KLM - so slow

[kyle]

Just flew BCN to AMS, first time on KLM and first time to AMS. First impression: airport is a mess. Poor signage, long walk from gate to carousel. It's like the plane parked in one terminal and the luggage ended up in another.

Maybe I'm too used to how things are done with SQ and SIN, or even VA. But why is everything so slow - gate agent when organising boarding, crew when handing out food and drinks, and passengers boarding and disembarking.

Talk about passengers, we were just literally standing still on the air bridge waiting to get into the aircraft. Why do people take so long to get into their seats??? Chuck hand luggage into overhead locker, then sit down. Simples!

And disembarking, I've not seen passengers so slow in getting ready and retrieving their hand luggage.

Ok, rant over.

 

[Pushka]

I think maybe it was just a bad day or time of year. We went through Ams in June and it was excellent. I think you were there during peak season and the problems of last year have resurfaced. I might say different come December when we fly to Ams again.

 

[SYD]

Despite flying in/out of AMS many times, I’ve actually never flown KLM but I have used the reasonably nice Crown Lounge - EY started directing PAX there.

But I’ve waited several times for what seems like an eternity at baggage carousels in AMS. The couple of times (summer trips) when I was HLO was a refreshing sense of freedom waltzing straight out and onto my waiting train.

Yes, the airport is deceptively big. Plus there’s also some quite remote runways with significantly long taxiing times…

 

[kyle]

I think maybe it was just a bad day or time of year. We went through Ams in June and it was excellent. I think you were there during peak season and the problems of last year have resurfaced. I might say different come December when we fly to Ams again.

Certainly the airline and airport are leaving me unimpressed. Having just been to Lisbon as well flying TAP, things just seem to work.

 

[kyle]

Despite flying in/out of AMS many times, I’ve actually never flown KLM but I have used the reasonably nice Crown Lounge - EY started directly PAX there.

But I’ve waited several times for what seems like an eternity at baggage carousels in AMS. The couple of times (summer trips) when I was HLO was a refreshing sense of freedom waltzing straight out and onto my waiting train.

Yes, the airport is deceptively big. Plus there’s also some quite remote runways with significantly long taxiing times…

Oh that taxiing... whilst the plane was doing that, I actually googled to see why they had all this wasted space at the airport.

 

[RooFlyer]

The only time I've landed at AMS within memory (from FRA) we landed at the most-remote runway and I thought we were taxiing in from Brussels. Then I remember a very long walk from the gate through a very busy (read crowded) old-ish terminal to the bag carousel. Haven't been keen to plan to go back.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Just flew BCN to AMS, first time on KLM and first time to AMS. First impression: airport is a mess. Poor signage, long walk from gate to carousel. It's like the plane parked in one terminal and the luggage ended up in another.

Maybe I'm too used to how things are done with SQ and SIN, or even VA. But why is everything so slow - gate agent when organising boarding, crew when handing out food and drinks, and passengers boarding and disembarking.

Talk about passengers, we were just literally standing still on the air bridge waiting to get into the aircraft. Why do people take so long to get into their seats??? Chuck hand luggage into overhead locker, then sit down. Simples!

And disembarking, I've not seen passengers so slow in getting ready and retrieving their hand luggage.

Ok, rant over.

VA is just as bad with the queues on the jet bridge!!

(a) no announcements made by crew to take your seats quickly, or to ‘not block the aisles’. I have watched while crew discuss the slow boarding time, look down the aisle to see what the problem is, but take absolutely no action.
(b) some strange sense of etiquette that pax standing behind a person taking their sweet time to arrange their bags and belongings before taking a seat can’t say ‘excuse me, can I just get past’?
(c) priority boarding where pax are already seated in the aisle, but then the window and middle come along and everyone has to get up to allow for those arriving.

 

[kyle]

The only time I've landed at AMS within memory (from FRA) we landed at the most-remote runway and I thought we were taxiing in from Brussels. Then I remember a very long walk from the gate through a very busy (read crowded) old-ish terminal to the bag carousel. Haven't been keen to plan to go back.

Sounds exactly like what I just experienced hours ago

 

[kyle]

VA is just as bad with the queues on the jet bridge!!

(a) no announcements made by crew to take your seats quickly, or to ‘not block the aisles’. I have watched while crew discuss the slow boarding time, look down the aisle to see what the problem is, but take absolutely no action.
(b) some strange sense of etiquette that pax standing behind a person taking their sweet time to arrange their bags and belongings before taking a seat can’t say ‘excuse me, can I just get past’?
(c) priority boarding where pax are already seated in the aisle, but then the window and middle come along and everyone has to get up to allow for those arriving.

I just seem to be with all the non match for travel pax today.

 

[Pushka]

We flew with KLM on a city hopper from LHR to AMS and then through to KL, on an award flight in J and loved it! Back in June. New plane and one of the most comfortable flat seats we've travelled in. And then the little house filled with gin at the end. Food was great.

 

[Mattg]

Yes, AMS is a bit of a mess sadly.

I arrived there about a month ago, coming from the UK, and we had to queue up for almost an hour just to enter the passport control area. There was significant crowd control in place.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Yes, AMS is a bit of a mess sadly.

I arrived there about a month ago, coming from the UK, and we had to queue up for almost an hour just to enter the passport control area. There was significant crowd control in place.

Yikes. What time? I’ll be arriving about midday. Wondering if the queues are a particular morning/evening peak thing?

 

[Mattg]

Yikes. What time? I’ll be arriving about midday. Wondering if the queues are a particular morning/evening peak thing?

It was around 7pm on a Wednesday, from memory.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

It was around 7pm on a Wednesday, from memory.

Ok, I’m gonna run with that and hope it’s a ‘peak’ travel issue!

On AMS border control… I thought Aussie passport holders could use the e-gates on arrival? But the Dutch Birder Control site says no, only for departure.

At least now UK passport holder are allowed to use the e-gates on departure. Last year still had to queue up to leave!

 

[Mattg]

Ok, I’m gonna run with that and hope it’s a ‘peak’ travel issue!

On AMS border control… I thought Aussie passport holders could use the e-gates on arrival? But the Dutch Birder Control site says no, only for departure.

At least now UK passport holder are allowed to use the e-gates on departure. Last year still had to queue up to leave!

Neither Australian nor UK passport holders could use the e-gates on arrival into AMS.

 

[SYD]

Neither Australian nor UK passport holders could use the e-gates on arrival into AMS.

Don’t you still need to be stamped in/out of the Schengen zone?

I was pondering that while I was in Europe a few weeks ago. I’m sure I’ve used eGates in HEL before and how that worked (stamp wise…?).

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Don’t you still need to be stamped in/out of the Schengen zone?

I was pondering that while I was in Europe a few weeks ago. I’m sure I’ve used eGates in HEL before and how that worked (stamp wise…?).

The ‘stamped out’ things seems to be waived for some countries. Australia and UK are on that list, but not on the inbound list.

Last year when UK passport holders had to be stamped out, and the queues were horrendously long, they allowed UK passport holders to use the e-gate, but you then had to go to a mobile podium where and officer stamped your passport!

 

[Mattg]

Don’t you still need to be stamped in/out of the Schengen zone?

I was pondering that while I was in Europe a few weeks ago. I’m sure I’ve used eGates in HEL before and how that worked (stamp wise…?).

Yes, you do still need to be stamped in/out of Schengen (as an Australian). I used the e-gates when departing from FRA recently, but still had to go to a desk after passing through the machine just to get a departure stamp in my passport.

 

[Pushka]

Ok, this physical stamp thing makes more sense now. We disembarked in Athens after a ME cruise. The person at the port was clearly over stamping hundreds of passports in the couple of hours and we were the last and the stamp was faint. When we left Athens to fly to UK, the person at the airport was obsessed with finding the entry stamp but couldn't because it was so faint. Beats me why the passenger gets berated for immigration agents getting it wrong. Which he did to me. I pointed to husband who was waiting on the other side. Finally he conceded that the faint stamp was what he needed. I told him to stamp it hard.

 

[MARTINE]

Certainly the airline and airport are leaving me unimpressed. Having just been to Lisbon as well flying TAP, things just seem to work.

OTT I have booked Lisbon first week in July 24 to meet friends Recommendations? Plan to stay at TheOnePalazzo deAnnuncia
Love Moorish architecture, art and sculpture
OT - have done Schipol many times HLO thankfully. It was always under construction and huge so I get what you mean . How did you find TAP? Obv better than KLM from your post!