Schiphol Opens New Departure Lounge 2—Designed For and Around the Love of Air Travel

Schiphol has opened its Departure Lounge 2, designed to satisfy the needs of all who love to fly: young or old, for business and for pleasure.

The dreamy new departure lounge has everything—even a peek at its interior workings, with panels opening up to show luggage going by on the carrousel, and a large “live” clock continually painted by a uniformed attendant to show the time.

“It is adapted to the human scale – not just for adult passengers, but also for children. It touches and surprises visitors: Departure Lounge 2 makes you smile,” Schiphol writes.

The new departure lounge’s opening coincides with Schiphol’s 100th anniversary. The airport’s Executive Vice President & Chief Commercial Officer André van den Berg describes it as a gift to Schiphol’s customers, “a departure lounge unlike any other in the world, where passengers can explore not just one, but seven different worlds.”

Upon entering Schiphol’s new Departure Lounge 2, travellers get an eagle-eye view of the seven individual passenger experience ‘worlds’ available for them to explore.

From there, each traveller can explore a world of delights, according to their mood or preference, and move freely between experiences wherever their fancy leads.

There are dedicated areas suited to various types of travellers, from ‘Luxury’ to ‘Family,’ from ‘Modern Dutch’ to ‘Care and Wellness’.

Schiphol reports that each year Departure Lounge 2 hosts just around 15 million guests, more than half of which (61%) are transfer passengers. TIP: travellers may want to arrive early to check-in and transfer passengers may wish to leave a little extra time between connections–there’s just so much to see and enjoy at the new Departure Lounge.

DESIGN AND STORYTELLING

A combination of light and airy spaces, wood finishes, and living trees give the lounge the atmosphere of a pleasant indoor park—with luxury shopping and a wide variety of dining options. The interiors have been designed using sustainable materials including FSC-certified wood and LED lighting created by Philips in collaboration with ENGIE Services.

The interior was designed by Kossman.De Jong, and the architectural design is the creative product of Benthem Crouwel NACO.

“We tried to take the interior design of Lounge 2 to a next level through
to the integration of interior and architecture and through the addition of a wide range of exciting, storytelling objects,” explains Herman Kossmann, creative director of Kossmann.dejong.

“For instance the monumental video clock by Dutch designer Maarten Baas, hordes of ceramic cows, real trees and a spectacular play object in the shape of a large aeroplane, offer surprising experiences, food for discussion and possibilities to meet each other. These storytelling elements provoke a lasting experience and make Lounge 2 part of the travel adventure.”

The Departure Lounge 2 renovation took just over 18 months to complete, and is part of Amsterdam Schiphol’s Master Plan of improvements as it aims to become Europe’s preferred airport for travellers, airlines, and logistic service providers alike.

REST, SHOP, DINE OR JUST HANG OUT

The renovation adds 20% more space for retail and catering outlets, with the first and second levels combined now measuring around 16,000 square metres. The project was carried out in phases allowing the lounge to remain open for business as work progressed.

While the existing concessionaires were able to serve customers from temporary facilities, they now enjoy more permanent homes. With the opening of the lounge, Schiphol has debuted Europe’s first Johnnie Walker House.

Other shopping and dining experiences now available at Departure Lounge 2 include: luxury goods shopping at Gucci, Bulgari, Hermès and Rolex; refreshments at Café Cocó, a Starbucks offering innovative food concepts, and the Heineken Bar; and revitalising relaxation with pampering treatments at XpresSpa.

Or you can go hug a plane.

Come on.

You know you want to.