Recently had a short trip to Amsterdam by myself. This was the experience travelling without pre-booked assistance, but while wearing a sunflower ID card and lanyard.
Manchester T1 Departures
I arrived at a quiet time for the airport with the security queues at a minimum, clear instructions were given to all passengers on how to arrange items in the tray to reduced the need for a manual check. After passing security there is a forced through the duty free shop to reach the main departure lounge, once there a “sunflower room” is off to the side with subdued lighting.
Amsterdam Arrivals
Navigating from the gate to the baggage hall was slightly confusing due to ongoing building works with portable signs contradicting the permanent ones in places, however the first of these did have a staff member helping with directions. At passport control I was instantly recognised and directed from the main queue to the “aircrew, diplomats, and disabled” lane, this was very helpful as there were only 2 officers on duty despise a flight from China being ahead with its passengers needing extra documents to be checked…
Amsterdam Departures
I had decided to make a booking with the free security timeslot service available to all passengers, this has no one else at all at my selected time allowing me to proceed directly to the merge point with the main queue. As they have the advanced CT based bag scanners in use this was much faster with no need to remove liquids and electronics from the bag. Passport control was once again the same, being directed to the express lane. While there is no dedicated quiet room in the departure hall there is a small gallery from the Rijksmuseum, which of course requires dimmed lighting to protect the paintings within.
Manchester T1 Arrivals
Fortunately we arrived at a gate on the good side of T1 that prevents conflict with other gate boarding, (unlike the Netherlands the UK does not allow arriving and departing passengers to cross paths). At passport control I was once again directed to the dedicated assistance lane.
So happy that there’s that availability and help. I didn’t even know it existed!
I normally just put my Loops in my ears or listen to music on my headphones, and wear sunglasses to not get too overwhelmed.
I just gotta say… that’s subdued lighting?? I would find that incredibly difficult to deal with. Personally I just use noise cancelling headphones and a hat to reduce glare.
@Crackhappy That’s mostly from my phone camera compensating for it. With the naked eye it’s a lot lower, especially when compared to the rest of the terminal building.
Oh ok. Personally, I would think if they’re going to put lighting into a room for light sensitive people, they wouldn’t use fluorescent lights.
@Crackhappy They’re not, given that there’s a dimmer switch they can only possibly be LED replacement tubes.
Then I retract everything I said. That sounds awesome!
I’ve really got to get some of these for my kitchen. I straight up don’t use the overhead light currently, opting for a floor lamp with a couple dimmable LEDs in it.
Edit: Also, was this picture taken with the lights on dim or bright?
unlike the Netherlands the UK does not allow arriving and departing passengers to cross paths
That’s a Schengen thing. You’ll find the same in Ireland :)
@robinj1995 No it isn’t, the Spanish airports also maintain segregation between arrivals and departures.
Let me clarify. Not keeping departures and arrivals segregated is a Schengen thing. Gates/terminals handling non-Schengen routes need to keep arrivaling and departing passengers separated from each other. When a gate/terminal only handles Schengen (or other common travel area) flights, they are allowed (but not obligated) to not have this separation in place.
@robinj1995 That’s not the case either, the non-Schengan part of Amsterdam Schiphol is mixed as well. The only separation is along the corridor for the H/M gates as those handle both Schengan and non-Schengan flights.
The piers and concourses of each hall are connected so that it is possible, on both sides of security or border inspection, to walk between piers and halls, although border control separates Schengen from non-Schengen areas.
I can’t see a departure board in your picture. I’m always worried I’ll miss the boarding time or a gate change or something, and put myself where I can watch that information. Is it just out of shot / how do they keep you informed?
@octoperson There isn’t one, there is Wi-Fi and power to access flight information on the airport website.
How much of a difference do you think it made compared to previous experiences?
@Rogue I’m familiar enough with Manchester from years of family holidays that I could have easily followed the usual routine and found some of the lesser used seating areas. At Amsterdam it did help quite a bit with being able to manage such a large busy place and reduce the worry of being late.
