Menu:
Getting to Amsterdam from Airports in Belgium
If you are arriving by air into Belgium - at either Brussels Zaventem, Charleroi or Antwerp airport - there are good onward transport connections to help you reach Netherlands and Amsterdam. Let's take a look in further detail on transport options from each Belgian airport... |
Brussels Airport (BRU) to Amsterdam
Zaventem (Brussels) is the main airport hub in Belgium served by many major international airlines. The local carrier is Brussels Airlines (Star Alliance member, part of Lufthansa) which has good connections to Europe and Africa. Flights from UK are possible by the likes of British Airways, Easyjet and BMI; flights from the USA are operated by American, Delta, United and US Airways.
There is a 5x daily KLM Cityhopper service to Amsterdam - although note that one-way flights are very expensive with KLM.
Zaventem is around 11km north-east of central Brussels and has its own train station situated at level -1. There is a local train running every 15 minutes from the airport which stops at the 3 main city stations - Brussels North, Brussels Centre and Brussels Zuid/Midi. This journey takes around 20 minutes and costs €5.30. Taxis from Brussels airport to the centre will cost approximately €35.
If you want to travel via the high speed Thalys train from Brussels Zuid/Midi to Amsterdam (under 2 hours) then you need to book your ticket in advance. The cheapest one-way fares are €29 (2nd class) and €45 (1st class) although fares at busy periods can get over €100.
There is also the slower Intercity train service to Amsterdam which makes more stops. In this case you buy a standard Zaventem to Amsterdam one-way ticket which costs €43.30 (2nd class) or €67.10 (1st class) - then jump on the stop train from the airport and connect onto the Intercity at either Brussels Central or Brussels North. |
The total journey time from airport to Amsterdam is 3 hours 20 minutes if you take the most efficient connection. Note that cheaper fares can be had if buying a day or weekend return.
Check out our international rail connections map from Amsterdam which includes services to Belgium:
<<<CLICK
for international rail map
Coach alternative: Eurolines runs a frequent coach (bus) service from near Brussels North station to Amsterdam (Amstel station). This journey takes up to 4 hours and a one-way ticket can be booked in advance from just €10.
"Brussels South" Charleroi Airport (CRL) to Amsterdam
Charleroi airport is Belgium's budget airline hub located some 7km north of Charleroi city in Wallonia and around 45km south of Brussels. Airlines serving the airport include Ryanair (which has many flights from all over Europe), Wizzair (to Eastern Europe) and Jetairfly.
There are a few transport options which can get you to central Brussels:
(1) Take the local TEC bus A from the airport terminal to Charleroi Sud station (€3) - this takes about 20 minutes. From Charleroi Sud take the train service to Brussels (€8.70) - trains run half-hourly and the journey takes around 50 minutes. A single combined bus and train ticket (€11.70) can be bought at the airport.
(2) There is a half-hourly "Brussels City Shuttle" bus (€13 one-way, €22 return) from the airport that can also get you to Brussels Zuid/Midi station. The journey takes about 1 hour.
(3) Taxis to the centre of Brussels will set you back €90.
At Brussels connect onto the Thalys or Intercity to Amsterdam, as above.
Antwerp Airport (ANR) to Amsterdam
Antwerp is a small airport about 4km south-east of Antwerp city centre. CityJet (an Air France-KLM subsidiary) flies from London City and Manchester. "De Lijn" local bus number 14 (€2) will take you from the airport to Antwerpen Berchem station in under 15 minutes. Note the Intercity and Thalys trains to Amsterdam leave from Antwerpen central station (and not Berchem) so you will have to connect via a local train - this takes only 4 minutes.
A Thalys ticket from Antwerp to Amsterdam (72 minutes trip) is the same price as from Brussels - from €29 (2nd class) and €45 (1st class). A one-way Intercity ticket (just over 2 hours) from Antwerp to Amsterdam costs €31 (2nd class) or €49.20 (1st class).
Alternatively, Eurolines runs a coach service from Antwerp to Amsterdam from €10 one-way (cheapest fare booked in advance). The Antwerp coaches depart from Van Stralenstraat near Central station.
See also International Train Services to/from Amsterdam