We were on deck 11 and had a mini-suite. Plenty of room for the four of us. The balcony was a nice plus and gave us a place to hang out and watch beautiful scenery while others were getting ready. I've read mixed reviews about the Star but we found it to be very nice, especially with teens. We toured Seattle before getting on the ship. The Space Needle was great. We were lucky to have great weather. Clear and almost 80 degrees. The views from the Needle were great. We went to the original Starbucks and bought coffee mugs that we used nonstop on the cruise. The market was interesting but my favorite was our stop at The Locks. Getting on the ship was a breeze. Took all of 15 minutes. Rooms were ready about 1:30pm and luggage arrived about 2:30pm. We let the kids explore the ship while my husband and I took advantage of the spa special side by side 2 hour messages. What a great way to start the cruise. We missed the sail away party but that was o.k. We all had dinner together in the Versailles the first night and we found the food to be just fine. I like trying new stuff but if I didn't like it the waiters were great about offering something different. Don't miss the Creme Brulee's...always very good. Since the kids like eating with their new friends we splurged a couple of times for Cagney's and La Bistro. Very good food and the same thing applied..if you don't like something order something else. We really enjoyed the Jazz Brunch the second day but wasn't thrilled with the Best of All on the last day at sea. I think by that time we were a little tired of the fancy food. Only ate at the Market a couple of times and mainly for the nice fruit and cheese selections..and the ice cream. We liked eating while in the ports so didn't eat lunch on the ship too much. The room was nice..beds a little hard but nice pillows and covers. Kids didnt seem to mind the fold out couches being hard but they can sleep anywhere. TV's are old and small but a lot of good movies (Avatar, The Proposal, Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, ESPN etc.) We had great reception. Our hair dryer didn't work when we got in the room but was switched out within 30 minutes. Room stewards did a great job. Nice towel animals, especially the towel monkey hanging from the ceiling. Scared me to death when I first walked in the room though. Was a good laugh. We didn't go to all the shows. Since it would stay daylight until around 11:00 p.m. we spent most of our time on our balcony or on deck watching the beautiful scenery. The spa has huge windows that you can watch the scenery from the hot tub. Spa was great. You don't have to buy the stuff they try to sell you..just say "No Thank You" once and they will leave you alone. I had two facials and two messages. My husband had two messages and a shave. (He had a mani and pedi but I promised him I wouldn't tell anyone...lol..he had never done that before and I talked him into it) Lost a lot of money in the casino..noone's fault but mine. The dealers were very friendly. Two cent slots were fun. I lost most on Let It Ride trying to hit that big hand...never happened. Same with Bingo. Ketchikan - We did the Misty Fjord Float plane through the cruise. Absolutely amazing. We had time after and decided to go with a local tour company selling tours on the dock. Big mistake!! The tour guide dissed the cruise industry the whole time and by the time we got to the Totem Poles, the attractions were closed...I was very angry. After making a small scene which is so unlike me, they reimbursed half my money. I felt that was fair. Do your research before booking an independent tour. The cruiseline tours are all very professionally done. Great fish and chip stands down a little way to the right. Clam chower too. Large portions and kind of pricey so split an order. Takes about 15 minutes to get your food. Really good!! Juneau - Whale watching. I guess I expected to see whales jumping out of the water so was kind of bummed to just see spouts, humps and tails until I realized we were very lucky to see what we did. The scenery was worth the trip though and the sea lions were neat to see and hear. Fun shopping area in Juneau. One thing to think about. Since this was a short port day we shopped instead of ate. Big mistake. Everyone gets back on the ship at the same time so all the eating areas were jam packed. Long waits, even room service. Find a fun place and eat in Juneau. Endicott Arm instead of Tracey Arm. Endicott was beautiful and the ship got really close. Close enough to see and hear the large pieces of ice falling and splashing into the water. Skagway - very nice train ride. We had a guide named "Slim Pickens" who had a guitar and sang. Even the kids enjoyed this. Our tour included the Klondike gold field which was just o.k. Panning for gold was kind of hokey but enjoyable. The restraunt was not very good..cold bbq buffet..yuk. Eat in town instead or wait until you get back on the ship. Next time I would probably not do Klondike. Prince Rupert - no scheduled excursion. Great weather so we just walked around a while. Had Fish and chips again, this time at Smiles next to the marina. Very good. Large portions so order a large and split it. Across the street was Cowpuccinos. Cute coffee shop with a nice view of the marina. Don't expect much from Prince Rupert and you won't be disappointed. I took some of my best pictures there. Colorful area with lots of eagles. Bought Canadian Maple Syrup for gifts. Use small american dollars because all change is given in Canadian dollars and cents. White Hot Party is that night so plenty of time to get fancied up. Some people even wore togas. Overall had a great time. I heard a couple of people complaining about not having enough to do on the ship. We filled our empty time in the spa and casino and watching the scenery so we were never bored. We loved the casual atmosphere of freestyle cruising. Teens had a great time and made a lot of friends. Getting off the ship was the easiest I have ever experienced. A little crazy outside the terminal but it all works itself out. Final thoughts: If you have an open mind, don't miss the 18 and over gameshows...lots of fun but a little risque. We had some CRAZY people on our ship and they were a lot of fun to watch but I dont know if I could have done some of the stunts they did. The Quest gameshow the last night was a hoot. Not to be missed. Great cruise, super nice staff, freestyle and relaxed.