Schiphol Airport to Amsterdam — every realistic option
Train, express bus, local bus or taxi. They differ by speed, price, drop-off point and how much luggage you've got. Here's the honest comparison — and the one ticket that covers two of them for less than buying separately.
Fastest option
NS train · 17-19 min
Cheapest realistic option
NS train · from €5.20
Distance
~17 km · all options 24/7
Your 4 options at a glance
Pick the row that matches where you're heading and how much you want to spend.
NS train
Schiphol → Amsterdam Centraal direct
€5.20 single (2nd class, fare only) · €10.70 first class
17-19 minutes
Every ~10 minutes (until ~23:30)
Direct to Centraal, no transfers
Best if your hotel is near Centraal, Dam Square or the Jordaan. Fastest and cheapest. Two ways to pay: tap a contactless bank card at the gate (no surcharge, €5.20 charged automatically); or book a mobile ticket via GetYourGuide for €6.30 (4.5★, 4,883 reviews). The €1.10 GetYourGuide fee makes it about 10 cents more than the station price — worth it if you'd rather skip the queue.
Best if you stay in the museum quarter, Vondelpark area, Leidseplein, De Pijp or Jordaan-south. Drops you closer than the train. Book the return ticket on GetYourGuide — €11.75 covers both directions for 14 days.
€3.40 single (included in any GVB or Travel Ticket)
~50 minutes incl. transfer
Every 15-30 minutes
Ends at Sloterdijk, not Centraal — needs a Bus 22 connection
Cheapest on paper, but rarely the smart choice. Only worth it if your hotel is near Sloterdijk, you already have a multi-day GVB ticket, or you want the scenic route. For everyone else, the train wins on speed-per-euro.
Taxi or Uber
Door-to-door, any address
€45-60 typical, surge up to €80
~25 minutes (traffic-dependent)
Always available, official rank outside Schiphol Plaza
Worth it for 3-4 people with luggage
Use only if you're a group splitting the cost, arriving very late, or have heavy luggage. For a solo traveller the maths almost never works out — the train is 8× cheaper and only 8 minutes slower.
Train or Bus 397 — which fits your hotel?
For most travellers the real choice is between the NS train and Bus 397. Pick by where you're sleeping.
The honest answer: Bus 397 wins for the south of the city, the train wins for Centraal and north. The train is faster (19 vs 30 min) and slightly cheaper (€5.20 contactless or €6.30 via GetYourGuide vs €7 bus single). But the train ends at Centraal — if your hotel is at Museumplein, Vondelpark, Leidseplein or Concertgebouw, you would still need a tram from Centraal, which adds time and an extra €2.10 ride.
Pick Bus 397 if: your hotel is around Museumplein, Vondelpark, Leidseplein, De Pijp, Concertgebouw or Elandsgracht. The bus drops you within walking distance, no tram transfer. Full Bus 397 details →
Pick the NS train if: your hotel is near Centraal, Dam Square, the Jordaan, Red Light District or the IJ-side. The train is faster, cheaper, and ends right where you need to be.
Edge cases: groups of 3-4 with heavy luggage → consider the taxi (€45-60 split four ways is competitive). Hotels in Hoofddorp (one stop past Schiphol) → NS train continues there, +€4.30 single. Day trips to Haarlem or Zandvoort → see the Region Travel Ticket instead.
Which option is cheapest for your trip?
Pick how long you're staying. We'll show what airport + city transport actually costs.
If you'd otherwise stack a train ticket plus a city pass, this folds both into one.
The Amsterdam Travel Ticket covers the Schiphol airport train (NS), Bus 397, Niteliner N97, and unlimited GVB tram, bus, metro and ferry inside the city. Valid for 1, 2 or 3 calendar days from your first check-in, until 4 a.m. the morning after the last valid day. You get an online voucher, swap it for an OV-chipkaart at Schiphol Plaza or Amsterdam Centraal (5 minutes, 24/7 machines), and tap on every vehicle.
It's the only ticket that turns "How do I get from the airport to my hotel?" into the same question as "How do I get around the city?". From €20.00.
Don't buy two single tickets if you don't have to.
Three returns to know about:
NS train: no return discount, you just buy two singles. €5.20 each contactless at the gate, or €6.30 single as a mobile ticket via GetYourGuide (€10.70 for 1st class). The Centraal → Schiphol direction is the same product.
Bus 397 return: €11.75, valid 14 days from the outbound trip. Book here — same ticket gets you back, no second purchase needed.
Travel Ticket: covers both directions on the train and Bus 397 for the duration of your trip. Best deal if you've also got city transport on the bill.
For early-morning departures, remember the night bus N97 runs once an hour between 01:00 and 05:00 — same stops as the daytime 397.
Honest tips most other sites skip
Worth knowing before you choose
The "OV-chipkaart €1 surcharge" trick. NS train ticket machines add €1 per paper ticket. Tap a contactless bank card or phone at the gate instead — same fare, no surcharge.
Bus 397 QR-scan problems. A handful of recent reviewers report the GetYourGuide QR ticket doesn't always scan on the first try at the door. Have the driver wave you on — they're used to it. The ticket is valid; the scanner is the issue.
Hoofddorp isn't Schiphol. Some Amsterdam hotels are technically in Hoofddorp (one stop past Schiphol). The Travel Ticket and Bus 397 both stop at Schiphol — for Hoofddorp you pay an extra €4.30 on the NS train, or use bus 369 which serves both.
Late arrivals: the train wins. NS Sprinters and Intercity run until ~00:30, with hourly night-trains after. Bus 397 stops at midnight; N97 only runs once an hour. For a 23:00 landing, the train is faster and more frequent.
Don't book Bus 397 if your hotel is at Centraal. Bus 397 doesn't stop at Centraal — it ends at Elandsgracht (5-10 min walk to the centre). If you're at Centraal or Dam Square, take the train.
If you also want a day trip…
The Region Travel Ticket adds the trains and buses for Keukenhof, Zaanse Schans, Volendam, Haarlem, Zandvoort.
The fastest option is the NS train at 17-19 minutes to Amsterdam Centraal. Bus 397 takes 25-30 minutes but drops you closer to Museumplein, Leidseplein and the south of the city. A taxi takes around 25 minutes door-to-door, traffic permitting. Bus 369 via Sloterdijk takes ~50 minutes including the transfer to Bus 22.
On paper: GVB bus 369 + bus 22 at €3.40 single. But the time penalty (50 min vs 19 min) is rarely worth saving €2. The realistic cheapest option is the NS train at €5.20 if you tap a contactless bank card at the platform gate. If you'd rather skip the queue and book ahead, a mobile NS ticket via GetYourGuide is €6.30 — about 10 cents more for a stress-free arrival. If you also need city transport, the 1-day Travel Ticket at €20.00 beats both because it bundles the airport ride with unlimited city transport.
Every 8-10 minutes from 05:30 to 07:00, then 4-6 times per hour during the day, into the evening. Service stops around midnight. Between 01:00 and 05:00, the night version N97 takes over with one departure per hour in both directions. Same stops, same ticket.
It depends on where you're going. The train is faster (19 vs 30 min) and slightly cheaper (€5.20 contactless or €6.30 via GetYourGuide vs €7 bus single) — pick it if your hotel is near Amsterdam Centraal, the canals, or anywhere a single tram can reach from Centraal. Bus 397 wins if you're staying around Museumplein, Vondelpark, Leidseplein, De Pijp or Concertgebouw, because it drops you there without a tram transfer.
Four ways, ranked by ease:
Contactless at the gate — tap any contactless bank card or phone (Apple Pay, Google Pay) at the platform gate. €5.20 charged directly. No machine, no app, no surcharge. Cheapest option, fastest if you already have a contactless card.
Mobile ticket via GetYourGuide — book here for €6.30 (2nd class) or €10.70 (1st class). Includes a €1.10 booking fee on top of the €5.20 NS fare — about 10 cents more than the station. You walk straight from arrivals to the platform, scan the QR at the gate, no queue. 4.5★ across 4,852 reviews.
Yellow NS ticket machines at Schiphol Plaza. Cards and contactless work. A paper single-use OV-chipkaart adds €1.00 to the fare (€6.20 total).
NS Service Shop at Schiphol, open 24/7. Cash accepted. Slowest if there's a queue.
The Amsterdam Travel Ticket covers both directions of this train as part of a multi-day city pass — see below.
Yes. The Amsterdam Travel Ticket covers the Schiphol train, Bus 397 Airport Express, the Niteliner N97 night bus, and unlimited GVB tram, bus, metro and ferry inside Amsterdam. Valid for 1, 2 or 3 calendar days from your first check-in (until 4 a.m. the morning after the last valid day). Full details and prices →
Pick your option
Most Schiphol arrivals end up with the Travel Ticket — it's airport + city in one swipe, from €20.00.
