Demand for river cruising in the U.S. is rising and not expected to soften despite the sudden shutdown of American Queen Voyages, travel advisors say.
And while there is now one fewer option to sail domestically in what was already a limited pool, advisors say there is still plenty of variety and room for growth on U.S. waterways.
Ted Blank
Ted Blank, owner of Ted Blank Luxury Travel & Adventure in Hudson, Wis., said American Queen Voyages’ exit isn’t likely to have much of an impact on demand for domestic cruising, especially since the market is growing.
Industry leader American Cruise Lines (ACL) continues to rapidly expand with new ships and itineraries, while newcomer Viking Mississippi adds fresh options to the market with its 386-passenger vessel, the largest on the Mississippi.
“I hope that American Queen’s exit sparks some innovation and we see something unique and different in this market to attract a broader demographic,” Blank said, adding that “there are a lot of things that make a U.S. river cruise a very attractive vacation, from great scenery to interesting historic sights,” such as national parks and Civil War battlefields.
Margo McDonough of Blue Skies Travel in Newark, Del., specializes in escorted group travel for ages 50-plus, and said that in the past six months she’s had many inquiries about domestic river cruises. She’s currently organizing an ACL cruise on the Mississippi in October for her neighbors. “Nineteen people signed up within a week of the trip launch, and I expect at least a half-dozen more before we close out the group,” she said.
Erin Richards
Specialty cruises keep demand stable and draw domestic river cruise clients for Erin Richards, an advisor with Huckleberry Travel in Riverside, Calif. She said interest is strong for sailings built around the Kentucky Derby, the Bourbon Trail, Civil War battlefields and Christmas market itineraries, even when pitted against European river cruises.
“While [domestic cruising] is definitely still behind European river cruising as a ‘first thought,’ more and more clients are wise to the fact that there is a market for cruising in the U.S.,” Richards said. “I often use a U.S. river cruise to pivot a client put off by air travel to Europe or whose first choice European cruise was sold out.”
For most of her domestic cruise demographic, Richards said, “It’s more about the ‘convenient luxury’ of a river cruise than it is about the destination.”
Major hurdle: The cost of a U.S. river cruise
Advisors say the main challenge facing U.S. river cruising today is price.
Dawn Finnegan, an advisor with Classic Travel Connection in Trussville, Ala., said she recently booked a couple on their first domestic river cruise, a 10-day ACL sailing for $14,000.
“You can go to Europe for that,” Finnegan said, adding that while ACL’s product is good, its price is high compared to what people would pay in other destinations. “It’s a huge difference.”
Blank said it comes down to the perception of value and that experienced travelers, who may have taken several European river cruises, struggle to understand why U.S. river cruises are so expensive comparatively. “In many cases, the cost is double that of a European river cruise. That limits the market,” he said.
Charles Robertson
Operational costs heavily impact pricing, since U.S.-flagged ships must be built in the U.S. and can only employ American citizens, meaning higher wage requirements than on ships operated outside of the country. These factors invariably raise prices, said American Cruise Lines CEO Charles Robertson.
“Operating in the U.S. does have its challenges, and hiring Americans is one of them, but it’s not really something to complain about because it’s a reality for any business operating domestically,” Robertson said, pointing to restaurants, hotels and other hospitality businesses.
“So we don’t really bemoan the laws we have to comply with for operating in a solely domestic environment because it’s a privilege to be able to do it, and it allows us to operate these very unique itineraries.”
ACL keeps churning out ships
Demand for its U.S. river cruises is higher than ever, said Robertson, and while travelers are going abroad again, people aren’t choosing international trips over domestic ones — they’re doing both.
“I think what’s really happening is that people are just traveling more, generally,” Robertson said. “The work we did through the pandemic and reassuring guests about travel here remained through 2023, and as they planned international trips they also planned more domestic trips. So we had, by far, our biggest year ever in 2023, and we expect to have an even better year this year.”
The crew of the American Song at the start of American Cruise Lines’ 2024 Mississippi season. Photo Credit: American Cruise Lines
ACL said it has doubled its ship-production capacity since expanding the company’s Chesapeake Shipbuilding yard in Maryland during the pandemic, which enabled the line to build new river and coastal cruise ships at what Robertson called “an unprecedented rate.”
“Last year, we delivered three new ships, which is fully doubling the production of the yard,” he said.
Sailings on the Mississippi are still ACL’s top seller because it’s “the most recognizable river in the U.S.,” but Robertson said that bookings are also surging on other waterways.
“As we see demand for domestic cruising growing, we also see a lot of education happening about all the other rivers that are available,” he said. “The Columbia River has grown extraordinarily and faster than the Mississippi; the Hudson River is the same way, and we’re expanding our summer season on the river because people are realizing that it’s a fantastic weeklong experience.”
In addition to expanding its season on the Hudson, ACL also has new itineraries sailing Florida’s Gulf Coast and the Keys as well as new itineraries that pair river cruises with land tours to national parks.
