American Cruise Lines -- Opinions?

[Caligirl58]

Our experience with cruising is so-far limited to two Uniworld European river cruises (although we are currently researching and plan to book others).  We recently received the newest catalog for American Cruise Lines, and some of the itineraries look like they might be fun and interesting.  Obviously, it would be a different cruising experience than Uniworld, but I'd love to hear opinions if any of you have taken any of the American cruises.  We are mid-60's, good health/mobility, and enjoy good food/wines, if that helps.  Thank you for any thoughts.

 

[CastleCritic]

Take this with a few scoops of salt (I also think ACL may have its own forum so this might get moved).

 

I've done 4 soon to be 5 cruises with Amawaterways and one with ACL.

 

In 2021 my mother and I did their Colombia and snake river cruise on the "queen of the west" a very very old ship(they have newer ones)  I could say a lot about the ship, but the short is this, it was in bad need of an overhaul (there were literally planks missing from the paddlewheel and it was obvious what part sat in the water for over a year) and it went in for one a few weeks after we got off so I dont know what that ship (now called American West) or their newer ships are like now..  The one  thing that really stuck out is how shockingly different the food was vs AMA.  On ACL they hand you a paper at breakfast to reserve the rest of your meals for the day and. thats what you get, and the menu wasnt that large.  The food was good (I find all cruise meals to be small but I just make them bring me more on Ama 🙂, here this was pretty much all you got ) but not memorable and despite being reserved service was still pretty slow.

 

The excursions...you take what is available to you in the areas obviously, but the short of it was that you really aren't going that far, and for that trip at least, the same buses and drivers just chased us down the river, and what made the trip work was the bus driver we had (Jodi who had literally done this when the ship was launched 20 years ago). Our parting/best memory of the trip was her going up Mt. St, Helens with one hand on the wheel and the  holding a mic other telling stories from her personal experience of living before during and after the eruption (and she did this for pretty much every excursion).  Otherwise it would have been 2 hours at times of a DVD or just...nothing going to pretty much your average local visitor center or national park funded thing....Im just not sure it would have worked.

 

The other thing that was stark to me, was just how much ACL just left everything up to the cruise ship to figure out.  There was a day where we had to be off a dock by 9, couldn't dock at the next until 2, couldn't get the buses across a bridge to the best available dock, and the cruise line just left it up to the cruise directory and the (lead) bus driver above to "just make it work".  In the end the bus driver had to get her brother to drive out from Portland to scout a literal interstate rest stop as a potential place to pull 3 tour buses into and unload 100 people for a picnic, which the ship kitchen had to prepare because they couldn't find a local source for lunch.  Few weeks later I asked my Cruise directory while sitting in Prague what would have happened if something similar happened on AMAwaterways, and he said "Basel works out all those details for me I just have to take care of the passengers".

 

Im not saying I wouldn't do them again on a different ship/route, but I definitely wont pay for one of their more expensive cruises. 

 

 

Edited April 3, 2023 by CastleCritic

[Host Jazzbeau]

As the moderator of the River Cruising, American Cruise Lines, and American Queen Voyages forums, I read every post in all three forums.  So even though I haven't taken any river cruises in the US, I have a clear impression that neither of these companies comes anywhere close to the standards we expect on European river cruises.  Both their forums are full of threads complaining about sometimes outrageous treatment!  Since you are familiar with Uniworld, your expectations are at the top.  I would stay away.

[Caligirl58]

Thank you both for taking time to respond.  Your thoughts are very helpful and confirm what I already suspected.  But it's always good to get that confirmation.

 

Jazzbeau - I saw that there was a forum for American Queen but somehow missed that there was also one for American Cruise Lines, so I apologize for that.  I did, however, find the ACL reviews and read them.

 

 

Edited April 3, 2023 by Caligirl58

[Host Jazzbeau]

3 hours ago, Caligirl58 said:

Thank you both for taking time to respond.  Your thoughts are very helpful and confirm what I already suspected.  But it's always good to get that confirmation.

 

Jazzbeau - I saw that there was a forum for American Queen but somehow missed that there was also one for American Cruise Lines, so I apologize for that.  I did, however, find the ACL reviews and read them.

No problem.  Since most cruise line forums have their fair share of 'fanboys,' I thought it was a smart idea for you to post your question here.  The main River Cruising forum has 'fans' of river cruising, but most of us are discerning in our choice of river cruise line...

[ericosmith]

On 4/3/2023 at 5:51 PM, Host Jazzbeau said:

So even though I haven't taken any river cruises in the US, I have a clear impression that neither of these companies comes anywhere close to the standards we expect on European river cruises.

I think one needs to differentiate between business practices and onboard experience.  Having been on  3 American Queen river cruises I would say that they are different, but certainly on a par, from a standards perspective.  The service tends to be on par although more informal, in part because of the all US crew.  The entertainment, while not ocean standard is certainly good with two shows nightly that you won't find on an European cruise.  While the ports along the US rivers might not be as interesting as Europe, the Hop on Hop off busses are a great feature.

 

I will agree that with each acquisition, the business side of that company certainly appears to have gone further downhill.

[steamboats]

I wouldn´t say "stay away" and "not up to par to European river cruises" but for the German market European river cruises are not that a high end product and way cheaper.

 

You have to be aware that Uniworld is a luxury river cruise line. It can´t be compared to ACL or AQV. Both are not that high end luxury. But you definitely will have a great cruise!

 

There are only 3 companies on the Mississippi river system - ACL, AQV and Viking.

 

steamboats

[twototravel]

We've done two ACL cruises in the US, both while covid was still around. We thought the ships were fine, although their decor seemed a bit dated. However, they are currently (and have already) introduced brand new ships that I hear are fantastic. You will find the cabins and balconies bigger on these ships and the crew are all American, which could be good or bad. On our two cruises, both were short staffed and their were supply issues. It's very easy for unhappy crew to just walk off the ship since they are in the US. Passengers are older, I would say generally over 65 and most over 75. Their prices are high, but you are paying for USA cruising, USA crew, and bigger cabins. 

[CastleCritic]

Definitely an older crowd than the European cruise groups Ive seen.  And also the American crews has its tradeoff, they all speak English but this is probably never the career they are going into (aside from the captain and the chefs).  Especially the deck hands/nautical crew who often appear to be hired with no experience and then trained on the job, (it works but its obvious the difference between them and a Romanian crew on say an Ama ship).

 

For me, the cruise is much more about seeing things than it is the ship.  And touring local museums and national parks can be pretty drab (there are certainly exceptions, Mt St Helens in the trip I did for example).  I dont know if europeans have a similar "meh" feeling about looking at old and historic things like Churches/Cathedrals and Castles which makes up the vast majority of the European cruises.

 

My mother was kind of big on doing the Mississippi (though she grew up in the south so she wasnt interested in the TN and south part) she seems to have scratched that itch with a half day on a cruise ship during a bus based tour last year (and after doing the Colombia/Snake cruise..though again that was an unfairly old ship to base everything on).  

Edited April 5, 2023 by CastleCritic

[steamboats]

I loved the changing scenery and nature on the Columbia river cruise - from rain forest to desert. And I do love local museums or national parks.

 

Anyway your experiences are with one itinerary only. I have cruise the whole Mississippi river, the Ohio river, the Illinois river, the Cumberland river and the Tennessee river plus the Columbia / Willamette / Snake rivers. It´s definitely different from river cruises in Europe as there the cities are close to the river and one after the other. It´s more nature and smaller towns and American history on US cruises.

 

Yes, US river cruises are more expensive... But that´s mainly because you have to have US crew (and unions) onboard. In Europe you have a lot of Eastern European crew onboard who does earn much less than a German crew member (for example). It´s the same as on land... different wages in different countries. You can´t hire "cheap" non US crew due to legal reasons (Passenger Vessels Services Act).

 

That´s basically why US river cruises are much more expensive and less luxurious than European river cruises.

 

You definitely can have a great time onboard. Don´t set your expectations too high and prepare yourself on what to expect or not and you will be positively surprised!

 

steamboats

[CastleCritic]

Oh the first few days on the Colombia the view was incredible. Reminded me of my first day on the amaserena out of Amsterdam just sitting on deck watching the world go by. 
 

im sure I’ll do another acl cruise at some point. Just not sure where. Definitely easier to jump on a “deal” if they ever put one up. 

Edited April 6, 2023 by CastleCritic

[vino100]

I cruised on the new Jazz on the Mississippi River. Will never sail on this cruise line again. 
food was sub par with limited choices. They even ran out of main courses for dinner. 
I did enjoy the crew. 
I wrote an extensive review on the American cruise line board. 
I have also been on a Uniworld river cruise that was top notch. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

56 minutes ago, vino100 said:

I cruised on the new Jazz on the Mississippi River. Will never sail on this cruise line again. 
food was sub par with limited choices. They even ran out of main courses for dinner. 
I did enjoy the crew. 
I wrote an extensive review on the American cruise line board. 
I have also been on a Uniworld river cruise that was top notch. 

This is why I have trouble believing the reviews of ACL (and AQV) that rave about how good the food is.  I just can't believe that it compares to Uniworld (or Scenic or Tauck or AMA or many other European lines).  Thanks for your confirmation of my assumption!

[island lady]

I have a B2B with American Empress booked doing the Columbia and Snake rivers next year.  Have not even been on the cruise yet and have suffered a lot of mistreatment already with the booking. 

 

Bullied to pay in full well in advance to keep my promised discount, (told me it was website glitch showing discount) they cancelled the second leg within hours after I paid them in full as demanded.  I asked to be rebooked on the next set of B2B, they told me they would have to charge a cancellation penalty fee to do so for that other leg that was not cancelled.  Huh?  AND wanted me to pay the extra for the price increase.  

 

Being the bulldog I am, I would not let it rest.   After six weeks I was finally rebooked, though not the anniversary/birthday cruise I wanted, I did not have to pay anything extra now. 

 

I suppose if there are no problems with booking your reservation, this may be a good company to book with direct...but I would never do it again.  

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 10, 2023 by island lady

[Coral]

On 4/3/2023 at 3:56 PM, CastleCritic said:

 Few weeks later I asked my Cruise directory while sitting in Prague what would have happened if something similar happened on AMAwaterways, and he said "Basel works out all those details for me I just have to take care of the passengers".

 

Im not saying I wouldn't do them again on a different ship/route, but I definitely wont pay for one of their more expensive cruises. 

 

 

Amawaterways wasn't always that "smooth". I sailed in their early years. On my trip - I felt like the CD was flying off the seat of her pants and we had constant changes and things fell apart quickly several times. Even though the reviews are great now - I have been hesitant to get back on one of their ships based on my one cruise with them. It was that bad. I just need to get over it and pretend that trip never happened.

 

I did have a good friend sail ACL in Alaska. It was a brand new ship. They were pleased though several things you mentioned in your comments were similar (deciding in the morning the food for the day, etc...).

[CPT Trips]

I just read this article about a series of linked cruises. https://www.afar.com/magazine/american-cruise-lines-unveils-longest-ever-u-s-river-cruise?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=041023LongestEverUSCruiseLaunch&utm_content=Final&utm_term=Daily Wander Newsletter

[CastleCritic]

2 hours ago, CPT Trips said:

I just read this article about a series of linked cruises. https://www.afar.com/magazine/american-cruise-lines-unveils-longest-ever-u-s-river-cruise?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=041023LongestEverUSCruiseLaunch&utm_content=Final&utm_term=Daily Wander Newsletter

51k starting price.  Gotta say in some ways thats better than AMAwaterways version (which is 47 days) because its only one shot up each river (but then having to fly...theres a downside).  Whereas the European version...at least this years is on the same ship (though that limits it to being places you can get to by river from Amsterdam) but I hope you like Rudesheim for example.....