Support for every traveller, when it matters

At one of Europe’s busiest airports, Schiphol was looking for a scalable solution to support the tens of thousands of travellers who have urgent questions every day. Traditional information desks are costly, static and offer limited flexibility during peak periods or flight disruptions.

The challenge was clear: how can Schiphol help travellers at the airport faster, more efficiently and more personally, without compromising the hospitality Schiphol is known for? What was needed was an innovative, scalable solution at the intersection of digital technology and human contact.

Together with Schiphol, RIFF developed a pioneering concept that brings technology and human expertise together: the Self-Service Unit (SSU) and the Mobile Personal Assistant.

• Self-Service Units throughout the terminal: Strategically placed interactive kiosks that help travellers with a wide range of questions, from vegan restaurants and liquid restrictions to specific flight information.

• Live video support from a distance: When a traveller needs additional help, a live video connection with a RIFF airport expert can be started at the touch of a button, providing direct personal assistance.

• Personal assistance on the traveller’s own smartphone: Travellers can also scan a QR code to access digital travel assistance, including real-time maps, video calls and chat support on their own device.

The implementation of the Self-Service Units has significantly reduced pressure on Schiphol’s physical information desks, while traveller satisfaction increased. With this hybrid service model, the airport can now scale its capacity digitally within minutes during unexpected peaks or flight disruptions.

The operation continues to prove its value in practice. With more than two million successful sessions and over one hundred thousand direct video calls, the kiosks have become an essential backbone of the terminal. Multilingual support ensures that travellers can connect with a human expert at the right moment, making the airport experience considerably smoother. What started as a technological innovation on paper has become a proven operational standard across Schiphol’s terminals.