I found a good fare ($80 US) from Heathrow to Amsterdam through British Midland. This is both cheaper and quicker than what I've been able to find via rail. <BR><BR>Will there be any difficulties in purchasing and obtaining these tickets given that I am in the U.S.? <BR><BR>Also, how many hours before the scheduled departure time do passengers need to check-in at European airports?

You only need to check in an hour before - I fly British Midland often from London to Amsterdam and it's easy! Can't answer your question about buying the ticket - just give them a call and try it. Good Luck

Most of these deals are from &quot;ticketless&quot; airlines.(eg easyjet)You give your cc number, they email you a code number which you use at the check in.No ticket needed.Depends which company you are using, not sure about BM.(tried eayjet &amp; ryanair?)

Just a note about checking in: The recommended check in time is 2 hours before departure. Although you will probably get away with checking in 1 hour before, I've almost missed a flight by doing that. Very long queues at security etc. <BR><BR>$80 sounds pretty good and BMI have a good reputation. Not sure about tickets though.

You should be able to pick up your tickets at a BM desk before you check in. Easyjet is generally cheaper, though!

One of the many helpful things I've learned on this website is that train travel is often faster than plane in Europe because you are traveling from city CENTER to city center rather than having to get to &amp; from airports.<BR>I'm not trying to talk you out of the plane, just making you aware.<BR>The airline should tell you how long before flight time you should arrive &amp; I would follow their advice. You often have to be bussed (sp?) from the gate to the plane after having gone through customs &amp; security &amp; they sometimes stop the bus service 20 minutes before flight time.

While it is true that often train travel is faster city centre to city centre, London to Amsterday is not one of those. Train from Liverpool St. to Harwich, a long North Sea crossing and train from Hoek van Holland to Amsterday adds up to 8 or 9 hours as compared with 1 hour of flying time...BMI flys out of Heathrow so we will say an hour to the airport, 20 minutes to hassle with airport security, an hour flight, 20 minutes to 30 minutes to get your baggage at Schiphol, 30 minutes into town. In this case, the plane is far more practical although the North Sea crossing can be a lot of fun.