By plane

1 Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS IATA) (15 km (9.3 mi) southwest of the city.). This airport is among the five busiest in Europe for passenger traffic, serving over 66 million passengers in 2024. KLM is the largest carrier operating at Schiphol and offers flights to many major cities around the world. British Airways offers up to 16 flights per day to 2 London Airports; Heathrow and London City. Transavia, Vueling, TUIfly, Easyjet, and other low-cost carriers serve Schiphol, offering service to many cities in Europe.

Flying to other airports than Schiphol could prove cheaper as some budget airlines have their base in Eindhoven or Rotterdam. Buses and trains can be used to get to Amsterdam, and renting a car is also an option. Taxis are not advisable, a ride from Rotterdam costs about €120 and from Eindhoven a whopping €200.

From Eindhoven Airport (EIN IATA), take a local bus (Bravo/Hermes bus 400, €3.22 using an OV-chipkaart or OVpay or bus 401, €2.83) to Eindhoven Centraal train station (2025 prices). Both buses have a frequency of four-six times per hour, duration about 25 minutes. From there take a train to Amsterdam Centraal (duration approx 1 hr 15 min, frequency four times per hour, single €25.60) (2026). Combination tickets for bus and train are available as etickets or on the NS vending machines (choose Eindhoven Airport as destination).

From Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM IATA), take a city bus (RET airport shuttle bus 33, duration 25–30 minutes, frequency every 10–20 minutes, €2.27 using the OV-chipkaart or OVpay) to Rotterdam Centraal train station. If you change to metroline E from bus 33 at Meijersplein to Rotterdam Centraal, it will save you 5–10 minutes, €2.29 (2025). As a trial, bus 533 runs between the airport and Meijersplein between 10:00–16:00, 2 times per hour.

From Rotterdam Centraal, take a train to Amsterdam Centraal (duration about an hour, frequency every 10–20 minutes, single €20.20, 2026).

By train

Most trains arrive and depart from 2 Amsterdam Centraal. This architecturally stunning station was built in 1889 on an artificial island between the medieval centre and the IJ waterfront.

Other important train stations in Amsterdam are Amstel, Bijlmer ArenA, Sloterdijk and Zuid. Most international trains run directly to Amsterdam Centraal. The Eurocity Direct from Brussels stops at Amsterdam Zuid.

There are several options to pay your train fare within the Netherlands.

Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS) is the main (domestic) train operator for travel to much of the country. Trains to more distant locales may require change of train in another city or town and may be less frequent. They also offer international service to neighbouring countries in cooperation with Belgian Rail (Belgium) and Deutsche Bahn (Germany). See below:

The ICE Berlin runs 5 times a day and connects Amsterdam with Osnabrück, Hanover, and Berlin (5 hr 51 min). A Bordrestaurant coach is available on each train. Tickets can also be bought via Deutsche Bahn

The Eurocity Direct Brussels runs up to 16 times a day from Brussels (2 hr 8 min) and Antwerp (1 hr 23 min) and takes a bit longer than the Eurostar. However, the prices are usually lower than Eurostar and a good alternative coming from Belgium. Please note: this train stops at Amsterdam Zuid instead of Amsterdam Centraal. Depending on the location of you accommodation, this might be beneficial.

ICE International connects Amsterdam up to seven times each day with Düsseldorf (2 hr 6 min), Cologne (2 hr 20 min), and Frankfurt (3 hr 46 min). There is a BordBistro coach available on each ICE train. Nightjet runs nightly from Zürich, Vienna, and Innsbruck via Basel, Frankfurt and Cologne. Tickets for all are available through Deutsche Bahn (DB).

Eurostar runs a daily high-speed service from London St Pancras International to Amsterdam Centraal. The journey is approximately 3 hr 40 min, and prices start at £35 one way. You should arrive between 90 and 30 minutes prior to departure to clear border control. Passengers travelling from Brussels can also book Eurostar journeys to Amsterdam. Tickets are sold on the Eurostar website.

Eurostar (formerly Thalys) also runs a high-speed service that connects Amsterdam with Paris Gare du Nord (3 hr 19 min), Brussels Zuid/Midi (1 hr 54 min), and Antwerp Centraal (1 hr 12 min). These trains run up to ten times a day. The cheapest tickets are sold early, so book in advance if possible. There is a bar coach available; if you're travelling in first class, a snack and drinks are included in the price. Eurostar also stops at Schiphol Airport and Rotterdam.

If you plan to take a train to Amsterdam, it's advisable to check the train times in the international journey planner. Most tickets are sold online, and often it is cheaper to book tickets in advance. Tickets are also sold at the international ticket offices at Amsterdam Centraal and at Schiphol Airport.

Coming from Germany with the Deutschland-Ticket, you can take the RE19 e.g. from Düsseldorf/Duisburg to Arnhem. From Arnhem, a direct Intercity leaves every 30 min to Amsterdam Centraal (€22.10, 2026); four other connections per hour require a cross platform transfer at Utrecht Centraal. Alternatively, you can take the Flixbus to Amsterdam (updated Jan 2026)

By bus

Frequently served intercity bus stops are:

3 Sloterdijk intercity bus station. Reachable by Bus 22, tram 19, trains and metro line 50 and 51. The Amsterdam Sloterdijk stop is at the bus platforms at the Piarcoplein, on the north side of Sloterdijk station. Please follow the signs "Piarcoplein" in the station.

4 Bijlmer ArenA intercity bus stop International buses share a bus stop with EBS buses on Hoogoorddreef, ("Hoogoorddreef/Atlas") which is located outside the busstation under the train and metro platforms. This stop is between the Europlaza tower and the multistorey car park P9.

5 Schiphol Airport intercity bus stop

There are dozens of daily international bus services. Nearby international destinations in Germany, Belgium and France (Paris and Lille) and London are served at high frequency. Their stops and stations are located at the Amsterdam Sloterdijk Station, the airport and/or another locations:

Flixbus, (bus stops) Amsterdam Sloterdijk, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA & Amsterdam Centraal. German low-cost bus company offering connections to many German cities such as Berlin, Cologne and Munich and other European cities as well. Also offering domestic service within the Netherlands. (updated Nov 2025)

BlaBlaCar Bus, (bus stops) Amsterdam Sloterdijk, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. It runs a coach service between Paris and Lille to Amsterdam among others. (updated Nov 2025)

RegioJet, (bus stop) Amsterdam Sloterdijk, ☏ +420 222 222 221, info@regiojet.com. (formerly Student Agency) A Czech operator with a daily service from Prague, departing from the Amsterdam Sloterdijk Station. (updated Nov 2025)

Twiliner, (bus stop) Amsterdam Sloterdijk, service@twiliner.com. Buses take 12 hr 30 min from Zurich via Basel, Luxembourg (city), Brussels and Rotterdam. Their seats fold flat into a bunk: there's some disturbance from bumps in the road and noise at intermediate stops, but no worse than in a railway sleeping car, for similar comfort and half the price. (updated Jan 2026)

There are only a few long-distance national bus services in the Netherlands, and apparently none to Amsterdam Centraal. Bus 300 connects Haarlem train station with Hoofddorp, Schiphol Airport, Amstelveen and Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA.

By car

The western part of the Netherlands has a dense (and congested) road network. Coming from the east (Germany), motorway directly leads to Amsterdam. If you're taking motorway A12 from Arnhem, change in Utrecht onto the A2 in the northern direction. From the south (Belgium), follow motorways A16, A27 and A2, in that order in northern direction. From The Hague, the A4 leads to Amsterdam. All motorways to Amsterdam connect to the Ring motorway, the A10. From this motorway, main roads lead radially into Amsterdam (the roads S101 through S118).

In most cases, you'll want to avoid getting into the area enclosed by the ring road. Traffic is dense and parking spaces are expensive and difficult to find. Instead, when on the A10, follow the signs to one of the P+R-spots (P+R Zeeburg to the east, P+R Johan Cruijff ArenA to the southeast, P+R Olympisch Stadion to the south, P+R Noord to the north, and P+R Sloterdijk to the west). Here you can park your car and take public transport to the city centre. There is a rate of €8-13 a day. To benefit from the discounted rate, you need to use a OV-chipkaart or disposable GVB OV-chipkaart: OVpay or QR-tickets are not accepted. Please note: the last check-in or transfer must be within the city centre zone.

You can park for free at a few places that have metro or tram stops nearby (e.g. IKEA near metro station Bullewijk).

The speed limit on Dutch motorways is 100 km/h during the day and 130 km/h during the night, except where indicated. On the A10 ring motorway around Amsterdam, the maximum speed is 100 km/h, and 80 km/h on the Western section. These limits are strictly enforced and there are many speed cameras.

By boat

The 6 Passenger Terminal Amsterdam is close to the city centre but is only used for cruise ships. The nearest ferry port is IJmuiden, where ferries from Newcastle upon Tyne dock. DFDS Seaways offers daily overnight ferry services from Newcastle upon Tyne (more specifically, North Shields) in the United Kingdom.

Other ferry services dock at Rotterdam Europoort (ferry from Hull) and Hook of Holland (ferry from Harwich). These are about 70 km away from Amsterdam. Intercity and Intercity Direct trains run direct from Amsterdam Centraal to Rotterdam Centraal every 10 to 15 minutes taking approximately 1 hr 15 min. See the National train operator NS website for booking and information.

For the Stena Line ferry to Harwich: from Rotterdam Centraal, change for Rotterdam Metro Line B direct to Hoek Van Holland Station where you will be able to walk onto the Ferry. See Rotterdam RET website for tickets and information. For P&O to Hull: there is no public transport however Taxis are readily available at Rotterdam Centraal. P&O offer some coach options via their website.