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American Empress 9/22/2019 Sailing


Bop
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  • 2 weeks later...

Funny....I had a few minutes this morning to review this thread.

 

Ironically, after checking all the posts...I realize that only @Bop, myself, and one other person @craftygrandma, (not including any unknown lurkers) are really the only ones going or listed as going on this particular cruise.

 

All of the other posters were those that have already been....or a few that were going on other dates.

 

 I for one really appreciated the information, photos, and reviews posted by previous cruisers as it really helped clear up some questions I had.  Thank you so much for helping.  

 

My wife and I are looking forward to this cruise, and meeting Bop, his wife and traveling friends and others as yet unknown to me. 

 

Only 10 days left !

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28 minutes ago, LEAFEATER said:

My husband and I enjoyed this cruise so much last September, that my cousin and her husband and another couple signed on for this year. They just got back and said it surpassed everyone’s expectations. I hope you have the same experience 

 

That is great to hear !

 

Thanks again for your insight !

 

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Hi Buck, LEAFEATER, DD, et .a

I just read thru the thread and thanks to all who responded. Buck, sorry for misidentifying the great. Moose pic . D D, and leafeater had some great shots too. I am just finishing my packing and can't seem to find some of my travel stuff. Found my "master list" but that is for foreign travel so it is a lot longer. Now I am going back and putting stuff back in my closet. Looks like weather will be pretty warm so don't need as many layers. Better half is actually still shopping and adding stuff to her pile. She is adding stuff to my suitcase so I will probably have to wear more clothes to make room. Gotta make sure I don't go over 50pounds! Ooof!

In 10 days we will be on our way to Spokane. Really looking forward to traveling again. Hope airline doesn't take the fun out of the trip.

Will come back to. CC with a review.

Thanks to all,

Jim/Bop

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Wishing you both a great trip!  Yes, in some ways different from an ocean voyage and from a European-style river cruise, but still a wonderful trip.  Enjoy new people, places, and tastes, with gorgeous views.  No language issues, same currency, and your phone works without extra expense.  😄

 

Have some of that yummy ice cream upstairs for us...often saw the Captain getting his share in the afternoon.  And a glass of wine/libation of choice  on your balcony. 

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@DiamondDiva

 

Thanks for the good thoughts.  We are anxious to do this particular cruise and hopeful that it is what we like so that we can consider doing some river cruises along the Mississippi etc. 

 

I can no longer fly long distances (4 hours is about my limit) thus no more cruises in Europe 😩.  We had done many along the west coast - closest to us (Panama, Mexico, Alaska 3 times, Hawaii from San Diego, and Pacific Coastal a few times so we are hoping this is a viable change of pace.  

 

Weren’t you recently on the Millenium?  How did you like that cruise?

 

Take care, and thanks once again !

 

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gHi Buck, LEAFEATER, DD, et .a,

I just read thru the thread and thanks to all who responded. Buck, sorry for misidentifying the great. Moose pic . D D, and leafeater had some great shots too. I am just finishing my packing and can't seem to find some of my travel stuff. Found my "master list" but that is for foreign travel so it is a lot longer. Now I am going back and putting stuff back in my closet. Looks like weather will be pretty warm so don't need as many layers. Better half is actually still shopping and adding stuff to her pile. She is adding stuff to my suitcase so I will probably have to wear more clothes to make room. Gotta make sure I don't go over 50pounds! Ooof!

In 10 days we will be on our way to Spokane. Really looking forward to traveling again. Hope airline doesn't take the fun out of the trip.

Will come back to. CC with a review.

Thanks to all,

Jim/Bop

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Hey DD,

Buck, et. al,

Back in the 90's here in VA. Cool cruise breezes  coming soon.

I'm down to the "cruise. accessories" phase of packing. Where's my charger for my kindle?  Picked u p some cruise snacks to smuggle on board the UAL plane. I would hate to be kicked off the plane on a Snack RAP. Those guys will squeeze the last nickel out of us.

Best to all!

Jim/Bop

 

 

 

'

Edited by Bop
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45 minutes ago, DiamondDiva said:

Always carry it...both bee allergic and any biting critter worth its salt finds me.  Never  needed it, but we were traveling in June.  Cool enough to wear long pants, etc.  But does not hurt to carry a small one. 

 

Thank you !

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2 hours ago, LEAFEATER said:

My husband and I and sometimes one other early riser were usually the only ones to see the sun rises, which were always beautiful. We always take our large insulated mugs with us, and the waiters were always ready for us 🙂

 

Well I will try to drag myself out of bed to see the sunrise along with Bop/Jim ....... (I am normally an early riser - normally I say ! - the wife not so much)

 

But on a cruise it may be more likely that I will see the sunset than the sunRise !!! GRIN....

Thanks again for the information.... 

 

Sounds like a good cruise overall !

 

Take care,

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  • 3 weeks later...
13 hours ago, DiamondDiva said:

So, how was the trip?  

 

 

1 hour ago, califsealion said:

I would love to hear how things went, too!

 

We had a very good cruise - especially after we were at 1st told we would not go to/through The Bonneville Locks nor to Astoria as the locks were not fully repaired.  The night before our cruise to Stevenson where we were to spend 2 plus days we were given the good news that the locks had opened and our trip would be completed as planned.    

 

We were somewhat fortunate in that the premium tour to Multnomah Falls and the Vista house had been canceled initially, but once the locks reopened American Queen company  decided to make the Falls a bus type excursion at NO cost and credited us for our Premium tour monies. They could not do the Vista house however due to scheduling issues at that point. 

 

As to the ship itself - we liked the layout, the rooms were a bit small but very comfortable and the veranda had plenty of space.  The public areas were clean and we were impressed with the ‘on your honor’ gift shop and availability of assistance at the Pursers Office.  We dined every evening in the Astoria dining room except for Friday when we had made reservations at the River Grill. It was our lucky night as it was also lobster night in the grill.    Meal variety in the Astoria dining room was very good and we were pleased with everything offered.  We utilized the River Grill and Astoria dining room for both breakfast and lunch depending on our mood and time available. 

 

We were greeted everywhere on board by a friendly face and pleasant attitude.  Everyone seemed to ‘have’ a minute to answer a question or to say hi or to ask how we were doing. 

 

The entertainment was unbelievably good and while the Empress Quartet did a great job - we really liked Anna Carroll as well as Greg and Lindy who were our favorite singers.  We went to the Paddlewheel lounge every evening to hear Frank Chase the piano player/comedian - and felt he was one of the best we had ever seen.  

 

As far as the Hop On Hop off buses - they did a great job, were on time and very accommodating, especially with those that required a little more time or assistance due to mobility issues. The itinerary at each port was very good and interesting Except the ‘shopping’ stops in all the ports except Astoria left a lot to be desired.  For example in Richland, Wa. the shopping stop included 2 small restaurants (yes we ate at Porters BBQ (of Diners Drive In and Dives fame). There was a Small 2nd hand women’s clothes boutique, a bakery, a furniture store, a couple of insurance offices, a tattoo shop, and several empty or under construction buildings.  

 

The weather was perfect all along the way until the Stevenson area and remainder of the cruise.  The weather turned very cool, a little rainy, and windy until we were on tour in Portland when it was milder. 

 

Overall we we truly were happy that we did this trip, and were impressed enough that we are now talking of doing the Memphis to New Orleans cruise on the American Queen - as also several staff said it was a bigger and very elegant vessel and great cruise.  

 

I did meet meet up with @Bop (Jim) his wife and friends and even at one point we were both the ‘Stars’  on stage in the Show lounge together.  I won’t go into details here though 😜😂.  Jim is a great guy and would hope we meet again in the future for a cruise maybe.  

 

I think I covered most everything of importance that I could remember.  If there is a specific question, just ask.  

 

Take care all !

 

 

 

 

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Glad the trip went well!  I'd have to agree on the shopping offered in the various ports.  On our cruise, we couldn't stop at The Dalles because the Native Americans would be using the dock for fishing that week, so that was a little disappointing.  On the plus side, we had a stop in Vancouver, WA which I actually really enjoyed.  They did have a little more shopping there, but still not all that impressive.  But the historical sites were nice.

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The itinerary of the bus stops must have changed since we were on the cruise, as we didn’t have shopping stops..... which was fine with me as I’m not much of a shopper. There were street fairs at a couple of the towns, which were places to buy souvenirs. 

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