American Queen Memphis to New Orleans
Having enjoyed a few European river cruises over the last year we were delighted when we were invited on a Mississippi cruise with American Queen Voyages. After a long journey from London to Memphis via Dallas we arrived at The Peabody hotel, the designated meeting point for all of the guests joining our cruise, in the early evening and were shown to our delightful and large room on floor four. Our American Queen package included one night at The Peabody, but since we had a long journey to get to Memphis we had tagged on another night, which meant we had a full day to explore Memphis the following day.
Suffering from jet lag we both woke up just after 4.30 so after a hearty breakfast we headed out for an early morning walk along the river and Beale Street before heading back to the hotel for the famous duck parade which started at 10.30am. Every morning the Duckmaster will bring four of the hotels ducks, that live in a duck palace on the rooftop, down the elevator, along a red carpet from the elevator to the fountain located in the centre of the grand lobby. There they stay until 5pm when he repeats the whole performance the other way round, taking them back up the elevator to the rooftop. The performance attracts loads of people to the hotel as well as the hotels guests who flock to see this unusual activity.
As soon as the duck parade was finished we headed off on foot down the road to Sun Studios, the recording studios where Elvis laid his first ever record, as well as many other famous musicians such as Johnny Cash. We took the tour which included a comprehensive history of the label and the building we were in and a visit to the recording studio where it had all happened. A pretty neat tour for music lovers.
In the afternoon all passengers had to be at The Peabody to complete the cruise check in ready for our embarkation the next day. With antigen tests and check in complete we headed out once again to experience Beale Street in the evening with its neon signs lighting up the two block section of road jammed full of restaurants and entertainment venues alive with music, performers and tourists. We decided to eat in BB Kings, where we were lucky enough to get a really good table on the upper floor overlooking the fabulous musicians who entertained us while we ate our way through a mountain of food.
The following morning we were due to join our home for the next week, the wonderful American Queen steamboat. But before that we had booked an additional cost excursion to Graceland, the home of Elvis Presley. Arriving there early in the morning we started with a self guided tour of the house using an iPad and audio headset, which was great as it meant you could spend as long as you wanted to in each room. The tour included the downstairs and basement room, the trophy rooms and offices, his racket ball court and outdoor pool, finishing off in the meditation garden where Elvis is now buried. Back over the road there was still lots to see, with both of Elvis’ planes and exhibitions of his cars, clothes, and memorabilia. We couldn’t leave without trying one of Gladys’ infamous peanut butter and banana toasties, one of Elvis’ favourite foods made to the same recipe that his mum used.
With our time at Graceland over it was time to head to the boat, making our way to the river via Sun Studios, the Civil Rights museum, part of which is the Lorraine motel where Martin Luther king was shot, and Beale Street, at the bottom of which was the American Queen, waiting for us to embark. As we had completed check in the day before we walked straight onto the boat and headed up to our suite. When we got there there was a note on the door to say we had been upgraded to the fabulous Mark Twain suite located at the front of the boat on deck five. As one of two Owners suites on the boat guests staying in the Mark Twain suite are looked after by the amazing Adam, the suite guest butler. Recognising him from the Jane McDonald Mississippi river episode I was rather excited to find out he would be our butler for the week. The excitement didn’t end there, when we entered our suite we couldn’t believe how beautiful the room was with three large windows surrounding the incredibly spacious room with a large double bed, a sofa and armchair and so much storage we didn’t know what to do with it. Our excitement rose even further when Adam told us that the central patio doors lead out to our own private, extremely large, balcony complete with rocking chairs and a magnificent view over the front of the boat. We were ecstatic.
After a welcome drink on the front porch it was time to quickly unpack before heading to the Grand Salon for a welcome talk to introduce us to the entertainers on board and we were delighted to see so many musicians given the size of the boat. After the show we had an hour before dinner so we moved next door to the Captains Bar to soak in the atmosphere before heading into the J.M. White dining room for our first meal on board. Evening meals on the American Queen are served at two set meal times, 5.15 or 8pm - we were at the 8pm seating meaning that we went to the port talk and show before dinner whilst those at the 5.15 seating would do these things after their dinner. The dining room is situated below the Mark twain Gallery with mezzanine windows looking out over the double height side sections of the dining room. We had a delightful window-side table for two, eating a leisurely delicious meal whilst enjoying the view out to the river and the sun setting behind. After dinner we headed down to The Engine Room Bar where the talented Jay and Logan entertained us with the large porthole windows out to the paddle wheel as a backdrop.
Overnight we had sailed southward down the Mississippi river to Terrene Landing, an old isolated harbour along the Mississippi used in the passed to bring goods into the region, as well as for fishing. There isn’t much at Terrene Landing but it is a gateway to the local town of Cleveland where there is a new Grammy award museum, the only other one in the US outside of LA. This is a new stop for American Queen and on some voyages replaces Greenville, a little further south. At every stop there is a complimentary American Queen hop on hop off bus to the local town as well as premium excursions for guests to book at an additional cost. For guests that chose to take the included hop on hop off bus there are also usually complimentary entrance to museums and sights on the route. Since we had included tickets to the Grammy museum we decided that we would do that today.
But first we headed down to the main restaurant for breakfast. There are two options for all meals on board, the main dining room which is open seating for breakfast and lunch, or the front porch where there is buffet style food which can be eaten in the small area surrounding the buffet or out on the larger front porch area. As we were in the main dining room we took advantage of being able to order cooked to order hot dishes as well as the buffet which has a range of hot and cold breakfast dishes available. After breakfast Adam had booked us to do the Pilot (wheel) house tour so we headed to the Chart Room to meet Chrissy, the on board riverlorian - a sort of team boat historian. She spent half an hour talking to our groups of 14, explaining a little about herself, our ship and the pilot house before we headed up to deck 6 to meet Roy, a pilot cadet, the Deputy Captain and the Captain, who showed us around the small pilot house and answered our many questions.
After lunch we had a restful afternoon on our balcony watching people come and go from the forward gangplank located a few decks below our balcony before making our way to The Grand Salon for the Captain’s welcome drinks party followed by the the sail away from Terrene landing, accompanied as always by the very loud calliope piano music which is played very time we depart a port. We decided to head down to the engine room for sail away. The engine room is open to guests 24 hours a day and is always manned by helpful crew who are more than happy to tell you all about the mechanics and show you around their wonderful engine room. They even took us out into the paddle boards beside the wheel for a perfect view of the wheel turning as we set sail.
At 6 pm we had our port talk followed by the show featuring the amazing five piece band and the four on board singers. After the show we headed to the front porch for a pre-dinner cocktail as we sailed along the Mississippi. Then it was time for dinner in the main dining room followed by a quick nightcap in the Engine Room Bar before heading back to our room. We decided to take a drink out to our balcony before bed but as we sat there finishing off our glass of red the smoke stacks suddenly loomed up beside us as they lowered them for us to go under a bridge. We hadn’t heard them being lowered, the only indication that it was happening in the dark was that we could suddenly feel the heat coming off of them as they came closer to us.
Sailing further down the Mississippi overnight we arrived in Vicksburg, a largish city located midway between Memphis and New Orleans. Again we chose to do the included hop on hop off bus tour around the town, stopping at Anchuca mansion, an antebellum house built in about 1830 and owned by the brother of Jefferson Davis, the only president of the confederate states of America who famously addressed the town from the balcony of the house in the middle of the Civil war. The whole city played a significant role in the Civil war, being one of the hardest places for the unionists to take because of the high ground and the river making it difficult for the approaching army to capture the residing confederates. In fact it is claimed that when the unionist captured Vicksburg it really marked the end of the civil war, if they could take Vicksburg then they could effectively take anywhere. Our next stop was the High Street, home to a small Civil war museum, the Coca-Cola factory where coke was first bottled and the Mississippi River museum, with complimentary entry for all American Queen passengers. Back on board just after noon we were quickly whisked away to the Grand Salon by Adam for a 20 minute film about the significance of Vicksburg in the civil war which we enjoyed with a nice cold drink before heading down to the dining room for a buffet lunch.
We were due to set sail from Vicksburg at 4.30pm, with sailaway involving not only lowering the smoke stacks for us to get under the nearby bridge but turning the boat around in a very narrow part of the river and I honestly don’t know how the Captain it, with the ship literally being as long as the river was wide. Waking up the next morning in the gorgeous little city of Natchez we had a view of a few little shops and cafes along the dock front with the city sitting on a hill above the river. We had been invited by Adam, our butler, on a small group excursion today to meet chef Regina, who is the chef culinary advisor and ambassador for American Queen Voyages. We boarded the HOHO bus with Adam accompanying us, until we reached downtown Nacthez where Regina’s little cookery school is located. We got off the bus and were immediately greeted by Regina who was waiting for us with a tray of freshly baked biscuits, some delicious ham and some refreshingly cold smoothie drinks. We all tucked into these as we introduced ourselves and took photos with Regina. Then Regina told us a little of her interesting back story and how she became the queen of the biscuit before going on to talk us through the recipe and demonstrate how to make the biscuits, making sure we all had a go at the lamination process. She was so friendly and warm and we had such a lovely time with her none of us wanted to leave but she was keen for us to take a look round her beloved city so she gave us all a little souvenir of one of her recipe tea cloths and a biscuit cutter and sent us on our way.
Natchez is home to a number or preserved Antebellum and we decided to start by walking to Stanton hall, the largest of them all. We had a guided tour of the grand and ostentatious Stanton hall before getting on the bus to the next mansion, Magnolia hall, the only Antebellum mansion still standing that is made of brownstone rather than white. Though this mansion was less grand than Stanton hall it was a lovely light bright and homely house which we walked around on our own, reading about each room from the pamphlet we were given when we entered the house. After touring the inside we took a little walk around the gardens admiring the magnificent magnolias both in the garden and in the adjoining streets. Our last stop of the day was the gazebo and lookout point situated at the top of the hill, giving a fabulous view down the river and the American Queen docked at the bottom of the hill. Late afternoon Regina came on board to do a cooking demonstration for the rest of the guests. Having enjoyed it so much and found her so riveting I decided to go to the demonstration to hear her story again and have another taste of her delicious biscuits. As usual we set sail from Natchez late afternoon, this time heading New Roads, located on the other side of the river.
New Roads is the dock for St. Francisville which is a 90 minute drive away on the other side of the river. So we headed out early, getting off of the HOHO at the first stop, Myrtles plantation, a late 18th century iodine plantation which was expanded and changed into a cotton plantation in the mid 1800’s. The gorgeous little house with its 125 foot verandah has quite a history with some grizzly deaths being part of the story, with todays owners claiming that it is one of the most haunted houses in America. This might be part of the gimmick but it definitely attracts guests to tour the house, visit the on-site open fire restaurant (which also serves the most delicious bread pudding) or stay in one of the many bed and breakfast rooms on site. After sampling some of the bread pudding, taking the tour of the house and wandering the grounds for a bit we got back on the coach for the 15 minute drive into the main town.
Though the were five stops in the town they were all within walking distance of each other so we simply got off at one end of town and walked along the Main Street to the last stop stopping along the way at the old Anglican Church, the quaint Grandmother’s Buttons store and the Old Market Hall, admiring the many beautiful houses and buildings lining the towns streets along the way. That afternoon we had been invited to attend a soirée for repeat cruises and suite guests in the Grand Salon, so we stopped by there before a quick stop in the Captains bar to enjoy the band who were playing a jazz set there. We decided to give the show a miss tonight so that we had a little longer to get ready for dinner and could enjoy the sail away from our balcony with a glass of wine. Dinner was always a highlight of the day, with delicious southern food served and amazing service from the wonderful Jasmin, Selley and Stephanie who we always managed to have a giggle with. I’m not going to lie, I was a little worried about what I might eat whilst we were on our Mississippi cruise. I’m not a big meat eater and I don’t really like smokey flavourings, but the food on the American Queen was always outstanding and the service excellent. The sailing from New Roads to our next stop, Baton Rouge, was only about 40 miles so we had arrived into Baton Rouge earlier that evening so while some guest and crew headed out for the evening we took a drink out on our balcony to take in the city sights and sounds before finally hitting the sack.
Barton Rouge is the capital city of Louisiana and we had two included excursions here, the morning one being a visit to the Louisiana state university run Rural Life museum where there is real life buildings depicting life in a plantation or in rural communities in the 1800s. The afternoon was the usual HOHO bus around Baton Rouge taking us to the beautiful Art Deco State Capitol building and the Capital Park museum. The museum was incredibly quiet and we enjoyed a couple of hours there learning about Louisiana history and cultures. The sail away from Baton Rouge was more dramatic than usual with storm clouds building overhead, so we headed to the front porch for a pre-dinner drink a safe place to enjoy the scenery and stunning sunset safe from the rain. Unusually this boat had no bar waiters so if you want a drink you have to go up to the bar and order it directly from the bar tender behind the bar. This isn’t too much of an issue but it can sometimes mean a bit of a wait, especially at the front porch bar and the Captains bar which are both really small. Our favourite bar was the Engine Room bar where that evening our usual entertainers, Jay and Logan, were joined by Rick who usual job was to beep us on and off the ship, but is also a talented country musician, and delivered what turned out to be one of our favourite evenings on board the American Queen.
Again we only had a short way to sail to get to our next stop, Nottoway, arriving their later that evening which meant we could head off of the boat early to explore the gorgeous Nottoway Plantation which was just across the road from where the boat was docked. Nottoway is the largest Antebellum mansion still standing in the south and a popular tourist destination. The house offers guided tours and we were lucky enough to be shown around the house by Larry, a fabulous tour guide who clearly loved the plantation and regaled us with stories from its past as he showed us around many of the rooms of the main house. After the tour we were free to wander around the house as much as we liked so we headed out to the top floor porches which surrounded the front and back of the magnificent building.
Our last evening on board and the fabulous band were getting us in the mood for New Orleans with some dixie jazz in the Grand Salon. After a lovely last evening on board this iconic steamboat, the largest ever built, we sat out on our reflecting on our time visiting this unique area of the world, sailing along this special river, on this incredible boat, as we approached New Orleans. Early in the morning it was time to disembark, but we didn’t have far to go with a night booked at the nearby Four Seasons hotel, giving us time to explore New Orleans. We checked into this luxurious hotel and were shown to our beautiful room before crossing the road to pick up the city’s Hop on Hop off bus, buying a two day ticket so that we could make the most of our time here before our evening flight the next day.
Thank you to American Queen Voyages and Light Blue Travel who hosted us on this week long river cruise. They covered the cost of our cruise fare, and a one night stay at the Peabody Hotel . We paid for our flights to Memphis and home from New Orleans, all transfers, an extra night at the Peabody Hotel, the Graceland excursion and the stay at the Four Seasons New Orleans.
If you enjoyed this blog why not take a look at some of our other content, including the Graceland video guide, our Uniworld Nile cruise blog or our Four Seasons Cairo review.
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