SCHIPHOL – October 8, 2026 | The Dutch Daily
Mice at Schiphol: a video shared on social media shows several mice in the departure hall of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, including around leftover fries on a heater. “They are really running around here at full speed. It is pretty rancid,” one traveller wrote, according to local broadcaster MeerRadio. Schiphol confirms that mice can be a nuisance at busy locations, especially after an intensive summer.
Mice at Schiphol: quick answer
- What: a video on social media shows mice in Schiphol’s departure hall, around leftover fries on a heater.
- Schiphol: mice can occur at busy locations; after an intensive summer there may be more pests. Reports are monitored and extra measures taken where needed.
- Bigger picture: the NVWA urgently closed 75 shops and restaurants for pests in 2025, up from 57 in 2024.
- Report pests in a restaurant or food shop to the NVWA: 0900-0388 or the online form.
Contents
1. What Schiphol says about the mice
According to MeerRadio, which cites the Haarlems Dagblad, Schiphol confirms that a mouse nuisance can occur at busy locations. After an intensive summer, the airport says, there may be more pests. Reports are being monitored closely, and extra measures are taken where necessary.
The airport says it sets high standards for hygiene and works with the companies at Schiphol on this. Nuisance from rats and geese is also being tackled.
2. Mice at Schiphol and the rise in pest closures
The videos come at a time when pest problems in Dutch food businesses are rising. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) urgently closed 75 shops and restaurants in 2025 because of serious pest problems, compared with 57 in 2024. In most cases it was a mouse infestation; in other cases rats or cockroaches.
Most of these urgent closures were in the Randstad: 20 in Amsterdam, 7 each in Rotterdam and The Hague, 5 in Leiden and 4 in Alkmaar. The rest were spread across the country.
An urgent closure is one of the heaviest measures the NVWA can take. Mice and other pests carry bacteria and diseases that they can spread through their droppings. A business may only reopen once all contaminated food has been removed, the premises have been thoroughly cleaned, and effective measures have been taken to fight pests and keep them out. The NVWA then inspects again.
The NVWA’s figures are about food businesses in general, not about Schiphol specifically.
3. How to report mice in a restaurant or shop
If you see mice, rats, pigeons, cockroaches, flies or other pests in a restaurant or food business, you can report it to the NVWA:
- by phone: 0900-0388 (normal call charges);
- via the online form on the NVWA website.
You can also check how a business scored in an inspection in the NVWA’s public inspection results.
Our tip (not from the sources): at the airport, don’t leave food behind on seats, heaters or windowsills, and tell staff where you saw mice. Flying soon? Read our Schiphol Airport guide.
🇳🇱 Dutch Corner
| Dutch | English |
|---|---|
| De muis / de muizen | Mouse / mice |
| Het plaagdier | Pest |
| Het ongedierte | Vermin |
| De vertrekhal | Departure hall |
| De overlast | Nuisance |
| De spoedsluiting | Urgent closure |
| Melden | To report |
| Ranzig | Rancid, gross |
Sources
- MeerRadio, 8 October 2026: Muizen zorgen voor ergernis bij reizigers op Schiphol (video, traveller quote, Schiphol response; source: Haarlems Dagblad)
- NVWA, 3 January 2026: Opnieuw stijging spoedsluitingen door NVWA vanwege plaagdieren (75 and 57 closures, cities, reopening, how to report)
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