David of Broadway wrote:

Hardly a small station, but I ran into problems buying a train ticket at
Schiphol. Either I hadn't obtained cash yet or the machine didn't
accept bills/notes or I simply wanted to preserve my cash, but I
couldn't convince the machine to accept either my credit card or my ATM
card. (Could it be because we don't have chip-and-PIN here? I also had
trouble this year at the large Oyster machines in London, although the
small ones seemed to accept my card.)

Schiphol is the exception to the rule in that the ticket machines *do*
accept credit cards. They do ask for a PIN, but I believe they don't
verify it (as the Dutch don't use Chip & PIN yet - they use a much more
rudimentary "strip and PIN" system, and sign for credit card
transactions).

That said I always enter the correct PIN as I don't want to risk card
trouble when abroad, so someone else can test that theory if they like


So I waited in a long line at the ticket window and bought my ticket
there. I later realized that I was overcharged by €0.50, and I'm still
not sure why -- perhaps that was a surcharge for buying a ticket from a
human? As if I had a choice!

Yes, there is a surcharge, and you should have been given a separate
ticket to represent that charge.

It is bloody ridiculous. As, additionally, is the fact that you can't
buy an international ticket beyond NL/BE/LU or a limited number of
stations in Germany except at some very large stations and the ticket
machines - if you have change!

While NS does have the Taktfahrplan (connectional regular interval
timetable) just about sewn up, not to mention the rather odd (!) idea
of actually running enough capacity on their trains, they are years
behind the UK in terms of passenger information and friendliness,
especially to foreigners.

Notably, in the land of integrated transport, you can't buy a through
train-bus ticket like you can in the UK (though if you have a
Strippenkaart it isn't really an issue).

When I got into Amsterdam, I asked at an information booth how to buy a
tram ticket, since I didn't see any ticket machines. He told me to just
buy one from the driver. He did /not/ mention the Strippenkaart option.
Granted, I should have done my own research in advance, but it would
been nice if the person at the information booth had given me some more
information.

Indeed. I'm surprised they didn't sell you a day ticket or something.

I hope I offend anyone with my observations, but I've never seen such a
crowded supermarket. Customers were frantically stocking up, as though
they had a half hour to buy all the groceries they'd need for the next
three months. I was going to buy a souvenir (perhaps the Kroger-brand
instant oatmeal that dominated the American food section), but I changed
my mind when I saw the immensely long lines to pay.

Sounds like a lot of Tesco Metros, smaller city stores where there is
less room for tills. (IMX most Tesco superstores have more than
sufficient even at busy times).

Oh, and there was a clothing store upstairs. Also Tesco.

Common in the UK - they, and Asda, are getting a significant part of
the cheaper (but still decent quality) end of the market.

Neil