Honolulu to Amsterdam Flights (HNL to AMS): Connections, Flight Time and Schiphol Arrival

One stop on the mainland, and Delta's network makes it simple

Nobody flies nonstop from Honolulu to Amsterdam, so every trip connects once on the US mainland or in Canada. Delta is the natural choice from Hawaii because it flies from Honolulu to Seattle, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, Minneapolis, Detroit and Atlanta, and as of recent schedules it or its partner KLM flies to Amsterdam from each of those hubs. That gives you a one-stop itinerary on a single ticket with a bag checked through to Schiphol.

United is the other main option, connecting through San Francisco, Denver, Chicago, Houston, Washington or Newark, all of which have United nonstops to Amsterdam. American flies Honolulu to Dallas and Los Angeles and sells Amsterdam connections, though its own Amsterdam flying is thinner. Air Canada connects through Vancouver with a seasonal Amsterdam nonstop and year-round options via Toronto. Hawaiian Airlines, now part of the Alaska group, can carry the first leg to the West Coast on some itineraries.

Flight time and distance

The great-circle distance between Honolulu and Amsterdam is roughly 7,200 miles (about 11,600 km). You fly it in two legs. The first, to a West Coast hub, takes five to six hours; to Minneapolis, Detroit or Atlanta it is eight to nine. The Atlantic leg then runs nine to ten and a half hours from the West Coast, or eight to nine hours from the Midwest and Atlanta. With a layover, plan on 18 to 22 hours in total.

Westbound the Atlantic leg is longer against the jet stream, and the whole journey back to Honolulu typically takes 20 to 24 hours. Most eastbound trips leave Honolulu in the morning or around midday, connect in the evening and arrive in Amsterdam the following afternoon. Westbound you leave Schiphol in the morning and land in Honolulu late the same evening.

Leaving from Daniel K. Inouye International

Honolulu's airport has three terminals linked by open-air walkways and the Wiki Wiki shuttle. Terminal 1 is Hawaiian Airlines; Terminal 2 handles Delta, United, American, Alaska, Air Canada and the overseas carriers; Terminal 3 serves small interisland commuters. Much of the airport is outdoors, which is pleasant but means a warm walk from the parking structures.

Before you check a bag for a mainland flight, you pass it through the US agricultural inspection, which is unique to Hawaii and adds a few minutes. Arriving two to two and a half hours before departure is enough for a domestic first leg. From Waikiki, a taxi, rideshare or shuttle takes 20 to 40 minutes depending on traffic on the H-1; TheBus serves the airport but limits luggage to what fits on your lap or under the seat.

Arriving at Schiphol and getting into Amsterdam

Schiphol is one large terminal with several piers and three departure halls, which keeps arrivals simple. Flights from the US land at the non-Schengen piers, you clear passport control, which uses self-service gates for many nationalities, collect your bag and walk into Schiphol Plaza, where the train station is directly below.

The airport is only about 15 km from the centre:

• Train: NS trains run to Amsterdam Centraal in 15 to 20 minutes, around the clock, with several an hour during the day. Tap a contactless card at the gates or buy a ticket from the machines.
• Bus: the Amsterdam Airport Express bus serves Leidseplein and Museumplein, useful if your hotel is near the museums.
• Taxi: 25 to 45 minutes depending on traffic. Use the official rank outside Plaza.
• Onward trains: Schiphol has direct trains to Utrecht, Rotterdam, The Hague, and the international Eurostar services to Brussels and Paris, so the airport can be a gateway rather than a destination.

Entry requirements and documents

The Netherlands is in the Schengen area, and US passport holders can visit for short stays without a visa. Two changes are being introduced: the EU Entry/Exit System, which records fingerprints and a photo at the border instead of stamping passports, and the ETIAS travel authorisation, which will require an online application before travel once mandatory. Check the official EU travel pages before you book. Your passport should be valid for at least three months beyond your planned departure from the Schengen area.

If you connect in Vancouver, check Canada's transit rules for US passport holders, because an eTA may be required.

Best time to fly and when to book

Amsterdam has a clear tourist calendar. Tulip season runs from late March to mid-May, with the Keukenhof gardens open and King's Day in late April turning the whole city into a party; fares and hotels peak accordingly. Summer from June through August is the general high season, long days and busy canals. The Christmas and New Year period is popular too.

September and early October are mild and quieter, and late autumn and winter outside Christmas bring the lowest fares, with short grey days but museums and cafes at their best. From Honolulu the first leg competes with mainland holiday traffic, so US school holidays also push prices up. Book four to five months ahead for tulip season or summer; six to ten weeks ahead otherwise.

Time zones and jet lag

Amsterdam is eleven hours ahead of Honolulu in winter and twelve hours ahead during European summer time, because Hawaii does not change its clocks. That is close to the largest time shift possible without crossing the date line: your body clock is almost exactly inverted on arrival. Eastbound you land in the afternoon having lost a night; stay outside in daylight, eat dinner early and sleep at a local bedtime, and expect three to five days of adjustment. Westbound you arrive in Hawaii in the evening and can sleep straight away, which makes the return far easier.

What travellers on this route get wrong

The most common mistake is building a short mainland connection on the way out. Fog at San Francisco and summer thunderstorms at Atlanta and Detroit delay arrivals from Hawaii, and there is usually one Amsterdam flight a day to catch. Allow at least two and a half hours. The second is not realising how close Schiphol is to the city, and booking an expensive transfer when the train is downstairs and takes 15 minutes. The third is arriving in late March expecting tulips in the fields; the bulb fields peak in mid-April and the dates shift with the weather, so check the Keukenhof opening dates before you fix yours.