I have always wanted to cruise on the US rivers, and I also wanted to experience the largest riverboat, as well as steam-powered, so the American Queen was my obvious choice. Eventually, I hope to cover all the US rivers that offer overnight cruises.

We flew in to St. Louis, and were lodged at the Hilton at the Ballpark, where we checked in, and completed a Covid test.

We toured St. Louis on our own, and the next morning we were treated to a buffet breakfast, and then boarded our bus for a 3:30 PM (the last one) shuttle to Alton, IL for embarkation. We sailed at 5:00 PM, and passed by St. Louis, down the Mississippi, to Cairo, IL, where we then began our long sail up the full length of the Ohio River to Pittsburgh. The cruise ended at Louisville, KY, but we were booked back to back to the next cruise. Since we did not stay at a hotel in Louisville, during the turnaround of passengers, we were offered a complimentary deluxe tour of Churchill Downs. Excellent! Read more