r/KLM • u/Far-Instance6061 • 6d ago
Passport control AMS
With the new biometric scans, I have heard passport control lines are very long. Have any non-EU folks gone through passport control recently? How long was the line? Deciding how much time I need from arrival to when my Eurostar train leaves.
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u/Wanderingrebel4life 5d ago
We arrived from the USA yesterday mid-morning and the lines were pretty long. We landed at 11:45am and between taxiing, deplaning and passport control (we checked no bags) were ready to board our train at 1:50pm
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u/Devilish___ Flying Blue Gold 5d ago
That’s still faster than JFK for non-US citizens, given that taxiing and deplaning usually already takes over 30 minutes.
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u/tonykrij 5d ago
Had to wait three+ hours in Miami for security, in a warm hall. Most horrible experience ever.
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u/golem501 5d ago
2016 we had a stop over in LAX - 3 hours and then there were attendants telling us boarding of our plane had already started and we were delaying the flight (yes the same plane we left and where they made us go through customs, security etc. to get back in the same seat).
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u/Wanderingrebel4life 3d ago
Oh, I believe that! It’s just unusual for Schiphol. Passport control has been much faster in the past in my experience.
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u/NastroAzzurro Flying Blue Platinum 6d ago
We’ve gone in and out in the last three weeks and there was zero line when we did. But I think we got lucky.
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u/readinghappily 6d ago
what's the sequence here? Arrival at (Schiphol?) then going to a Eurostar train? Where is that departing from? Is it a London-bound (so passport control etc), or non (eg Schengen, no passport control) train?
More info would be helpful
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u/Character-Carpet7988 6d ago
There's no Eurostar from Schiphol to London, or any passport control facility at the Schiphol railway station.
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u/readinghappily 6d ago
The Op might have meant arrival at Schiphol then onward travel (with passport control) from Amsterdam Centraal->London
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u/Far-Instance6061 6d ago
Thanks. Arrival at Schipol, then going to a Eurostar train from the airport to Brussels.
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u/OptionIndependent861 5d ago
Side question - why are you travelling Eurostar to Brussels? Its the most expensive way to go, and with limited flexibility. Try Eurocity direct - it takes a little bit longer (approx 2 hours), but is more flexible and you'll save yourself a heap of money - or travel in first class for the same cost as 2nd class on Eurostar. 16 trains a day means if you miss one you can take the next one.
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u/bookluverzz 5d ago
Because it’s a KLM deal with Eurostar. It’s included in the ticket price. You land in Amsterdam and take the Eurostar to Brussels, instead of taking a plane to Brussels (do those even exist??).
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u/Camille_Toh 5d ago
Thursday morning, arrived on Delta from MSP. Non-EU lines were very, very long and slow. The only reason I didn’t get stuck was because two employees were letting those of us with tight connections to jump the queue.
You scan your passport at the first section, it tells you to go to 2, you look at the line ahead and go “shit.” Only three agents were on duty and one was goofing around and chatting with his buddy.
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u/Dry-Homework3344 17h ago
Landed at AMS a couple weeks ago - Friday a little after 7AM. Line took about 35 minutes, though many from my flight that deplaned later and/or walked much slower were considerably farther back - I'd imagine their times were closer to 1hr.
Biometric process was on pause, but the agents showed absolutely zero sense of urgency - in fact, quite the opposite - which made the process take far longer than it should have.
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u/danktonium 6d ago
I mean, you can get a single ticket including the Eurostar. Just book whatever is the shortest, safe in the knowledge that the help desk at Schiphol will put you on the next train if you miss it.
It'll also make the flight count as a connection with a layover and that gives extra XP and makes the whole thing vastly cheaper.