Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to Amsterdam Centraal / City Centre
Schiphol to Amsterdam Centraal is about 14 km; direct NS trains do it in around 17 minutes for €5.50 — the fastest, cheapest way into the heart of the city.
Amsterdam Centraal / City Centre, AmsterdamSlaunger / Wikimedia, CC BY-SA 4.0Amsterdam's monumental 19th-century central station is the gateway to the canal ring, Dam Square and the old town, and the natural first stop for most visitors. Direct Intercity trains run beneath the terminal.
Every way to get there
Our verdict: for Amsterdam Centraal / City Centre, a private transfer is the easiest door-to-door option (from €45). Travelling light on a budget? The bus is cheapest (from €6.5) but slower, with a change in the city.
What it costs for your group
The bus is charged per person, while a taxi or private transfer is one price for the whole car — so the more of you there are, the better door-to-door value looks.
| Group | Bus (per person) | Private transfer | Best value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo · 1 traveller | €7 | €45 | Bus |
| Couple · 2 travellers | €13 | €45 | Bus |
| Family of 4 · 4 travellers | €26 | €45 | Bus |
Which option should you choose?
| If your priority is… | Our pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest price | Bus | From €5.5, though slower with a change in the city. |
| Speed & comfort | Private transfer | Door-to-door, fixed price, a driver waiting for you. |
| A group of 3–4 | Transfer or taxi | One flat fare splits cheaper than several bus tickets. |
| A late-night arrival | Transfer or taxi | Both run 24/7 when buses and the tram have stopped. |
By transport mode
Train
€5.50 second-class on OVpay/e-ticket (first class €9.90); a paper disposable ticket adds €1.60. Tap in and out.
Where to catch it: Schiphol Airport station, below the terminal on Plaza level.
Best for budget travellers near a stationBus / shuttle
Flat €6.50 single (€11.75 return); terminates at Elandsgracht on the edge of the centre, with Wi-Fi and luggage space.
Where to catch it: Schiphol bus station, stand B17.
Best for solo & budget travellersTaxi
Metered, roughly €45–55 to the centre. Use the official rank only — avoid touts inside the hall.
Where to catch it: Official taxi rank at Arrivals Plaza.
Best for small groups in a hurryPrivate transfer
Fixed price paid upfront by card.
Where to catch it: Driver meets you at arrivals.
Best for families, groups & late arrivalsCar rental
Per day; central parking is pricey, so a car isn't ideal for a city stay.
Where to catch it: Schiphol Plaza car-rental centre.
Best for travellers who want to exploreAmsterdam Centraal / City Centre & Amsterdam in photos
Buying tickets in Amsterdam
The NS train station sits directly under the terminal, with trains to Amsterdam Centraal every few minutes taking about 17 minutes for roughly €6.20. The simplest way to pay is OVpay: tap a contactless card or phone on the yellow posts, but you must tap in with the same card AND tap out again at your destination, or you are overcharged. You can also buy an NS e-ticket via the app or the yellow machines. Visitors staying a few days often prefer the Amsterdam Travel Ticket, which bundles the airport train with unlimited city transport.
Taxi scams & safety in Amsterdam
Schiphol is low-risk, but only use the official rank served by Taxicentrale Schiphol, found at the designated taxi stand outside Arrivals — never follow anyone offering a ride inside the terminal, as those touts are unlicensed and charge far more. Official airport taxis are metered or fixed-price; agree the fare before setting off. Uber and Bolt operate here too but must be booked in the app and collected from the marked ride-hailing pickup area, not the taxi rank.
Getting from AMS to Amsterdam Centraal / City Centre
Seventeen minutes. That is genuinely all that stands between the baggage carousel at Schiphol and the moment you step out under the twin towers of Amsterdam Centraal, blinking at your first canal. I could hardly believe it the first time — no shuttle bus grinding through car parks, no motorway crawl, just a lift down from the terminal and a train that slips you straight into the beating heart of the old town. Fourteen kilometres, one ride, and suddenly the gabled houses and the water and the bicycles are all right there in front of you.
The train that hides under your feet
Here is the delicious secret nobody quite prepares you for: Schiphol's railway station sits directly beneath the terminal, on the Plaza level. You do not leave the airport building to reach it. Follow the signs down, and there are the NS (Nederlandse Spoorwegen) platforms, humming with up to eight or ten direct Intercity trains every hour bound for Centraal. Miss one and the next is minutes away — this is a route you never really have to plan around.
The fare is almost comically fair for what it delivers: €5.50 in second class, tapped in and out with any contactless bank card thanks to OVpay, or on an e-ticket. First class, if you fancy stretching out with your suitcase, runs €9.90. My one piece of hard-won advice — skip the paper disposable ticket from the machine, which quietly tacks on €1.60. Just tap your own card at the gate on the way in, tap again at Centraal, and you are done. Do remember to tap out; the system charges properly only when you complete the pair.
For roughly the price of a coffee and a stroopwafel, then, you get the fastest and cheapest way into the city, arriving grandly at a nineteenth-century station that is itself a monument — the way in to the canal ring, Dam Square and the tangle of the old town beyond.
When a bus makes more sense than a train
The train is my hands-down favourite, but it is not the only honest option, and the Amsterdam Airport Express 397 deserves a word. You catch it at the Schiphol bus station, stand B17, and it rolls every 7 to 15 minutes from around 05:00 until roughly 01:00 — that late finish matters if your flight lands at an unsociable hour and the last thing you want is a fare debate at the taxi rank.
It is a flat €6.50 single, or €11.75 if you buy the return, and the coach comes with Wi-Fi and proper luggage space, so you can slump and watch the polder slide by. The trade-off is time and destination: it takes about 40 minutes and terminates at Elandsgracht, on the western edge of the centre rather than plumb in the middle. If your hotel is over that way — or you simply prefer street-level views to a station platform — it is a lovely, low-stress arrival.
Doors, drivers and four wheels of your own
Sometimes you just want a door and a driver, and Amsterdam obliges. A licensed Schiphol taxi from the official rank at Arrivals Plaza runs metered, roughly €45 to €55 into the centre, and takes about 25 minutes depending on traffic. One firm rule from me: use the official rank only, and wave away anyone who approaches you inside the arrivals hall touting a ride — the metered cars outside are the ones you want.
Prefer certainty over the ticking meter? A pre-booked private transfer — Schiphol Travel Taxi or Welcome Pickups among them — locks the fare at a fixed €45 to €60, paid upfront by card, with no meter to climb as you edge through town. It is the calm choice after a red-eye, with no surprises at the kerb.
And the cars? Europcar, Hertz and Sixt all have desks at the Schiphol Plaza car-rental centre, from around €35 to €60 per day, and it is a quick 20-minute run to the centre. Honestly, though, I would think twice for a city stay. Amsterdam belongs to bikes, trams and boats, and central parking is eye-wateringly pricey — a hire car is far better saved for the day you strike out for the coast or the countryside.
My verdict, canal-struck and unashamed: come down the stairs, tap your card, take the train. Seventeen minutes later the city is yours.
