Sit on the Left side of the plane for the best views on flights from Vancouver to Amsterdam. Left side wins both departure and arrival. Over the full flight, the left side also gets better views of Greenland's ice sheet and fjords as the polar route tracks northeast, while the right side faces the open Arctic Ocean.

During takeoff from Vancouver International (YVR), sit on the Left side for the best views. YVR typically departs westward over the Strait of Georgia on runway 26L/26R, then turns north. Left side gets the full panorama of Vancouver city, Burrard Inlet, and the Coast Mountains rising behind. Right side faces the open Pacific and flat delta farmland. Notable sights include: Downtown Vancouver skyline, Burrard Inlet, Coast Mountains (including Mount Garibaldi at ~8,700 ft), Fraser River delta.

When landing at Schiphol (AMS), sit on the Left side for the best views. Schiphol typically lands on runways oriented roughly east or northeast, meaning the approach comes in from the west over the North Sea coast. Left side sees the Dutch coastline, the Hague, and the flat polder landscape with canals. Right side faces open farmland with less visual interest. Notable sights include: North Sea coastline, Dutch polder canal network, The Hague urban area, Amsterdam city visible to the northeast.

The flight from Vancouver International (YVR) to Schiphol (AMS) takes Approximately 9 to 10 hours.

The great circle route tracks northeast over British Columbia's interior, then across the Canadian Rockies, over Hudson Bay or northern Quebec depending on routing, across the Labrador Sea, southern Greenland's ice sheet and fjord coastline, then Iceland may appear on the horizon, followed by the Norwegian Sea, and finally the North Sea coast into the Netherlands. Greenland's ice cap is the single most dramatic visual feature at cruise altitude, appearing as a vast white expanse broken by dark rocky nunataks and deeply incised fjords along the western coast.