Good: Great weather. In fact the day we saw the glacier was the warmest day! We sat by the pool before the ship entered the fjords in the afternoon. I was told by the executive chef who was on the upper deck taking pictures - that it was closest the Star had gotten to the Tracy Arm glacier all season. Weather is one of those things you can't plan for but realistically a trip to Alaska in August is probably going to mean warmer/better weather (if lot less snow and icebergs) than a trip in say May. We had brought hats, raincoats, gloves, etc. and needed none of it on the trip. I do agree with what another reviewer said, that it would have been nice to have an indoor pool on the cruise. Almost no one went into the pool (probably too cold) and so the hot tubs were always full of kids.

Balcony: The balcony alone probably added $500 to our trip cost but it was single best thing about our cruise. We kept the sliding glass door open day and night (even when it was chilly out - just cranked up the heat). Listening to the sounds of the ship gliding through the surf was wonderful. I loved sitting on the balcony or on our comfortable beds reading and than looking out at the sky, ocean, and scenery over those 7 days. With a balcony you can have the experience of being on a ship without feeling like you are sharing the experience with 1,000s of other people. I will probably never take a cruise that does not include a private balcony.

Freestyle cruising: Only way to go - especially if you are with someone like my husband who doesn't like to dress up. He did bring a suit, tie, etc. but he ended up wearing it only 1 night. This was definitely a casual crowd. I on the other hand like "putting on the Ritz" so I liked the option of dressing up a little or down depending upon our mood each evening. Read more