roannetony01

My husband and I will be arriving at 730 pm in schipol airport and leave amsterdam the next day at approx 9am.( total layover of 14 hrs)
ANy suggestion of how to travel with baby at night time, if we need to get a hotel? And is it possible to see red light district ( out of curiousity) but if it is really not good for baby, I would rather not see the place.?
Also what places can we visit and still be on time to get back home.

greg

Are you from the U.S.? The departure process back to the U.S. is quite time consuming.

First do some computations.

7:30pm arrival --> 8:00pm out of airport. If downtown hotel, ~9:00pm checked in at hotel.
9:00am plane gate departure? (or downtown departure?) --> 7:00am at airport, minus ~20min train/taxi travel time, minus time to get taxi/to station ~6:30am Amsterdam hotel departure.

So what does it leave you? Not much.

If I were to do this, I would bite the bullet and use one of the Schiphol airport hotel, drop luggage asap, take train to the downtown and back later in the evening. Minimum rush to the airport next morning.

roannetony01

Thanks for the response,I am from the US. I am actually considering "yotel" for the matter. I was wondering if its safe to leave luggage and yes just bite the bullet and roam around amsterdam by train.
So for red light district, which Amsterdam is so known for, can we just stroll around and see what's the buzz about with a baby.. Or not suitable for my infant?
Also, pls free to add more suggestions.

Ishouldntlurk

The Yotel is airside. If you get back late you may not be able to get back airside - Schiphol is not open 24 hours a day.
Try Citizen M or one of the hotels nearby that you can get a shuttle to. If you decide not to go into the city then the Ibis is very good and has a good restaurant too.

I wouldn't take an infant to the RLD at night - too many drunken yobbos about to make it attractive. But then I can't see the attraction of the place any way.


How old is the infant?
Where are you coming from and where are you going to?
You will need overnight stuff for you and the baby in your carry-on as your checked luggage will most likely be checked through.

8pm out of the airport is ambitious - it can take 20 minutes just to reach the gate and then you have to go through passport control etc, check into your hotel, maybe feed and change the baby.
If you are flying to the States you need to be at the gate in plenty of time (By about 7 am - the gate closes early!) for security and interviews.

roannetony01

Thanks for the reply, first time parents. But you are right, I need to carry as much milk bottle allowed and baby's need. Will be bringing our diaper bag.
Will be coming from Italy back to US. Baby is 6 mos.
What areas of Amsterdam that are baby friendly and open at night for us to see. If not, we should just be hanging out in the airport?
Pls let me know what is best suited for our situation. Thanks

tuscanlifeedit

If it were me, or my daughter and grandchild, I would want to stay at the airport.

It's a shame to be near an intriguing place and not be able to go there, I know, but I think you owe yourselves and your infant an easier time of it.

Roaming around on trains at night seems like a very bad idea.

There is no need to hang out in the airport. By the time you get to an airport hotel, and get checked in, and have some dinner, and feed and change the baby, why not just go to bed? You will have to get up quite early to be at the airport for a 7AM check-in.

nancicita

Amsterdam is a fantastic (and fun!) city. I wouldn't bring a baby around the RLD, though. Given that you have an early check-in, I'd second tuscanlifeedit's opinion.

Sleeping baby = happy parents

Cranky baby = cranky parents


Don't miss your flight!

suite7

Would you go to the red light district in your own city? Do you like seeing women sell themselves like pieces of meat in store windows? Then go to the red light district. Red light districts are pretty much the same all over the world. Sad and degrading or exciting and appealing...depending on your viewpoint. The only difference is, it's legal in Amsterdam and the women are standing in storefronts rather than walking the street. If window-shopping women of all shapes, sizes and ages,including the very young, is your thing, have at it. I don't think the baby will notice either way.

TexasAggie

We went to Greece in May with our then 7-month old son. He did great on the trip provided we were really consistent with his naps and bedtime. I can't imagine trying to sightsee with a 6-month old late in the evening... by that age, most babies won't sleep anywhere like they do when they are really young. Were it me, I'd just go straight to the hotel, put baby to bed, and save sightseeing for another trip when you have more time in Amsterdam. By the way, our son did fantastic on the flights - I was so worried beforehand, but he loved his baby bassinet provided by BA and happily played in it and slept in it. We packed him several new toys which also helped keep him entertained. Have a great trip!!!

roannetony01

Thanks for the advices, it really enlightened my mind..This RLD is not a good time to see until next time..But I am still open to suggestions to what we can see in Schipol Airport? Or what "wholesome" ideas we can do with baby and emerge in Amsterdam culture and still see whats the hype about?

greg

Like other large airports, Schiphol has an extensive shopping area.

Unlike other airports, it also has a museum, but alas, even the liberal open hours don't match well with your schedule: Rijksmuseum Schiphol http://www.rijksmuseum.nl/tentoonste...hiphol?lang=en

When I see a long layover like this proposed by booking engines, I play with the itinerary to see if I can tweak out even longer layovers without increasing the fares. Last two times, I have been able to come up with almost 22hr layovers to be able to visit Keukenhof garden and Haarlem one time, and a whole afternoon and evening in Amsterdam another time.

CYESQ

Please re-read Tuscan's suggestion. You're getting into AMS too late to do any worthwhile sightseeing. If you get a hotel, which is everyone's suggestion, you are not likely to get there until 8:30/9. Have dinner, take care of baby and get ready for your morning flight. If you wanted to do more sightseeing, you should have planned to stay overnight which would have given you the whole next day to visit. I just did that recently and it didn't cost any more than doing the back to back flight. Maybe you should at least call the airlines and see if you can make the change. But with this schedule, you need to forget about visiting the city.

lavandula

If you are worried about being in a hotel room with not much to do, Dutch TV is quite entertaining - shows are left in the original language (often English) and everything is just subtitled into Dutch. Plus England is not far away and you can usually get (real) English TV too. I have travelled with a baby before and you are usually so busy trying to think of how to preserve the sleep routine that there's not much time left for sightseeing. Get some sleep so you and the baby are all fit for the flight the next day. You will come back to Amsterdam again and you will have more time to do a canal boat ride, or visit a museum. For this trip, with a little one, gently does it.
Lavandula

janisj

Nine hours at CDG at the front end and then this 14 hour layover in A'dam on the way home, w/ a baby no less. You are spending 24 hours in/around airports!!

Someone has definitely screwed you over w/ this REALLY crazy itinerary. If a travel agent booked it - Get a new TA.

If you booked it yourselves, try to change the flights, even if it costs change fees. And learn the lessons for next time.

greg

Oh, you have one of this awkward layover at the beginning, too?
I try to manage layovers in 1-4hr or 20-24hrs range depending on an airport. Layovers between the low and high ranges are awkward to manage -- to long to be boring, too short to take advantage of it.