The airport consists of one huge building divided into concourses 1, 2 and 3.

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Check the departure boards right at the entrance to the building for your concourse number, then go up to the first floor where there are check-in desks and also security.

The individual check-in halls are divided by airline.

• Concourse 1 - Air France, Austrian Airlines, KLM (European flights), LOT, Lufthansa, SAS, Swiss, TAP Portugal, Transavia, Vueling
• Concourse 2 - China Southern, Delta, KLM (non-European flights + UK)
• Concourse 3 - Aer Lingus, AeroMexico, Air Baltic, Air Canada, American Airlines, British Airways, China Airlines, Corendon, easyJet, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Eurowings, Qatar Airways, Ryanair, Singapore Airlines, Surinam Airways, TUI, Turkish Airlines, United

The ground floor is dedicated to arrivals, and the underground is the railway station.

The division between Schengen and non-Schengen flights is made after security checks.

The transfer between flights

Although the airport is large, it has a single large terminal. This makes it relatively easy to navigate and even if you accidentally miss the right direction the first time, you don't have to make complicated transfers to other terminals.

In the transit zone, the sections are divided by the letters B to H and M. Check the departure board to find out which gate your connecting flight is departing from as soon as you get off the plane, and follow the clear signs that tell you how far you are from each section in minutes.

The official airport website provides clear transfer information: www.schiphol.nl/en/transfers

When transferring from a flight within the Schengen area to a flight flying outside the Schengen area, you will go through passport control. For European passports, use the much faster automatic gates. There is no security check when transferring out of Schengen.

On the other hand, if you are arriving from outside the Schengen area, you will always go through security and passport control.

You only need to transfer within the same ticket for whatever time the airline sells you. In Amsterdam, you can usually get from plane to plane in 35 minutes.

For longer transfers (5 hours or more), take a detour into central Amsterdam. By train, you're here in 15 minutes, see the Transport section.