Schiphol expecting 3.3 million travellers during autumn holiday

During the upcoming autumn holiday – from 13 to 29 October – Schiphol is expecting around 3.3 million passengers at the airport. That’s 25% more than in the 2022 autumn break. On busy days, more than 70,000 passengers will be departing from the airport. Figures indicate that the most popular destinations are London, Barcelona, Dublin and Madrid. 

The airport advises travellers to arrive at Schiphol well prepared and to consider their clothing. While autumn has begun, it’s a good idea to wear clothes that will allow them to go through security smoothly. That could mean a jumper without a hood and low shoes, for example. Jackets, hoodies and blazers can of course be worn in the plane, but do need to be removed during the security check. Travellers can read more about this here. 

Information about day of travel 
Travellers can find information about their day of travel on schiphol.nl and on the Schiphol app. This includes what time the check-in desk opens and the expected and current crowd levels at the security check. 

There are also various tips, such as: 

• Arrive at the aiport on time, but not too early. Stick to the time indicated by your airline. That usually means 2 hours before a flight within Europe and 3 hours for an intercontinental flight. 
• Check in for your flight before arriving at the aiport whenever possible. That way, you’ll only need to drop off your baggage. 
• Prepare for the security check. At Schiphol we use 3D CT scans and you do not need to take electronics, liquids or your transparent water bottle out of your hand baggage. Do you have a metal bottle? Then make sure you take it empty. You can then refill your bottle after the security check. 
• Keep in mind that the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee enforces certain rules and checks in the event of travelling with a minor.  
• Check the validity of your passport. 

Reserve a time slot for security 
It’s still possible to reserve a time slot for the security check this autumn holiday. By making use of a pre-booked time slot, travellers can go through the security check at a time of their choice and know exactly when they should go through security. A subsequent border control is taken into account for travellers to non-Schengen destinations. The latest time slot those passengers can book is 90 minutes before departure. For Schengen destinations it’s 60 minutes.