We arrived in Ft Lauderdale after driving about 3 hours across the state from SW Gulf coast of Florida. Parked at Park-n-go which is very close to port and they discount the rate substantially if prepaid reservations are made on line. Arrived at terminal about noon. Longest lines we have ever experienced on HAL. Got checked in after about 30 minutes in line and then waited about 30 minutes to board. Went to cabin deck 4 aft veranda. These aft verandas have a very deep veranda, about twice the depth of the higher decks. Two chairs and small table. One chair had extension to make into lounge type chair. Cabin actually little larger than expected and really liked the shower with glass doors. No more sticky curtains. Toilet seat at odd angle and knees hit shower straight on so have to sit little sideways but not too bad. Taller folks might have more of a problem. Lots of storage, lots of plugs for electronics. Night light automatically lights at floor to guide you to bathroom at night, but no night light in bathroom. We took our own small battery powered tealights which worked out very well. Our steward was very attentive and learned our routine quickly so room always made up when we returned late morning usually and he always kept ice bucket full, which I had requested.

Koningsdam is about 2500 passengers which is about 500 more than the Vista class ships we normally sail and you can tell. Pools, hot tubs always seemed crowded. Much more so than on previous cruises as they are pretty much the same size as the smaller ships. But the deck furniture is a big improvement. Lots of soft cushioned sofas and chairs as well as tables with softer cloth type woven seats/backs which are way more comfortable than the woven rattan(fake) type chairs on previous HAL cruises. Didn't need to use a towel for cushioning. But they kept running out of pool towels. Looked all over one afternoon and never did find one.

Lido seemed more crowded than other ships and this exacerbated by the general practice to only keep one side open which made for much longer lines than we experienced previously. Food in Lido fairly good with rotisserie or baked chicken about every meal, prime rib and steak, pork roast, turkey offerings. Wonderful salad bar, Asian station & Italian station where you pick ingredients and they prepare. Nice breakfast selection with about anything one could want. Generally food well prepared and tasty. Really nice bread station, the usual ice cream, bread pudding, etc. Miss the made to order sandwiches as they now have a selection of 4 or 5 pre-made offerings. Tried pizza parlor (bagels in am) upstairs from Lido and very good pizza. Reuben just ok. Long lines and long wait for food generally. Loved the Grand Dutch Cafe where specialty coffee drinks and alcohol are charged, but all of the food is included in fare. Nice real Dutch selections. Ordered room service couple of nights and delivered timely and hot and well prepared. Lunch at Pinnacle Grill is a great deal in my opinion and was delicious. Tamarind was really good and we also enjoyed Canaletto's one evening which was very good also. Did not go to Main Dining Room as too many stories from fellow passengers about 45 minute wait for table, 30 minute wait for water glasses to be filled, 2 1/2 hour dining times and even longer. The main dining room seemed to receive the most complaints from other passengers. The dining room manager told one lady the reason her dinner took over 2 1/2 hours was because she ordered 2 appetizers. She not happy to say the least. Read more