After 6 years of crusing to Bermuda and the Caribbean we made our first trek to Alaska via round trip from Seattle. There were so many great memories I'm not sure I can justify the experience in words. Even our pictures (some 300 plus) couldn't capture all the beauty and wonder of Alaska. I must admit I'm one of those people who have always went south to enjoy the warm sunny days and nights with the refreshing tropical breeze and favorite beverage. To see the majesty, vastness and sheer beauty will take take us back as there is so much more to see.Leaving May 31st we arrived in Seattle 2 days early to see and explore a new city for us. It was an uneventfull flight with the airport being no hassle what so ever. We always hire a private car to pick us up and transport us to our hotel. Our driver was promptly waiting for us and 25 minutes later we were checked into our hotel room at the Andra. The weather was partly cloudy and upper 70's. A quick bite of lunch and we were off to explore Seattle. My desk description of Seattle is it is a larger version of Ashville NC. ( for those who have been there) Free spirited, and progressive in nature. We took nureous pictures of Mt Rainier as it shone brightly in the distance for our high rise view. Then it was off to Pikes Place Market to wander around the sights, sounds, and smells. There was a festival that weekend so that brought out people in mass. The weather Saturday was picture perfect. During the festival there were street performers and vendors set up with two different music stages. Earlier we had gone to the Space Needle and the Music Experience. Didnt do the Needle as it would be $40 for both of us and we didn't think we would see much.Sunday it was to the ship at 1PM for our 4PM sailing. About a 15 minute drive to pier 91 from our hotel. This was the only problem the whole trip. Whoever designed the layout for the cruise pier failed miseralbly. Our ship and a HAL ship were both boarding. Combine the mob of people with traffic and it wasn't a pretty site. The lines at check-in were long. Maybe we were spoiled or lucky in the past but it took us about 1hr and 30 minutes to go thru the process and get to our room.Having sailed on the Crown & Caribbean Princess before (both excellent trips) we already had percieved expectations of what to come. The Star is a beautiful ship that was kept spotless the whole trip. Our room steward was next door when and came to our room to introduce himself and greet us. He was outstanding and we never had to ask or want for anything other than robes which he had to us after the infamous muster drill. The room was small, the bathroom was a little bigger than expected. (they can't get smaller) The balcony was large with four chairs a big table and two foot rests.The food was typical cruise ship fare in the buffet and dining room. Nothing great but satisfying none the least. A couple of things I noticed was during breakfast they already had you milk poured in glasses and sitting out during the line. Personally I like the old way of grabbing a carton stuck in ice. Another thing is they didn't offer made to order omlets. We never got up hungry though. The Trident grill is always a good option for a mid afternoon snack.Entertainment wise the singers and dancers put on several realy good shows. Two different comedians they had were good as well. Even though we didn't go and stay the piano bar area always had a good crowd. The casino was nice and spacious and not overly smokey. There was even one night no smoking was allowed. Still didn't help my luck. Yes this ship does have music under the stars (MUTS) Bar service in the pool area was not as plentiful as normal.From Sunday thru the following Sunday the seas were "lake like". Rarely did the boat rock. At most it would "shudder". The weather each day (and I'm not kidding) was sunny, 80 degrees and no humidity. If you were outside you got a tan!!. To sail along and be swiming to the sight of snow capped mountains was amazing. They did have a naturalist on board who offered her knowledge and expertise on the area and would describe and advise from the bridge over a PA or your TV things to look for during the cruise.First stop Ketchikan (the rainiest city in North America) Not this trip sunny and 80 degrees. We did the float plane excursion with Michelle and Island wings. WOW. From the air we truly got to get an idea of how big and vast AK is. Waterfalls and snow capped mountains from above is a sight to see. I was lucky to sit in the co-pilot seat and got a first hand view. One bit of caution. Our excursion started at 9:30. Michelle told us that due to the heat and since heat rises the trip would be like riding on a log road. Over land it was bumpy at times. She said it is better to go first thing in the morning to avoid this or on a cloudy or rainy day. To us the pictures were worth the bumps. Walked around town, Creek Street and to the salmon hatchery where the had two bald eagles they had rescued. Amazing birds up close and then to look up and see others flying freely overhead....Next Juneau to do whale watching with Harv & Marv. This was the highlight of our trip. They have actuaqlly brought on another boat captained by who I dubbed "Admiral Steve". We didn't pay for it to happen but it wound up that Steve, my wife and I were the only ones on board. It was three hours of pure thrills and excitement. Watching a pod of Orcas breeching, humback whales appearing to put on a show by doing complete breeches and bubble-net feeding and communicating to each other was priceless. Steve was as excited as we were which meant we were seeing a show. In additon we saw bald eagles overhead and nesting, harbor seals and stellar sea lions. On the way back to the ship the van stopped for 30 minutes to take pictures at Mendehall glacier. Again all in sunny and 80 degree weather. That morning we sailed into Tracy Arms Fjord from 7-10. Icebergs and waterfalls from down from snow covered mountains offered many photo ops. Here it was actuall cold.Skagway. We did the rail excursion to Frazier then we ere picked up by Dyea Dave and drove on to Emerald Lake and back to town. The train ride was worth it. Simply beautiful. On the drive part we saw moose and black bear. The town is small and not much to do other than grab a beverage at the Red Onion.Victoria BC. Just wandered around town, had some dinner and did a little shopping. The Empress hotel and the parliment building are impressive lit up at night. Chinatown was nothing special.Having sailed three times on Princess and Royal Caribbean and one on Norweigan we vote Princess at the top. This is just our opinion. It was a great trip on a beautiful ship finished off by a Sunday baseball game in Seattle before the cross country flight home. People ask "would you go back again?" The answer is a resounding yes. Having just seen the southern partt makes me want to go back and go farther north To Mt McKinnly and Denali but how can we ever expect to get the weather we had.