The folks at the American Queen Steamboat Company must be pleased as punch: Not only do they have a highly successful product on their hands, but other river cruise lines are lining up to charter space on their American Queen sternwheeler.
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Experience the American Queen on a series of shorter voyages offered in 2013. Photo courtesy of the American Queen Steamboat Company.
American Queen Steamboat Company was launched just last June, when the company returned the 1995-built American Queen to service along the storied waters of the Mississippi. While the ship has been an enormous success with passengers for its colonial styling and ambiance – not to mention the unusually high quality of the onboard cuisine and amenities – it has also attracted the attention of yet another tour operator.
In addition to Avalon Waterways and Tauck, Australian-based Scenic Tours has become the latest river cruise operator to block space on the popular sternwheeler as part of its Southern Belles itinerary that includes a week aboard the American Queen as she sails from Memphis to New Orleans.
Scenic Tours General Manager of Product for Europe and North America, Aleisha Fittler said, “Our guests love to river cruise because it’s a relaxing way to discover a destination.” She also revealed that it was feedback from the company’s European-based river cruise guests that led to the decision to introduce a similar option in North America.
In Europe, Scenic operates a technologically advanced fleet of river cruise vessels known as the Scenic Space Ships. Although Scenic will not own the American Queen, the company will be offering many of the inclusions that Scenic’s river cruise guests have come to expect, including in-depth explorations ashore that will include touring some of America’s most historic and culturally diverse sites.
Scenic’s new North American itineraries operated aboard the American Queen are available for booking now for departures in 2014.
More information on Scenic Tours, its fleet and itineraries, can be found by viewing our complete Scenic Tours profile here on River Cruise Advisor.
This is terrific. I’m sure that our friends from the Southern Hemisphere will love the American Queen as much as we do. The staff and cuisine are exceptional and there is nothing like watching a river go by as one sits on the deck with a beverage. Wishing you all the best from a past passenger of seven cruises on the Mississippi, Ohio, and Arkansas rivers and many others throughout Europe and China.