Flying from Europe to the US can be a long journey! It often means connecting through Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. I did an overnight layover on my way home and learned a few useful things about the airport, sleep options, food, and how to make the whole journey less chaotic. Read on for more.
It had been almost 2 years since we moved to Portugal. I missed my Grandma and the rest of my family so I decided I should go back for a visit. I also wanted to go through some of the stuff we left behind and see if there was anything that I wanted to bring back.
Where Should I Go In the US?
I debated for a while about where I would go. Should I go to Vegas and see my friends? I thought about Denver to see some other friends there, and of course, I had to go to New Mexico, where most of my family is. My trip was limited to 2 weeks though so decided to only go to New Mexico. I was bummed I wouldn’t get to see everyone in Vegas, but I wanted to enjoy my time rather than feeling so rushed and traveling so much. However, I also scheduled my trip during a family wedding, so I was able to see even more family than I would have otherwise. I am glad that I only went to New Mexico, though, because even that felt rushed.
The journey to get to New Mexico from Tavira is long and hard. I researched flying out of Faro (closest to me), Sevilla (2-hour drive), and Lisbon (4 hr train ride). I looked at every combination to get to either Denver or Albuquerque. My sister was flying into Denver, so I could have driven with her. In the end, I was able to go from Faro to Albuquerque for a reasonable price, but the schedule sucked! Also, here is a tip if you are looking for flights: Delta and KLM are owned by the same company, but booking my flight on the KLM website was hundreds cheaper than the exact same flight on the Delta site.
The Long Journey Home From Europe to the US
I left Faro in the evening on a 3-hour Transavia flight to Amsterdam Schiphol with an overnight layover. It would have been awesome to have 8 hours in Amsterdam, but since I was alone, I didn’t want to leave the airport. I also didn’t want to sleep because I wanted to sleep on the long flight. So I basically wandered around and watched Netflix for 8 hours. Luckily, Schipol Airport was actually not bad.
How Overnight Layovers at Schiphol Work
The Amsterdam Schiphol Airport was actually a decent airport to be stuck at, especially overnight. It seemed like there were a lot of overnight layovers there, and it is very accommodating to it. There are lounge chairs all over the place. There is a pay-by-hour hotel called Yotelair that has small rooms, it is located right after security. I had seen online that there were sleep pods, but I never saw them. There is, however, a shower room, which I found late in my wandering, or I would have definitely taken a shower. They are free, but they don’t offer towels or anything. Additionally, you can pay to use the showers at Yotelair and Mercure, and they will provide towels and toiletries. They cost around €20, and you get 45 min to use them.
Helpful notes:
- The secure area closes in the evening for many gates
- Your boarding pass may not load for the next day until check-in opens
- Security lines open very early for morning flights
Since I wasn’t sleeping, I put my luggage in a locker and explored. There was a lot to see. There was a free, small art museum that is a satellite of Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum. It’s open 24 hours and has some famous 19th-century Dutch art that rotates with the main museum. There is also a library where you can borrow books from Dutch authors in multiple languages. Around the library are plenty of couches and chairs where you can comfortably park yourself to read. There is also a meditation room, an indoor garden area, workstations, express spas, and massage chairs.
Shopping and Food at Schiphol Airport
There were plenty of places for shopping and food as well. However, I was not very lucky with gluten-free food. Most of the food outlets that were open overnight had limited gluten-free options, so I didn’t get anything to eat there. But the shops had cool stuff, and wandering around the airport looking at them all was fun in itself. There is so much art all around the airport. Overall, it wasn’t the worst airport I’ve been stuck at for a long time.
More Flying
From Amsterdam, I flew to LAX. The flight was sooooo long, and all I wanted to do was sleep, but I didn’t have a ton of luck. I may have got a couple of hours. The food was also not great; gluten-free food on airplanes rarely is, unfortunately. I had some mushy zucchini with tomato sauce and chicken, a “salad,” fruit, and later there was a brownie and then a sausage in some gluten free bread.
LAX is the Worst!
LAX was horrible. I had a very short layover, so I purposely packed carry-on only because I was worried the layover wouldn’t be long enough. I had 2 backpacks to carry. When you get off the plane, you have a looooonnngggg walk to get to customs. I was walking fast, and I think it took me 10 minutes. After customs, you have to walk out to go to another terminal. I was exhausted, and my bag was heavy, so I was able to check it there, which luckily didn’t take much time. I was told to go to Terminal 2, I walked for forever again and finally got there. Then I found out security was actually way before Terminal 2, so I walked basically halfway back. I went through security and made it to my gate in time, but I was sweaty and exhausted. I also tried to get a much-needed drink after all that, but the bar near the gate didn’t have ciders, and the cocktails were like $20!
Final Leg, LAX to Las Vegas, New Mexico
My last flight was LAX to Albuquerque, which is only a couple of hours. Albuquerque airport is pretty easy, so I was able to get my bags quickly and go out to meet my mom, who was picking me up. Then we had a short 2-hour drive to get to my hometown of Las Vegas, New Mexico.
Home Sweet Home
All in all, I felt like I traveled for days and don’t even actually know how many hours it took me, but it was rough! I really hope I find a better travel plan next time and I need to avoid LAX at all costs, it is the worst!!! At least the Amsterdam Schiphol overnight layover was ok.
Stay tuned for more about my trip back, how it felt to return, and some cool stuff about New Mexico!
Follow me on Instagram @vegas.to.portugal to see some more pics, my trip back, and my daily life 💙
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