staili

Thank you again everybody for your help and advice! Reporting on my experience this morning. According to the Schiphol website, it's supposed to be a "peak day," which I'm guessing most Sundays are. I am non-priority. My flight (KLM to Washington DC: so Departure Terminal 2, check-in at 8-16, gate E6) is at 1:05pm, and I took the 8:35am train from Amsterdam Centraal, which got to Schiphol at about 8:52am. The train was very empty. No line to get into the airport. There was a sign saying not to enter more than 4 hours in advance in front of the inclined travelators, but the two guys there checked no one's boarding pass at all as far as I could tell, possibly because it wasn't busy. I didn't have any bags to check but the check-in counter line looked "normal" in length -- it didn't fill the entire winding part in front of the check-in counter. I got into the security line at 9:03 and was done with it at about 9:55. There were 6 scanners open, I think, and a separate line at the end (I'm guessing for priority passengers) that probably had a wait of 10 minutes or less. The other line I could see (is that for Departures 1?) looked a bit worse - people were being held on the entrance floor and not climbing the stairs after scanning their boarding pass to be let into the line - but it was mildly worse as opposed to dramatically different.

As I'm guessing is typical, the passport control for US citizens was self-scanning and took maybe two minutes. Only one person was in front of me.

So the whole thing from trying to enter the airport to getting out after security/passport was about an hour. I had more trouble leaving Dulles (90 minute line to check into the KLM counter to have my passport looked at and 50 minutes for security, so 2 hours and 20 minutes total). Although I now have plenty of time to kill, I'm just happy that it was easy and straightforward and zero stress. And I have time to write this message! I was probably helped by the fact that this seems like a quieter time here. There were maybe 15-20 people in my train car. And it seems like there are plenty of places to sit in the terminal. The early morning might have been much worse.

It also appeared from looking at the departures board that only a handful of flights were canceled (including the earlier morning flights). The weather is great, which might be helping.

I also wanted to add that passport control when I arrived (around 7:30am on Tues, Jul 5) was pretty "normal," also, although there was a sign saying that the lines might be long. Other American and Canadian citizens at my meeting, who were on different flights but I think they all took overnight flights, also said that they didn't have an unusually long line at passport control on arrival. So that part of things may have gotten a bit better, at least far as early morning arrivals go.

Fabo.sk

Looks like things are getting back to normal. As I was expecting after the LEY postponement. I predict another summer of horrors in 2 years.

MichielR

Similar experience yesterday. Check at the train station to enter the terminal but it seemed that just waving something on my phone was enough. 15 minutes to clear security in the priority line. At the top of the stairs behind SP, people were told to either go to the check at departures 2 or 1, depending on some random instructions from the crowd control. Aspire lounge was packed due *A lounge closed plus all the delays and people having many more hours to spend.

No idea about the regular queues but they didn't look worse than in the last weeks.

manuswiss

Here I am in AMS. I arrived by train today, July 10th at 16:20. I went up, and at first I was confused because all the entrance gates only said "Economy" or then "Privium" (or was it Sky Priority? I don't remember). So I asked someone at the gates and they directed me to the back, where the priority entrance is. There was a bit of a discussion there because a passenger with some status wanted to bring his whole family along, but after the gate lady asked her manager by radio, they turned him away.

Anyway, my Swiss Business ticket worked. I went upstairs, quickly went through security where they were very friendly (despite my bag going to secondary as expected), and exactly 30 minutes later, at 16:50, I'm sitting in the Aspire lounge. A very smooth experience. Now I have 3 hours to kill, which is a problem I'm very happy to have.

By glancing at it, the Economy queue for security seems to take about 1-2 hours today.

Also, the Aspire lounge gives a quite messy impression, not enough staff and tables are not being cleaned, glasses are standing around everywhere.

TheCam

THANK YOU!

CyBeR

It said Privium. There is normally also a SkyPriority(/first and business) entry there but it was removed for more effective access control at the back of the KL SkyPriority check-in area, to which non-AFKL pax are now also directed.

The privium gates only open with a specific privium access card so access control is no problem there.

manuswiss

Oh, about that: the check at the train station to enter the terminal was quite interesting. There was a short queue in front of the escalator, and the guy went "I need to see your boarding pass". So everyone showed the boarding passes. Followed by "But you need to tell me your boarding time". People were confused because they were basically putting the boarding passes to his face, and he still wanted people to *say* the actual boarding time. It was quite amusing 😊

Fabo.sk

Underpaid, undertrained temp worker, probably shown where boarding time is on a paper BP and maybe on KLAF mobile BP is suddenly assaulted with mobile BPs (because you wouldn't have paper ones yet would you) from any number of random airlines... he could decide to let everyone in or ask them to tell the time of flight... this time round, second option wins.

I don't envy them.

CyBeR

In general I question the effectiveness of asking for boarding passes before people even get anywhere near the check-in desks. Even before covid, many people come to an airport to check in and… collect a boarding pass. And now with covid lots of destinations don't let you get a bp before presenting yourself at a check-in desk.

dubistokay

My experience trying to access priority security by using my ST E+ status with ITA shown on a separate card to my KL Silver boarding pass - ok to enter SP check-in area (to ask for my KL FF number to be overridden with ITA status in order to get the coveted SkyPriority stamp), however abandoned the plan due to long queue and proceeded to standard barriers instead. Agent manning them seemed a little confused by my ITA card but granted me access regardless. Some huffing and puffing from passengers in the general queue (stretching from way before the tents outside), into which I was inserted prior to going up the escalators (never elicited this reaction by using the Privium gate). Agent manning access to priority zigzag upstairs denied entry, claiming they knew the rules. Whilst queueing in the general line, I approached another agent manning what I believe was the exit barrier on top of the SP escalator - they had no issue giving me access and I didn't need to present the ITA website that clearly states that ST E+'s should be given priority access at AMS security. Unfortunately not any wiser after this experience - everything depends on individual agents as ever.

mpkz

Arrived today via train at 1307 (delayed 1 min). Privium gate behind SP empty, priority line mixed but short. Normal line looked bad. Bag got sent to secondary because of a suspicious toothpaste. Through security at 13:23, at the gate via the shop by 13:30 and now waiting for delayed boarding.

Edit: 14:40 and sitting on the ground in AMS with yet another "10 more mins and we're ready to leave" announcements. They said they were offloading 17 pax who didn't make it bags, but they said they'd do this and it would take 10 minutes half an hour ago

Maestro Ramen

That's the standard that Aspire sets for its lounges worldwide. Couldn't have it any other way

Safari22

Has anyone been through AMS recently - wondering how the lines have been

CyBeR

So you've made absolutely no effort at all then?

johan rebel

2 pax, Schengen J class, arrived by train 11.10

- Railroad station a bit chaotic, most escalators out of order, people milling around. Took 10 minutes to get to Priority security.
- Security took about 15 minutes.
- Lounge 25 completely packed, but they managed to find two seats together.

So train to lounge a bit over 25 minutes. Needless to say, their flight has now been delayed four times, and counting.

Johan