OV chipcard

[Howardh]

Anyone help? An anonymous card costs 7,50 and then you add credit to it. But does the 7,50 count towards your credit, so if you add 10,- you have 17,50 worth of travel so you can take it down to zero, or must you always have a minimum of 7,50 left?

Also, how do you validate a new one before taking the train?

Thanks!

 

[AlexNL]

The € 7,50 is just to purchase the card, there's no balance on it after purchase. You can top up the balance through ticket vending machines which can be found at all railway stations as well as in many supermarkets and book shops. To travel by train, your card must have a balance of at least € 20. You tap in at a gateline or standalone validator, and at the end of your journey you tap out.

Remember to always tap in and tap out. With buses and trams, you'll have to do this in every vehicle. With trains and metro's, you do it when you enter and leave the station. If you're changing to a different operator during a journey, you'll need to tap out and then tap in again (there are validators on the platforms).

 

[Howardh]

The € 7,50 is just to purchase the card, there's no balance on it after purchase. You can top up the balance through ticket vending machines which can be found at all railway stations as well as in many supermarkets and book shops. To travel by train, your card must have a balance of at least € 20. You tap in at a gateline or standalone validator, and at the end of your journey you tap out.

Remember to always tap in and tap out. With buses and trams, you'll have to do this in every vehicle. With trains and metro's, you do it when you enter and leave the station. If you're changing to a different operator during a journey, you'll need to tap out and then tap in again (there are validators on the platforms).

Thanks, as we are only there for 24-28 hrs I think it's best to get an online train ticket and print, and just use a 2hr 4,00 card to get around Rotterdam, or maybe the 8,00 day pass, more economical. However the chipcard can be used for 5 yrs if we think we will return regularly.

 

[AlexNL]

Yeah, buying an e-ticket and printing it (or presenting it on a smartphone using the NS app) is probably better value for money.

 

[MisterT]

It is no longer necessary to present the ticket in the NS app. It is also allowed to show the pdf on your mobile phone.

 

[Groningen]

Today the island of Schiermonnikoog is the last place where the OV-chipkaart is taken into service in the Netherlands.

 

[Mike395]

I'm off to Amsterdam for a long weekend from Friday, and staying in Hoofddorp - what's the best ticket for going in/out of Amsterdam? Was looking at the 3 day Amsterdam & Area travel ticket which looks like it'll cover everything both in terms of getting into the city and around it each day?

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Looks like contactless is coming to NS and OV-Chipkaart:
https://www.railwaygazette.com/news...view/ns-to-test-contactless-card-payment.html

NETHERLANDS: National passenger operator NS is to test the use of contactless bank card payment as an alternative to the OV-chipkaart national multimodal transport smart card.
NS said using a bank or credit card for travel was a ‘logical and easy’ choice for many people, as they would not need to purchase and top-up a separate smart card or buy a ticket in advance.
Regular users of seven stations on the route between Leiden and Den Haag can express interest in the participating in the trial, which is scheduled to get underway in late January and run for six months

However it also says rollout (if the trial is successful) will not be swift because of the multiplicity of systems to change.

 

[AlexNL]

I'm off to Amsterdam for a long weekend from Friday, and staying in Hoofddorp - what's the best ticket for going in/out of Amsterdam? Was looking at the 3 day Amsterdam & Area travel ticket which looks like it'll cover everything both in terms of getting into the city and around it each day?

I've had a look at buying individual tickets, it looks like the Amsterdam & Region travel card is indeed the best buy for your trip.

 

[paddington]

I'm off to Amsterdam for a long weekend from Friday, and staying in Hoofddorp - what's the best ticket for going in/out of Amsterdam? Was looking at the 3 day Amsterdam & Area travel ticket which looks like it'll cover everything both in terms of getting into the city and around it each day?

For convenience the €36.50 3-day Amsterdam and Region ticket would be simplest.

You could save a bit by using the €28 3-day Amsterdam Travel Ticket plus free airport hotel shuttles to get to Hoofddorp. If that doesn't work, a GVB 72-hour €19 + four eticket singles Hoofddorp to/from Amsterdam Zuid at €3.90 would still be cheaper, which is more convenient than it used to be now that the North-South metro is open (Hoofddorp-Lelylaan at €4.10 is fine too).

But with some planning (and depending on your Friday arrival time/Sunday departure time) you might be able to make do with a GVB 48-hour, two 24-hour, or maybe even one 24-hour plus singles; the last time I was in Amsterdam I figured that I didn't actually need to buy any GVB tickets at all and just walked everywhere.

 

[Mike395]

Will go for the Amsterdam & Region ticket as that gives us flexibility in what we do and where we go - thanks all!