For one traveller on a short hop, a single ticket almost always wins. The NS Groepsticket Daluren sounds cheaper, but it starts at €38.50 for two people and does not apply during peak hours. Two single fares on bus 397 come to €13.00 for the same pair. Do the arithmetic first and look at the discounts second.
Checked in August 2026 with the operators that set the prices: NS for the group conditions, GVB for the Amsterdam & Region Travel Ticket, Connexxion for the fares on line 397. Sources at the end.
| Option | Price | Main restriction |
|---|---|---|
| Bus 397, single | €6.50 per person | no group discount at any party size |
| Bus 397, return | €11.75 per person | valid 14 days across both legs |
| Groepsticket Daluren (NS) | from €38.50 for two | off-peak only, seven people maximum |
| Amsterdam & Region Travel Ticket | €23.00 / €34.00 / €44.00 | the calendar day ends at 04:00 |
Is a group ticket cheaper for the airport run?
Not on a short journey. The NS group fare starts at €38.50 for two people, and that minimum does not move with distance.
Set it against two single fares on bus 397: €13.00 for the same pair. Across fifteen minutes between Amsterdam and Schiphol, that saving disappears entirely.
The discount was not built for this kind of trip either. It covers one chosen route until 04:00 the following day, which suits a day out across the country rather than a quarter-hour airport run.
It only pays off when your party carries on across the country that same day. For the airport leg by itself, singles come out ahead.
When does the NS group fare not apply?
During peak hours, which is exactly the problem for airport journeys. Off-peak means weekdays before 06:30, between 09:00 and 16:00, and after 18:30, plus weekends and public holidays all day, King's Day excepted.
The peak windows of 06:30 to 09:00 and 16:00 to 18:30 coincide with the times a large share of flights leave and land. A group heading to Schiphol at 17:00 on a Tuesday cannot use the ticket at all.
Three further conditions bite when the party is arriving from abroad. The main booker has to be present for the whole journey and everyone travels in the same class and carriage, though the others may board and get off along the way. Each e-ticket is personal and valid only with identity documents. A ticket bought after the journey has started does not count.
Larger than seven? Then you add a separate single fare, or you split the party across two group tickets. In that second case two main bookers have to travel, each for the entire trip.
How much is bus 397 into Amsterdam?
A single costs €6.50 and a return €11.75, valid for fourteen days across the outward and return legs. You pay at the door with an ordinary debit or credit card, or you buy online from Connexxion.
At Schiphol it leaves from stop B17, immediately to the right as you walk out of Schiphol Plaza. Line 397 runs every 7.5 to 10 minutes during the day; at night, line N97 runs once an hour.
For a group this is often the simplest choice. Everyone checks in with a card at the door, no booking is needed, and nobody waits on a shared ticket. Twelve travellers pay €78.00 for the one-way trip.
Route and stops in full are on our page about the Schiphol airport bus . For the leg from the airport into town, we compare the options on the page about getting to the city centre .
Is there a group discount on the Amsterdam Airport Express?
No. Line 397 has no group ticket, no group discount and no group booking arrangement: every traveller pays the standard fare.
Buying online in advance is possible but produces no extra saving at any party size. That keeps the sum simple, because you are not weighing it against a discount that does not exist.
It also answers a misunderstanding that operators encourage. Anyone who sees an offer for "group transport to Schiphol" is buying a chartered vehicle, not a cheaper bus ticket.
Does the GVB regional ticket cover the airport?
Yes. For the Amsterdam & Region Travel Ticket, GVB lists the valid carriers as GVB, Connexxion, EBS and NS, and both airport links sit on that list: Connexxion runs line 397 and NS runs the train to and from Schiphol.
The prices carry a 2026 label: €23.00 for one day, €34.00 for two and €44.00 for three, per person, for unlimited travel by bus, tram, metro and train across Amsterdam and the surrounding region.
You can buy it at the airport itself, at NS Tickets & Service Schiphol or at the I Amsterdam Visitor Centre there.
Whether it pays depends on journeys you actually make. Two days at €34.00 against a €11.75 return plus two days of separate city fares lands close to even. It wins on trips out to Haarlem or the Zaanse Schans, not on the airport leg alone.
Why does an evening arrival cost you a whole day?
Because validity is counted in calendar days from your first check-in, and a calendar day ends at 04:00 the following morning. Check in at 22:00 and day one is over six hours later.
That is no small detail on a ticket costing €23.00 a day. For a party of four it means €92.00 of validity thrown away.
So the rule is arithmetic rather than preference. Landing in the evening, buy a single €6.50 fare for the ride into town and start the regional ticket the next morning. Landing before mid-afternoon with regional trips planned, start it straight away.
What is the cheapest way to get to Schiphol?
For one or two travellers with no further city journeys: single tickets. A 397 fare is €6.50 one way and €11.75 return, with no booking and no coordination.
For a party of up to seven travelling off-peak and continuing along a longer route the same day, the group fare starting at €38.50 can work out. Outside off-peak hours that option drops away.
For anyone staying two or three days in Amsterdam and heading into the region, the regional ticket is the candidate, and its 04:00 cut-off is the trap.
| Situation | Best choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 travellers, airport leg only | single tickets, bus 397 | €6.50 one way, no minimum charge |
| 2–7 people, off-peak, travelling on afterwards | NS group fare | from €38.50 for two |
| 2–7 people during peak hours | single tickets | the group fare does not apply |
| 2–3 days in Amsterdam plus the region | regional ticket | €34.00 or €44.00, everything included |
| Evening arrival with regional plans | single now, regional ticket tomorrow | validity runs out at 04:00 |
A taxi has no fixed published tariff of the kind the options above carry. The price depends on the operator and on whether you agree a fixed fare, which is why it cannot be compared with a single figure. Always ask for the fare before you set off. Anyone who wants a fixed price per vehicle will find how that works on our page about transfers . Our page on taxis at the airport explains how the tariffs work there.
How we checked this
Every amount above comes from the party that sets it, checked in August 2026.
The conditions of the Groepsticket Daluren and the €38.50 floor for two people come from the NS page . The 2026 regional fares, the carrier list, the airport sales points and the cut-off rule come from GVB . The fares on line 397, stop B17, the frequency and the absence of any group discount come from Connexxion , which operates that line.
Fares change. The conditions and the off-peak windows hold for longer; the euro amounts are the part worth checking again before you travel, and that is why we date them.
