Passport Control Time from New Star Alliance Lounge at AMS
Aug 2, 2019, 8:57 am
#1
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Passport Control Time from New Star Alliance Lounge at AMS
I'm flying out of AMS to the U.S. in the near future, and I'm interested in checking out the new Star Alliance lounge. Since it is in the Schengen area, I know that I'll need to clear passport control before getting to my gate. Does anyone have experience doing that, or have a sense of how long that passport control takes? Thanks!
Aug 3, 2019, 1:22 pm
#3
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When I show my US passport to enter Schengen at AMS upon arrival from non-Schengen airports, they generally don’t ask me for my boarding pass. [I almost am always just using AMS for transits.] I’ve done non-Schengen to non-Schengen transits at AMS where I went to the Schengen airside area for no reason other than to meet people and was just by as a tourist. They don’t generally ask me for boarding passes or my destination, but on my arrival to AMS last month from the US, AMS passport control thought I was a Lithuanian criminal/fugitive and slowed me down a bit because of that; but even then they didn’t ask for my onward boarding pass.
Last edited by GUWonder; Aug 3, 2019 at 1:28 pm
Aug 4, 2019, 6:25 am
#4
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The problem might not be going through the immigration between schengen/non-schengen but actually entering the schengen side via security, of course one can opt to pass immigration 3 times but that seems a bit too much just to visit a lounge, even with no queues.
Aug 4, 2019, 10:23 am
#5
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Was at the lounge yesterday and it is nice.
As for the passport control on the way back to your gate: They have a priority line at the checkpoint not for premium pax but for those pressed for time. You have staff there calling out "if your flight leaves 09:45 or earlier (or such), step over here."
So I think it's fair to assume a wait time of no longer than 20 min on your way to the gate of the US-bound flight.
As for the passport control on the way back to your gate: They have a priority line at the checkpoint not for premium pax but for those pressed for time. You have staff there calling out "if your flight leaves 09:45 or earlier (or such), step over here."
So I think it's fair to assume a wait time of no longer than 20 min on your way to the gate of the US-bound flight.
Aug 4, 2019, 12:52 pm
#6
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Thanks for all of the feedback, with positives and negatives! It seems like a bit of a risk, even with the 'pressed-for-time' line. I'll see how it looks when I arrive at the airport, and report back when I decide what to do (and the result).
Aug 11, 2019, 8:05 pm
#7
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I'm considering doing that this coming Sunday, but might not bother. Will be nice to have a decent lounge at AMS for a change!
Aug 12, 2019, 6:19 am
#8
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We were there 1.5 hours and at no time was there more than eight people at any one time.
Aug 12, 2019, 3:53 pm
#9
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As GUWonder reported, was never asked for BP from non-Schengen to Schengen. Passports from certain countries going from Schengen to non-Schengen should be able to use electronic gates for clearance and if there is a queue, they will ask for passengers to identify themselves if they have a short connection to skip the queue.
Aug 13, 2019, 9:12 am
#10
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The day of our flight, there was some sort of huge mess going on at AMS - I have no idea why (it seemed like there was some sort of computer system error, but that is just an observational guess). All of the security lines were severely backed up, so we decided not to even try to do this. That was a good thing, since the passport lines were also a mess, and we ended up getting to our gate as the flight was boarding, without stopping at any lounge.
Aug 13, 2019, 12:03 pm
#11
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The day of our flight, there was some sort of huge mess going on at AMS - I have no idea why (it seemed like there was some sort of computer system error, but that is just an observational guess). All of the security lines were severely backed up, so we decided not to even try to do this. That was a good thing, since the passport lines were also a mess, and we ended up getting to our gate as the flight was boarding, without stopping at any lounge.
Aug 18, 2019, 12:51 am
#12
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Flying AMS-IAH in UA J today. Tried to get into Schengen side several ways, roundly denied. They have humans checking BPs at most access points, and when I tried the electronic gate, was also denied. Guess I’ll hafta wait for a Schengen flight or connection to check the lounge. OP, don’t waste your time. It’s a pity that the lounge options here are so rubbish.
Aug 18, 2019, 7:52 am
#13
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Flying AMS-IAH in UA J today. Tried to get into Schengen side several ways, roundly denied. They have humans checking BPs at most access points, and when I tried the electronic gate, was also denied. Guess I’ll hafta wait for a Schengen flight or connection to check the lounge. OP, don’t waste your time. It’s a pity that the lounge options here are so rubbish.
Aug 18, 2019, 11:55 am
#14
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Aug 18, 2019, 11:39 pm
#15
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This thread is to provide information. It’s up to you to decide what you do with it.