With over 45 million people passing through its concourses in 2010, Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport is such a major hub that it’s actually self-classified as an “airport city.” But if that sounds like a crowded, oppressive super-plex right out of Blade Runner, think again.
The Dutch have long been getting it right when it comes to urban planning and development, and when I transited through Schiphol last week on my trip to Italy, I quickly found much to love about my stop-over there. Here’s the top 5 reasons on my list:
#1 Rijksmuseum
I’ve always wanted to visit Amsterdam’s famed Rijksmuseum, home to a wealth of wonders by the Dutch masters. Short of that, I was thrilled to find the airport’s Rijksmuseum annex, with free admission, smack in the middle of Schiphol’s “Holland Boulevard” (the super-cute themed main connecting corridor). Sure, it’s tiny – the annex holds a modest display of maybe a dozen pieces. But the pieces are high-caliber, and the result is a delightful museum moment in the middle of an otherwise mind-numbing trans-Atlantic journey.
#2 Public Library
This is a first! Just next to the Rijksmuseum, Schiphol’s new public library offers about 1,200 translated into 29 different languages for travelers to check out during their time in the airport city. Also affixed to several of the comfortable reading stations you’ll find iPads free to use, mainly loaded with info and apps about Holland.
#3 Truly fantastic airport food
Typically, airport eating options run on a scale of depressingly distasteful to flat-out inedible. Schiphol offers an impressive array of high-quality eateries along its colorful “Holland Boulevard”, as well as in each of the concourses. Sustainably-caught seafood, freshly squeezed juice concoctions, organic produce and local recipes star on the menus at these great pit-stops – airports of the world, take note!
#4 Chill out zones
I once spent 8 hours on the dirty concrete floor of Mumbai International Airport ridiculously cocooned in an Air India blanket, trying desperately to catch some rest. Airports constantly host hoardes of tired, strung-out travelers with nothing to do but wait and no care in the world apart from a semi-comfortable corner to let the mouth gape open in travel-induced exhaustion. Schiphol gets it. They have set up the nicest, coziest chill-out lounges with funky furniture just begging for you to crash out – oh happy day!
#5 Plentiful, free, usable Wi-Fi
Praises be, Wi-Fi access is starting to become the norm at many airports. But I’ve found that service can be spotty and slow, and sometimes you have to pay for access. What I love about the Wi-Fi at Schiphol is that is fast, easy to connect to in every spot, and of course, it’s free!
I only had a couple hours of layover time to while away in this airport city – plenty of time to visit the museum, the library and grab a nice bit to eat. If you have a layover here and it’s over 4 hours, consider hopping the train into town – it’s only a 20 minute ride to the cafes and canals of Amsterdam!