Sit on the Right side of the plane for the best views on flights from Amsterdam to San Francisco. The right side wins overall because the departure view over Amsterdam's canal ring and the IJsselmeer is genuinely spectacular and hard to beat. The landing views from the left are excellent on the 19L/19R approach but more variable depending on runway in use. For guaranteed iconic scenery, right side at takeoff from Schiphol is the highlight of this route.

During takeoff from Schiphol (AMS), sit on the Right side for the best views. Schiphol typically departs westward on runway 18R/36L or 24 toward the North Sea. A right-side seat gives you views over Amsterdam city center, the IJ river, and the canal ring as you climb out northeastward. Left side faces open polder farmland with less visual interest. Notable sights include: Amsterdam canal ring, IJ river and harbor, Markermeer lake, IJsselmeer to the northeast.

When landing at San Francisco International (SFO), sit on the Left side for the best views. SFO typically lands on runways 28L/28R approaching from the east over the Bay, or on 19L/19R from the north. On the common 28L/28R approach heading west, left-side seats look south over the San Francisco Peninsula and the Santa Cruz Mountains. On the 19L/19R approach, left side faces San Francisco Bay and the city skyline directly. Notable sights include: San Francisco Bay, San Francisco city skyline and downtown, Golden Gate Bridge (distant), San Mateo-Hayward Bridge.

The flight from Schiphol (AMS) to San Francisco International (SFO) takes Approximately 10 to 11 hours.

The route tracks a polar great circle path northwestward over the North Sea, then across Scotland and the Scottish Highlands, out over the North Atlantic passing south of Iceland and Greenland's southern tip, across the Davis Strait, then over the Canadian Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, across the Canadian Rockies over British Columbia, and finally descending over the Pacific Coast into California. Greenland's ice sheet and the Canadian Rockies are the most visually dramatic features at cruising altitude, though both appear as distant terrain below cloud cover for much of the crossing.