Getting There

Main Airports

Amsterdam (AMS) (Schiphol) (website: www.schiphol.nl) is a major international air transport hub 15km (9 miles) southwest of the city (journey time by train - 15 minutes). To/from the airport: The eight-seater Conexxion Schiphol Hotel Shuttle bus provides a frequent daily service, stopping at 100 hotels and returning to Schiphol. In addition, many major hotels in the city operate courtesy buses, and there are many public bus services from the airport to major towns. There is a direct rail link between the airport and Amsterdam Centraal Station, with frequent trains between 0600-0000 and every hour through the night. There are also direct connections to most Dutch towns and cities, and numerous destinations in Germany and Belgium. Plentiful taxis are available to the city. Facilities: Restaurants, duty-free shops, currency exchange machines, banks, art gallery, business centre, conference rooms and car hire.

Getting There by Water

Main ports: Hook of Holland (Hoek van Holland) and Rotterdam. Regular car and passenger ferries are operated from the UK to The Netherlands via the following routes and shipping lines:

Stena Line (tel: 08705 707 070, in the UK only; website: www.stenaline.co.uk): Harwich to Hook of Holland; journey time - 6 hours 15 minutes.
P&O Ferries (tel: 08716 645 645, in the UK only; website: www.ponsf.com): Hull to Rotterdam (Europoort); journey time - 10 hours.
DFDS Seaways (tel: 0871 522 9955, in the UK only or +44 1255 240 240, outside the UK; website: www.dfdsseaways.co.uk): Newcastle to Amsterdam IJmuiden; journey time - 15 hours.

Rail Passes

InterRail: offers unlimited first- or second-class travel in up to 30 European countries for European residents of over six months with two pass options. The Global Pass allows travel for 22 days, one month, five days in 10 days or 10 days in 22 days across all countries. The One-Country Pass offers travel for three, four, six or eight days in one month in any of the countries except Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro. Travel is not allowed in the passenger’s country of residence. Travellers under 26 years receive a reduction. Children’s tickets are reduced by about 50%. Supplements are required for some high-speed services, seat reservations and couchettes. Discounts are offered on Eurostar and some ferry routes. Available from Rail Europe (website: www.raileurope.co.uk/inter-rail).

Eurailpass: (website: www.eurail.com) offers unlimited first-class train travel in 17 European countries. Tickets are valid for 15 days, 21 days, one month, two months or three months.

Getting There by Road

The Netherlands is connected to the rest of Europe by a superb network of motorways. Although frontier formalities between The Netherlands, Germany and Belgium have now all but vanished, motorists (particularly on smaller roads) should be prepared to stop when asked to do so by a customs official.

The Channel Tunnel: Eurotunnel (tel: 0870 535 3535, in the UK only; website: www.eurotunnel.com) runs shuttle trains for vehicles between Folkestone and Calais. Driving time from Calais to Amsterdam is approximately 4 hours. 

Coach: Eurolines (tel: 0870 580 8080, in the UK only; website: www.eurolines.com) runs regular coach services from the UK to The Netherlands. Passes: Travellers can book a 15- or 30-day pass.

Getting There by Rail

Eurostar operates direct high-speed trains from London St Pancras International to Paris (journey time - 2 hours 15 minutes) and Brussels (journey time - 1 hour 51 minutes). Thalys (tel: + 32 2 528 2828, in Belgium; website: www.thalys.com) then operates high-speed trains from Paris to Amsterdam (journey time - 4 hours), and from Brussels (journey time - 2 hours 40 minutes). Through booking is available with Eurostar (tel: 08705 186 186, in the UK only; website: www.eurostar.com) or Rail Europe (tel: 0844 848 4064, in the UK only; website: www.raileurope.co.uk). Rail travellers not using the Channel Tunnel link need to make some form of sea crossing; for details see Getting There By Water). The cost of the crossing is usually included in the price of the rail ticket.