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Airports in The Netherlands

ExpatINFO Holland

There are currently 5 commercial airports in the Netherlands. Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is the biggest (handling 88% of total passenger traffic), followed by airports in Eindhoven, Rotterdam, Maastricht and Groningen.

airports in the Netherlands - map showing Netherlands airports plus images Schiphol and Rotterdam-The Hague airports

Most expats and international visitors to the Netherlands have experience with the largest Dutch airport, Amsterdam Schiphol, but few are aware there are four other smaller commercial airports in the country. Find out more about each of the airports in the Netherlands…

AMSTERDAM SCHIPHOL AIRPORT

AMSTERDAM AIRPORT SCHIPHOL [AMS], in North Holland province, is Europe’s third busiest airport with 71.7 million passengers flying in, out or through it in 2019. The airport handled a combined 497,000 plane takeoffs and landings.

The airport, commonly referred to as just Schiphol, is home to the Royal Dutch Airline KLM. Over 75 other airlines (including Corendon Air) operate flights to more than 300 international destinations. The most popular destination for passengers flying from Schiphol is London Heathrow Airport, whether it be the end of their journey or to connect to another flight.

The airport has one main terminal building which passengers enter from three different departure halls (numbered 1, 2, 3). Each departure hall has its own entrance from the street but inside all are connected under one roof. In the terminal, boarding gates are located along seven concourses: B (gates B1-B14), C (gates C1-C21), D (gates D1-D57 and D59-D87), E (gates E1-E14), F (gates F1-F8), G (gates G1-G13) and H/M (gates H1-H7 / gates M1-M7).

Schiphol Airport is large in size but mechanical people movers minimize the amount of walking required to get to any gate. However it can still take 15-20 minutes to get from a gate on one concourse to a gate on another. You can view a map of the terminals here.

Getting to and from Schiphol Airport by public transport is easy as the train station is located below the airport. The bus platform is located on street level in front of the main exit and next to it, a cue for taxi service. Car rental companies at the airport include Budget, Europcar, Hertz and Sixt.

Helpful information

EINDHOVEN AIRPORT

EINDHOVEN AIRPORT [EIN], in Noord-Brabant province, is the Netherlands’ second busiest airport handling some 6.8 million passengers and 40,200 flights during 2019.

Airlines fly to over 80 destinations in Europe including 13 cities in Spain, 8 cities in Italy, and 6 cities each in Greece and Poland. Top destinations for passengers traveling from Eindhoven are London (Stansted Airport), Budapest, Malaga and Alicante.

Key EIN Airlines: Ryanair, Transavia and Wizz Air

Eindhoven Airport is accessible by public transportation via Bus 400/401 from Eindhoven Central train station.

Helpful information

ROTTERDAM-THE HAGUE AIRPORT

ROTTERDAM-THE HAGUE AIRPORT [RTM], in South Holland province, is the third busiest Dutch airport with 2.1 million travelers and 52,400 flights during 2019.

Scheduled and charter flights from the airport reach over 40 destinations including 9 cities in Spain, 5 in both Greece and Italy, and 4 each in Austria, Canary Islands, France and Turkey. Many routes only operate on a seasonal basis. The destination with the most passenger traffic is London City Airport in the UK.

Key RTM Airlines: British Airways, Transavia, Corendon, TUI

Rotterdam-The Hague Airport can be reached by public transport from both cities via Metro Line E to station Meiersplein. A shuttle bus (Line 33) connects the metro station to the airport.

Helpful information

MAASTRICHT AACHEN AIRPORT

MAASTRICHT AACHEN AIRPORT [MST], in Limburg province, is the fourth busiest airport in the Netherlands with 436,000 passengers and 14,000 flights in 2019. It is the second largest air cargo facility after Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.

Airlines operating at the Maastricht airport fly to more than 20 cities including 6 in Greece, 5 in Spain and 3 in Italy. The most popular destination for passengers flying from Maastricht airport is Antalya (Turkey).

Key Airlines: Corendon, RyanAir

Maastricht Aachen Airport is accessible by public transportation via Bus 30 from the Maastricht and Sittard train stations.

Helpful information

GRONINGEN AIRPORT EELDE

GRONINGEN AIRPORT EELDE [GRQ], in Groningen province, is the smallest commercial airport in the country handling 176,000 travelers in 2019. The passenger terminal is only open on select days of the week when flights are departing or arriving.

Key Airline: Transavia

Groningen Airport Eelde is accessible by public transportation via Shuttle Bus 100 or Bus 9 from Groningen train station.

Helpful information

LELYSTAD AIRPORT

LELYSTAD AIRPORT [LEY], in Flevoland province, handles only non-commercial flights (sight seeing, flight training, corporate) at the moment. This may change in the near future if approval is given for Lelystad Airport to handle overflow capacity from Schiphol Airport. An expansion project was completed that would allow Lelystad Aiport to handle up to 25,000 flights a year. However there has been push back from residents who believe studies completed on noise pollution were not accurate. The additional capacity is needed because Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is already over the maximum number of flights allowed per year by the Dutch government.

The transition of Lelystad into a commercial airport is currently on hold.

Related information…

TRAIN SERVICE IN THE NETHERLANDS

INTERNATIONAL BUS SERVICE IN HOLLAND

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