A review: Hilton Hotel, Schiphol Airport

We spent the evening before our recent week in Tokyo at the Hilton Hotel in Schiphol Airport. We started our journey in Amsterdam as flights from there to Tokyo (via Helsinki) were so much cheaper than booking direct from London. Plus, judicious use of points meant it was a free hotel stay.

So I really wasn’t expecting much for my free stay – just a comfortable bed and some breakfast before catching our flight the next morning. But I was thankfully and pleasantly surprised from the start.

Let’s talk about the location. Once you come out of Schiphol arrivals, to get to the Hilton, you walk through the train station and out towards the multi-story car park. It’s about a 10-minute walk, maximum and all indoors. Which is excellent, if like on our arrival, the weather is less than pleasant.

Check-in was smooth and friendly and we were given a really lovely room – one I wished we had for a longer stay, as I don’t think we really got enough use out of it. But the foyer is in the centre of a huge atrium, around which all the rooms are organised over multiple floors. At night, it’s bathed in a blue light, which gives it a very sci-fi appearance.

Looking down from above, I was worried about the noise that such a vast space would generate, but the whole place was incredibly quiet. Just what you need when you’re hungering for a good long sleep.

We went to the room to dump our bags and make our way to the executive lounge for a night-cap, but I took some snaps of the room before we left (while it was still in pristine condition!).

Nighttime photos don’t so it justice – for an airport hotel, the rooms are surprisingly large and airy. Our windows looked out onto the runways, so @TheFrankFlyer could get some plane-spotting in during our stay.

The lounge was fairly empty, though the few people there were….expressive. A small group of American tourists – all strangers to each other – had decided to swap life stories. Loudly. We left after a single drink, but the lounge itself was very comfortable.

We had breakfast there the following morning and really appreciated its space then. A nice, generous buffet was on order, along with some quite decent coffee!

On check-out, I took a few more snaps of the interior, as it looked completely different in sunlight.

I’d rate this hotel as a real 10/10 for people needing to stay overnight at Schiphol Airport. Its proximity to the terminal is a significant selling point, but the comfort and peace in the rooms is worth shouting about too. Really, don’t think of this as an airport hotel, but an excellent hotel that just happens to be located next to an airport. Believe me, there is a difference!

Staff were all friendly and helpful and the whole experience was a delight. The hotel also has a spa and a 24-hour fitness centre (excellent for long-haul travelers attempting to beat jet lag), but I used neither – opting for more time in bed in the morning!

I’m not exaggerating when I say that this is probably the best hotel I’ve stayed at in the Netherlands. It’s just a shame it was for one night.