liquid thing. I was responding to Serafina's comment about being harassed by the Canadian border agents every time she crosses the border.

If I ever win the lottery and have all the money in the world forever, I'm going to fly on private planes and take all the liquids I want! I used to put all the toiletries in the carry on, simply because then I didn't have to worry about them leaking all over stuff.

 

[Serafina]

The Canadians harass us in order to get the US guards to stop harassing Canadians. If you tell them you're crossing the border for a professional conference or business trip it's more likely to happen.

 

[Bumblebee]

I live just outside Maastricht and echo the ease of travel from schiphol - I don't drive there unless it's really necessary!

 

[Jenny]

Hey, Bumblebee - hi! Haven't heard from you in ages.

I think she might be back now, so I'm kind of anxious to hear what she decided to do and how it all went.

 

[Bumblebee]

Hi Jenny, lovely to see you again! I need to do some catching up.

I figured your friend and been and done but I think it was Seraphina considering Maastricht this summer.

 

[abc]

I had no problem at Heathrow. My luggage, however, would disagree. I didn't get lost, but my luggage got "detoured" around Heathrow for a few days before coming back to me!

I'm no fan of Frankfurt. It seems to be super-confusing. Also, there's no sense of "land-side" vs "air-side". So as a transfer passenger, we ended up going through TWO different security check points! You know how that is... lines, shoes off,... and if you're taking your ski boots in the carry-on (I was)? Good luck with the security!

Living in New York, I tried my best to fly direct whenever possible. Never mind a long layover. Though sometimes, the cheapest ticket happends to involves transfer.

 

[HeidiInTheAlps]

More dutch company on the forum! who-hoo!