Embarkation/Disembarkation: Embarkation at Fort Lauderdale on 28 March was smooth and easy. We left the hotel a little earlier than normal but we'd by chance booked a hotel that HAL and Royal Caribbean were using and it was extremely crowded in the hotel lobby so we decided to leave a bit early. There also was a thunder storm warning that morning so we decided to go while the going was good. A storm did blow through after we got to the terminal and it did rain lightly off and on much of the day. We arrived at the terminal by taxi around 10:45 AM and check-in started promptly at 11:00 AM. Quickly processed through the agent and were ready to board by 11:15 AM. There was a bit of a "mess up" as the initial agent who sent us the suite check-in line gave us a Group 2 boarding card and desk agent gave us an "S" card. They started the boarding right at 11:30 AM; initially calling Group 1 but since we had the "S" card we went forward to board. There was a moment with one agent where we had this "Why do you have an S card and a Group 2 card?" discussion but another agent stepped in and quickly resolved the issue. She also took the microphone and announced all suite passengers were invited to board at their leisure. The terminal staff that works for HAL is typically outstanding so even this minor glitch was highly unusual in our experience. I'd say we were in the first 50 people to board. Once aboard we headed for the Neptune Lounge and our cabin S008 to drop off our carry-on luggage. From there we went up to the Lido Cafe and had a relaxed lunch overlooking the city of Fort Lauderdale. All four of our bags were in the cabin by 2:30 PM and in 20-30 minutes we were unpacked and ready to cruise! I mentioned the light rain earlier and because of it this was the first time we actually did the sail away from our cabin veranda and, of course, madly waved to those die-hards back home who watched the port cam. Disembarkation on 8 April was amazingly rapid and easy. We arrived in Port Everglades about 5:00 AM or so....somehow the movement of the ship woke me and I went out on the veranda in time to watch them swing the Maasdam stern around and back her alongside the dock. It was very interesting to see maybe 20 or so container and dumpsters and two cranes waiting at the terminal. Room service coffee showed up at 5:45 AM and we had planned on taking our last showers, dressing, and then heading up to the Lido Cafe for that last breakfast as our requested departure time was between 8:30 AM and 8:45 AM. Much to our surprise they ran through the departure numbers and colors very quickly and our Pink 3 group was called as ready to depart at 7:25 AM. We made a quick decision and decided to go ahead and disembark and catch breakfast at the airport. Walked right to our luggage in the terminal, through Customs, and were in a taxi before we knew it arriving at the Fort Lauderdale airport at 8:15 AM! It turned out to be one of those times where we could have made an earlier flight but I wouldn't typically recommend it. Itinerary: The highlight, and main reason for booking this cruise, was the itinerary. Seven ports, not counting Fort Lauderdale, in 11 days was exciting and interesting. Some of the ports like Half Moon Cay, Barbados, St Lucia, and St Maarten were old ports to us, though we hadn't been to St Lucia and St Maarten for 13 years. St Croix, St Kitts, and St Vincent were new and we were excited to visit. Of the all the ports we liked St Kitts, St Vincent, St Maarten and, of course, the wonderful Half Moon Cay the best. Most disappointing was St Croix as there's not much in Frederiksted and it was probably our mistake not to book a tour or grab a taxi and tour the island. Should add that this was one of those rare occasions, at least for us, where our first stop was Half Moon Cay. We really liked starting the cruise that way and it was a glorious day on the beach, maybe the best of all of our visits to Half Moon. Interesting note was that while we had a full ship only four of the cabanas were booked. We were in Purple and no one booked one any further down the beach. Finishing the cruise with two full sea days was nice. We're not big sea day fans but after six straight port stops it actually was relaxing and turned out to be a great way to finish the cruise. Excursions: We only took one ship sponsored excursion this cruise, not counting booking a cabana at Half Moon Cay. In Barbados we did the turtle encounter through HAL and it was OK. Actually it was better for Mrs. K than me. In adjusting my mask and snorkel while in the water at the site I accidentally swallowed a pretty good mouth full of sea water and that kind of ended my encounter as I thought for a few minutes I was going to "toss my cookies" so I got out of the water and sat on the boat to get myself back together. My fault, not the tour guides so I file that under "stuff happens". They did get a report of whales nearby so we pulled anchor and spent a good 45 minutes watching a humpback and two calves so that made up for the time I lost in the water. The other islands we either self-guided ourselves through the port towns or went with a taxi driver tour. Of course, shopping was the main "excursion" in ports like St Kitts, St Lucia, and St Maarten though my impression was there's been a significant increase in prices and "bargains" are hard to find in comparison to years ago. Service: Across the board service was very good to excellent on this cruise, especially in the main dining room and Pinnacle Grill. Interestingly, and actually disappointingly, the service in the Crow's Nest was just plain terrible. We typically go there every evening before dinner for a couple of drinks and probably 7 out of 11 nights I had to go hunt down a server or the bartender. One server was so bad that we actually named him in our survey at the end of the cruise. Negatively naming staff was a first for us, not something we enjoyed doing but his attitude was bad enough that we felt it was warranted. For the first time ever we did not return to the Crow's Nest later in the evening and instead went to the Ocean Bar for our night cap. That said I have to single out a few outstanding staff. Manul and Khalida, our cabin stewards, were as good as they get and we'd take them as our stewards on any cruise. We had a table for 6 (table 46 port side) and the service was fantastic. Widi and Yodi were great with the table and Emilio was a top notch wine steward. We ate breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill as part of our suite benefits almost every morning where Padli and Rose took exceptional care of us. All of the named staff received a little extra gratuity at the end of the cruise. Service in other venues, like the shops, casino, lounges, and Lido Cafe was good but I can't particularly point out a specific person for recognition. Food: Food on this cruise was good to excellent, a big change and improvement from our last cruise on the Veendam. We ate every dinner in the main dining room this cruise which was a change for us. We had a great table with two other couples, great service as I mentioned before, and the food selection, preparation, and taste was some of the best we've had on Holland America. We ate almost every breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill and it was wonderful. That's a great perk if you're a suite passenger, one that shouldn't be passed up. The Lido Cafe was the Lido Cafe and pretty much served consistent if not good food. Entertainment: Right off the bat let me say we only went to one show and that was Jim Curry who does a tribute to John Denver. It was good as I was a John Denver fan so many years ago and we enjoyed it. We typically don't go to stage shows or special acts so I can't comment about rest during the cruise. That's typical for us and in 8 HAL cruises I'd bet we've not been to more than 4 shows total so it has nothing to do with any perceived notion or knowledge of the shows on the Maasdam. Ship: This was our first time on the Maasdam, though not our first on an S-class ship, and it was wonderful. We felt very much at home after sailing its "sister ships" like the Ryndam and Veendam and having done the very similar R-class Volendam. Overall the ship was in excellent condition. Yes, there were some scrapes, dents and dings here and there but it was clean, warm and inviting. Our cabin was great and other than some minor staining in the tub you'd hardly known it wasn't a new ship. The ship was going directly into dry dock at the conclusion of our cruise but I can't say it was because it was just holding on. Certainly new soft goods (carpet, drapes, and upholstered pieces) are needed here and there but I'm betting she'll look like a new penny in a couple of weeks.Passengers: Since this was an 11-day cruise, occurring after the majority of "spring break" cruisers were back to work/school, you'd expect the passenger demographic to be older and it was. My wife and I, at 51 and 64 respectively were clearly still among the "younger" crowd on this ship though admittedly I think we're catching up or at least I am. There were some 20 children, ranging from a couple of toddlers to couple of young teens. Quite frankly there simply weren't enough kids on the ship to be noticed one way or the other. As for the typical passenger on this sailing.....well, we've never seen so many canes, scooters, walkers and wheelchairs. Everybody was pleasant and we had some great times chatting with our fellow CC'ers and others. Luckily we were not hit, at least not to the point of being mentioned, with a Norovirus outbreak. The initial three days of Code Orange and the Lido Cafe staff basically serving all the food, drinks, etc., seems to be working and really wasn't that much of an inconvenience. There were no Code Reds, Bright Stars, or deaths, at least none that I know of, so all in all not bad considering the potential with a full ship and an older crowd.Overall Impression: First of all, let me say that any cruise is a good cruise. We love cruising and for the most part like HAL. The itinerary on this cruise was great. Of our 8 HAL cruises we'd rate this one as next to the top, slightly lower than our Volendam cruise back in 2006 which was the best in all respects. That cruise set an extraordinarily high mark, without doubt the very best we've ever been on, and so almost any cruise would pale in comparison. We would cruise this itinerary again and would cruise the Maasdam again without hesitation.