Mississippi Sternwheeler Cruises

Mississippi Sternwheeler Cruises Today

Mississippi sternwheeler cruises today mean American Cruise Lines’ two Mississippi paddlewheelers: American Heritage, formerly the Queen of the Mississippi, and American Splendor, formerly the America. Both were redesigned and renamed by the line, with interiors themed around American music, and both carry a red stern wheel in the classic style.

They sail the Lower Mississippi between New Orleans and Memphis, the Upper Mississippi between St. Louis and St. Paul, and, on some dates, routes that reach into the Ohio, Cumberland and Tennessee rivers.

The Wider Mississippi Picture

American Cruise Lines also runs modern riverboats on the Mississippi, and Viking runs the Viking Mississippi. The American Queen and its sisters, once the best-known paddlewheelers on the river, stopped sailing in 2024; Steamboating Cruises tells that story. For a full comparison of every Mississippi line and ship, see mississippiriverboatcruises.us.

Life Aboard a Mississippi Paddlewheeler

These are small ships by cruise standards, so the atmosphere is sociable. Dining is usually open seating, the lounges host lectures by a riverlorian on the history of the river and the towns, and evening entertainment leans toward jazz, Dixieland and American standards, in keeping with the music theme of the redesigned interiors. Most cabins have private balconies or verandas facing the river.

The stern is where sternwheeler fans gather. On the paddlewheelers you can watch the red wheel turn from the aft decks, and at night its lights reflect on the wake. If you want a cabin far from any machinery noise, book forward; if you want to hear the wheel, ask for an aft cabin.