Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport has been called the worst airport ever due to its mismanagement of the increased passenger influx.
The lack of staff the airport has been dealing with lead to a chaos that is proving hard to shake, with people waiting for hours in kilometres long queues. In order to somewhat mitigate the impact, the airport has introduced a daily passenger cap, until March 2023, which determined some airlines to move their business to Brussels Airport.
At times when even fast lines were blocked off for hours, some passengers opted for the airport’s VIP luxury service which is supposed to take care of everything, from baggage check-in to border check while you wait in a private lounge.
It seems that either too many people are willing to pay at least €617,10 or at the airport is failing to ensure this service as well, because, for now, it is no longer possible to book it. Schiphol has announced on its website that “due to the large volume of requests, we can only accommodate VIP service for our regular guests”. However, the notice then goes on to inform that even for regular guests reservations cannot always be confirmed.
From January to September this year, around 21,500 people used the VIP service, according to Dutch News which is already more than the entire record year of 2019. The cost starts at €617,10 per year per person for incoming or departing flights or €834,90 for transfer flights, with additional fees for bringing more passengers, registering within 36 hours prior to the flight or for an additional limousine luxury coach,
For this price, when available, the service includes check-in assistance, baggage handling, food & beverage service, assistance with passport formalities, private security check and transport to your plane in a luxury car.