Amsterdam and Amsterdam Airports
Amsterdam is a thriving modern city, the capital of the Netherlands, just 50 miles from Germany, with a large number of national and international connections. Besides the airport, there are a multitude of hotels, restaurants, bars, theaters, clubs, cafes, shops, and coffee shops all over the city to enjoy. This might be one of the best ways to explore the city by train before going on to one of the other scenic routes.
2 Amsterdam Centraal (Amsterdam Airport) — 375km
Grand Central Station (Amsterdam City), 10128 Canada, Koekelberg, Netherlands
As the only airport of the city, Amsterdam Centraal is located 20 minutes away from the city center. This is an ideal way to get in and out of the city, so make sure you check ahead on your flights to make sure it is available when flying out. Take the train to Amsterdam City if you don’t have a car (close to the city center).
Due to the high number of international flights coming and going, Centraal is already very busy with four terminals and over 7 million passengers passing through the airport each year.
Of course, it is not just for business or leisure, it is also a wonderful place to see if you are flying in or out of Amsterdam. In fact, a rail ticket directly to Centraal from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport may be purchased for as little as 4 euros. The station can easily be found using one of the many websites which allows one to purchase train tickets from all over Europe (free when using a Visa card).
Traveling to and through Amsterdam Centraal is a quick and convenient method to get about the city. Upon arriving, it is possible to transfer to any train station within the city (Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Amstelveen Centraal, Utrecht Centraal) by using the ticket booths at the airport. There are also free transfers for Amsterdam Centraal passengers to destinations across the Netherlands and Germany.
As the biggest bus stop in Amsterdam, Polderbus can be used to travel to any city within the Netherlands by simply tapping one of the travel cards onto a reader. To see all the routes which are available, make sure you have a map available. To buy a bus pass from Polderbus (also known as Metrobus in Amsterdam) for Amsterdam City and surrounding areas, make sure you have a credit card with enough travel points.
Travel to and through the city by bus will be one of the most relaxing ways to see Amsterdam. It is also one of the most convenient ways to connect from other cities in the Netherlands to Amsterdam City. You can easily get from Rotterdam to Amsterdam Centraal in about 1 hour by bus. Centraal Amsterdam is the nearest train station. This station connects to many other cities in the Netherlands and Germany, so it is a great way to get to a whole bunch of other cities all within one quick journey. The city bus stops at all the bus stops all over Amsterdam, so you can travel across the city and explore all of the city by bus.
As mentioned, the city is very crowded, so check the schedules to make sure you are not missing the most popular routes (like the tram in the morning). As an added plus, going by train rather than bus will allow you to see a lot more of the city, allowing you to travel around the city at your leisure. The train station closest to the City Center is Centraal Amsterdam, so check out the schedules in advance to make sure you are going to the most convenient route possible. The main train station is also a little busier than the train station at Centraal Amsterdam, so if you are planning to travel to a lot of destinations in the Netherlands, make sure to check the schedules and try to make the train in the morning.
If you’re flying out of Amsterdam, the airport will very certainly be at the end of a city bus line or a tram line. Make sure you do a little bit of research before you go so you do not end up needing to travel by train and bus twice (once to get to the airport and then again to get from the airport to the city). The bus stops outside the main Amsterdam Airport, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.
While some of the larger international aircraft do not fly directly to Amsterdam, all flights to and from Amsterdam have the option of stopping in the city. From the airport, all the international flights have the opportunity to stop at Amsterdam Centraal and then travel to any city in the Netherlands. Make sure you keep an eye on the schedule in advance as you can make your trip from the airport to the city by simply getting on the correct bus.
All of the international flights to and from Amsterdam are operated by KLM. Because the airport is so close to Amsterdam City, it is feasible to go from the airport to the city in as little as 5 minutes by bus. In terms of domestic flights, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport is a little further from the city center, so this journey will take a little longer. You can alight at the City Centre bus station and take the bus to the airport.
Though all the major airlines offer some flights, there is usually only one flight every day. So, the bus stop which you use to reach the city from the airport is likely going to be the bus stop closest to the main bus stop in the city. The distance to the airport from Amsterdam City is approximately 15 minutes on the bus. The bus ride from the airport to Amsterdam City is approximately 30 minutes. The city bus stops right at the main bus stop in Amsterdam City (which is approximately 6 minutes from the city center), so you do not have to take a lot of steps to get to the main bus stop in the city. All city buses connect to the city bus line, so all you need to do is get on the right bus. Remember that all bus routes connect with the metro, so you can go to almost any destination in Amsterdam by hopping on a metro line.
About Berlin Airport
The security reaction in Berlin is substantial. The security fence between the German capital and Berlin Airport, near the northern railway station, runs alongside the city’s river embankment. Once the passengers are inside the fence, cameras monitor every corner of the airport and can instantly call for help to handle an emergency. Once inside the airport building, travelers have to go through scanners and can only access areas with ticket counters, where they are only required to carry identification cards. All airlines are subject to extra checks and security audits by the Federal Police, while all baggage and freight moving to and from Berlin Airport is checked by German officials.
The German federal police force alone has a huge set of laws and regulations. Individuals that enter Germany or come in contact with German citizens are required to keep up with a daily report of their whereabouts, carry a passport, and carry their identity card with them at all times. The police checks on individuals are further increased when they are traveling to or through Germany, for example by forcing travelers to show their passport, residence permit, identity card and stay within a city limit. If a foreigner fails to provide such documentation within a designated time, the police may demand them to prove their identity. During that time, they are only allowed to leave their hotel in the presence of the police officer.
Visitors will notice strict rules at the airport and the clear identification standards at the checkpoints. Passengers arriving at Berlin’s airports will have to keep their identity cards on them at all times and keep them with them at all times. They will also have to show them to airport officials at the entrance to each terminal. As for the new flights to the capital, the passengers will be subject to baggage searches and may be subjected to additional security checks after they have landed at Berlin’s international airport. The German capital has already implemented extreme security measures at its airports, but the heightened security measures implemented by Germany in the past few years also come with an increase in civil liberties. In September 2021, a decree went into effect that requires people to cooperate with police in cases of terrorist attacks, otherwise they will be subject to penalties of up to €10,000.
Flights to and from Berlin will remain on a regular schedule, even with the change in security measures, and authorities are confident that the changes will not affect the airport’s operation. The airport will be closed after the last flights of the day on September 4, so that German authorities can arrange the new security measures.
History of Berlin’s Airport
Berlin-Brandenburg Airport was founded as an airport for commercial and passenger flights in the summer of 1948. Its first flight to the German capital was made by the German Luftwaffe, during the World War II, on September 25, 1944. One year later, a regular passenger flight operated from Berlin to Prague via Frankfurt, while another flight flew directly from the German capital to Hamburg. The construction of Berlin’s new airport required an extensive process and several shifts, since all equipment used was previously used at the German capital’s existing airports. The German Luftwaffe performed the first flight to the German capital on September 25, 1944, during World War II. By the summer of 1948, the airport in Berlin had been completed. The Berlin air force lost several planes to Soviet fighters before the Berlin air force could deploy to the airport. By 1963, the airport began operating for commercial flights and it served approximately 500,000 people in the first year of operation. With a construction value of 623 million Deutsche Marks, Berlin’s airport was the most expensive airport construction in history, including the construction of Berlin’s other airports Schönefeld and Stuttgart. When the Berlin air force was stationed at Berlin’s central air base at Brandenburg, the existing airfields were renamed Berlin-Brandenburg Airbase. The air force began to move to the airbase in 1962. At the end of September 1963, the first commercial flight operated from Berlin’s central airbase to Athens. The air force’s flights to Athens were temporarily suspended after the Soviet Union decided to close the airfield for military flights. On September 26, 1965, German parliament gave the authorities permission to rename the airfield Berlin-Brandenburg Airport, which also became the permanent name of the facility.
Since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the airport has been a major hub for the German airlines Lufthansa, Germanwings, and Eurowings. The airports in Berlin and Hamburg have regularly had over 50 percent of their entire passenger traffic passing through Berlin’s airport. During the first quarter of 2021, more than 26.7 million passengers passed through Berlin’s airport, which is an increase of more than 8 percent compared to the same period last year.
Subsequent Growth and Development
Today, Berlin’s airport is one of the major European airports and it is responsible for facilitating over 15 percent of all international passenger traffic in Germany and for 25 percent of all air traffic within Europe. The airport currently has regular flights to over 100 destinations worldwide, including all major international hubs and major cities in Germany. The airport’s central location means it is the only major international airport within a 50-kilometer radius.
During the first half of 2021, Berlin’s airport served a total of 63.5 million passengers, including 23.3 million from domestic flights and 40.3 million from international flights. The airport has the largest duty-free shopping area in Europe, including the three biggest airports in Germany, along with the largest shopping centre in the region. The new central location of the airport will allow more international flights and a lower load factor.
During the next decades, Berlin’s airport will expand and the modernization process will continue until it reaches the necessary capacity in the near future. The Berlin airport’s central location will help it attract a greater number of passengers from other regions. The airport is developing its own transit network and other new passenger transportation services. The airport expects its transit traffic to increase to around 90,000 passengers by 2021.