This week, Schiphol Airport announced that it had extended its booking system for security to all terminals, meaning passengers can now pre-book a time slot regardless of whether they’re travelling to Schengen or non-Schengen destinations. 

Dutch airport working to limit queues over peak season

In an attempt to limit long queues and delays at the airport over the busy spring and summer months, Schiphol announced earlier this year that travellers hopping on flights to other Schengen countries could pre-book a time slot to go through security checkpoints. 

The free service launched at the beginning of April and has proven to be fairly successful. An airport spokesperson told NU that during the May school holidays, 20 percent of travellers opted to book a time slot ahead of their flight.

Schiphol expands security bookings to all destinations

The success of the new system has resulted in Schiphol Airport expanding the booking option to all international travellers. “After a successful launch at the beginning of this year, it has recently become possible to book a time slot for both Schengen and non-Schengen destinations,” the airport announced in a statement this week.

There are a few slight differences worth bearing in mind if you’re flying to a non-Schengen destination. For example, the fact that travellers will also have to go through passport control is taken into account, meaning the latest time slot a passenger can book is 90 minutes before departure. For Schengen destinations, this limit is set at 60 minutes. 

New scheme comes as Schiphol braces for summer holidays 

The changes to Schiphol's online booking system come as the airport prepares for what is set to be a busy weekend, as schools across the central region of the country close for the summer.

Friday, Saturday and Sunday are all forecasted to be so-called peak days at the Netherlands' biggest airport, with Schiphol expecting to welcome well over 77.000 departing travellers per day. Rotterdam The Hague Airport, Eindhoven Airport, Maastricht Aachen Airport and Groningen Airport Eelde are also bracing for large crowds over the coming days.

If you’re planning a trip this summer and want to make use of Schiphol’s pre-booking options, visit the airport’s website or app to book a time slot.

Thumb image credit: Jan van der Wolf / Shutterstock.com.