American Cruise Lines

New Orleans

Portland (Oregon)

North America River

Very Good

Excellent

American Heritage (formerly Queen of the Mississippi)

American Splendor (formerly America)

American Independence (formerly Independence)

American Constellation

American Star

American Spirit

American West (formerly Queen of the West)

American Constitution

American Pride

American Harmony

American Song

American Jazz

American Melody

American Symphony

American Eagle (ACL)

American Serenade

American Glory (ACL)

River Cruise on the Snake and Columbia Rivers on the Route of Lewis and Clark

Las Palmas (Gran Canaria)

American Cruise Lines offers a very interesting cruise following the path of Lewis and Clark on the Snake and Columbia rivers.  Each day is filled with excursions and entertaining presentations of this historic adventure. There are a multitude of daily excursions to choose from some are complementary others are fee based.  We especially liked the Mt. St. Helens and Fort Clatsop tours.  You also had time to peruse each historic port along the way including The Dalles and Astoria. The ship itself is quite comfortable with ample cabins on 3 decks, 2 lounges, an open-air 5th deck, and a large dining area.  The food and beverage service is very good. There is also nightly entertainment which we never missed.  The staff was first rate, all were courteous and protein their duties.  We enjoyed the small ship cruising ambience and will certainly consider another river cruise in the future with American Cruise Lines.

Palermo (Sicily)

We started cruising with ACL last year on the American Revolution cruise out of Baltimore. We love the way you are treated with so much respect and dignity. The room, the staff, the entertainment have been phenomenal. The food is really good. ( We always gain a few pounds on each cruise) The Serenade is a beautiful ship. Love the outdoor space for relaxation. I really cannot name just a few of the crew and staff that were phenomenal! THEY ALL WERE. Loved our onboard speakers/entertainers JoAnn and Steve. All of the entertainers were outstanding. JoAnn’s trio she had played with were amazing. Would love to see them again.

We loved the complete Mississippi River cruise so much, we booked two more cruises. The Columbia Snake River and Florida Keys. Can’t wait to try the new coastal cat.

This line really caters to older people. Passenger ages mostly range from mid 50’s on up. And kudos to having a night dedicated to our veterans.

Wonderful!

This was our 9th cruise with American Cruise Lines. Every cruise has been what we desired or wanted it to be.  We like ACL for our lifestyle and travel goals.  Why? 1. Because we wanted to travel the USA-we liked the European trips but wanted to know this nation more fully. 2, Fantastic crew members from wait staff to Captain. 3. Quite nice staterooms-quiet and well maintained. 4. Enjoyable dining (and on American Serenade had additional choice of a "fast food" cafe). 5. Good entertainment consistently. 6, Good options for touring on land. We were able to visit some very important War Between the States location in Mississippi and Tennessee (would have appreciated the visit even more if we could have walked on the battlefield), Grand Old Opery in Nashville. etc. 7. Excellent scenery consistently. We did not have a dull or unacceptable moment.  We would recommend this cruise to anyone wanting to visit some of the lower and more middle southern states.

A delightful time in the Southern USA

Having thoroughly enjoyed river cruising in Europe (with AMA Waterways), we wanted to try a river cruise in the US. We preferred the modern style riverboats to the paddlewheelers, so American Cruise Lines seemed to fit the bill. We are music lovers, so the Music Cities Cruise from Memphis to Nashville was the first we wanted to try. We booked a full year in advance and got our choice of dates/cabin category on the brand new (2 months old) American Serenade. The ship was at  full capacity for the very first time, with 176 passengers (we only had 90 out of 140  on our most recent AMA cruise). Unfortunately, all the "bugs" of a new build had not yet been worked through, as well as staffing and itinerary tweaks were still being made while we were aboard. 

     The boat was decorated/furnished nicely and did not show signs of wear and tear yet. The cabin/bathroom/balcony was spacious and comfortable and had a "new car" odor. However, when unpacking in the cabin I discovered the carpet in front of the closet was soaking wet. Initially they claimed a leaking seal around the shower was the culprit and re-sealed it. Then the carpet in front of the bathroom door was equally wet. Finally, on day 4, the toilet did not fill/flush and a vacuum tube was replaced. The hotel manager shampooed the carpet himself and set up an industrial powered fan to try and dry the carpet out. There was no sleeping with THAT fan on. If the ship was not at full capacity, we would have requested another cabin, being inconvenienced for half of the cruise. The crew always responded promptly when we reported an issue, but I can't say they had the latitude to offer us any compensation for our trouble. Even a pair of slippers would have been nice, since going barefoot in the cabin was impossible. The only other thing I will note is that we did not use the private balcony as much as I thought we would, even with fabulous weather, due to the insects that I'm certain get worse as the summer heat progresses.  Adding sliding screen doors would be a tremendous addition so fresh air could circulate in the cabin when the temperatures allow.

     I have no complaints about service.Most of the staff were brand new to the boat, and  many to American Cruise Lines. They were all personable and friendly. Some only lasted a day or two and had to be replaced for various reasons.  The officers (all with at least 3 years experience) helped out wherever they were needed. I don't know when they got any rest. They did the best they could under very challenging circumstances. They were all very patient with the passengers, some of whom could be quite demanding/needy. Other than the bridge tours that were offered at three different times (all while most were on excursions), we had no contact with the Captain. No announcements and no mingling with the passengers. Very different than our experience with AMA. 

At least the weather was fantastic and the river levels were perfect. The wifi also worked quite well all through the cruise, even when were in cellular service dead zones. The food offerings were good and of sufficient variety. They would "poll" everyone at breakfast so they knew what to prepare the most of for lunch and dinner--so less waste theoretically, but they often ran out of desserts, or substituted others for what was on the preprinted menus (I assume). They restocked items as we docked in various ports, so you never knew what you would get day to day. Portion sizes were good for me, but I'm certain others would consider them too small or too large. The final night, our dinner of filet mignon and lobster tail had to be served early and buffet style so we could get to the Grand Old Opry on time (we ended up docking in downtown Memphis instead of near the Gaylord, next to the Opry as originally scheduled). It was a shame to rush their "special" dinner and perhaps it should have been shifted to the night before as we were arriving to Nashville after 8 pm. We were staying in Nashville for 2 nights after the cruise, so did not venture off the ship beyond the excursions while we were docked there, but I suppose it was nice for those who wanted to experience Broadway--we were right there--while still onboard. The complimentary bar service was extended from just cocktail hour to dinnertime and during evening entertainment. I don't think anyone was charged for any beverage during the entire cruise, but they ran out of different drinks/beer/wine regularly and none of the staff were experienced bartenders. They also offered bar service in both lounges to accommodate the high passenger count. Many preferred the "quick service" breakfast and lunch in the Sky lounge/Ellipse Cafe to the sit down/menu service in the dining room. It got more popular day by day and the staff had to shift and help out with the increased volume there. 

     The average age of the passengers skewed quite high--we were among the younger tier at mid to late sixties. Many passengers used mobility aids (I was using a cane due to a recent knee injury). Most of the ports had a climb to the where the buses were parked. They shuttled folks with a golf cart and then a minivan as best as they could. Needless to say, the excursions were rated for a low physical activity level. It was great to get to know the bus drivers over the course of the week.  We enjoyed most of the excursions we took, but the paid "Backstage at the Ryman" in Nashville ($30) was NOT worth it. It was a guided tour that did NOT include backstage areas since there was a show scheduled that night (350 out of 365 days of the year). We had bought tickets to see a show while staying in Nashville after the cruise, so could have definitely skipped that excursion.

     The first two nights on board there was NO musical entertainment. The officers had to do an "improv" night due to a "miscommunication with corporate". The acts that came aboard the other nights were good, but catered to the older average age of the passengers, so the musical selections predated us.  They tried to strike a balance between Country music and "Pop" music (wouldn't really call it Rock or Blues). The cruise director tried to use musical themes for activities as much as possible. The lecturer was quite interesting, but for a "Music Cities" cruise, it might have been better to have an onboard musician instead, if they could not accommodate both. I think even the "Eagle Society" members expected more music on this itinerary. They added a lot more dates in 2024 for this itinerary, so I hope they improve on that aspect. 

     There was a very hard sell to book future cruises on board for some decent incentives, and we did. I'm hoping American Cruise Lines is not expanding too quickly in these challenging times recovering from the effects of the pandemic. We were told that the CEO keeps his finger on the pulse of the customer feedback--so I hope he's reading this. The survey they sent via email (addressed ONLY to my husband, which was very insulting) did not allow the detail I wanted to convey.

First American (USA) River Cruise almost right with room to improve

Filters

1-4 of 4