November 26 - December 05, 2023
10 Days
Tour Status
The Lower Mississippi River has stories to share – a legacy that flows from Memphis to the Gulf of Mexico. Embark on more than just a cruise, and return with more than memories: experience, understanding, an enlightened perspective. Let us introduce you to the American South and show you all the great sights and port cities as we cruise the legendary Mississippi river between New Orleans to Memphis. A new chapter awaits as we cruise around each river bend. Join David & Brenda Layden from Select Holidays on the “Small Group Departure” and experience the beauty of the Mississippi River.
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Tour Highlights
Magnificent, ever-changing scenery, and protected gentle waters between safe and secure overnight ports
Unlimited Shore excursions are included and educational information is presented en route.
Deluxe & Junior Suite Accommodations on “American Queen” River Boat.
Unlimited Wi-Fi
Unlimited Beverages & Open Bar
Acclaimed Local & International Cuisine.
Daily housekeeping service.
Live, Daily Onboard Entertainment & Enrichment.
Gratuities for staff abaord “American Queen”.
Bicycles / Hiking Sticks available at ports along river cruise
Hosted by Select Holidays
PLUS more……..
Day 01: November 26, 2023: Arrive Memphis, TN
Arrive Memphis and transfer to your hotel. The balance of the day is yours to become acquainted with the city. For your convenience, an American Queen Voyages Hospitality Desk will be located in the hotel that can assist with everything from general questions about your upcoming voyage to reserving premium experiences.
Day 02: November 27, 2023: Memphis, TN
Memphis’ history and heritage begins with the indigenous people who lived by the mighty Mississippi. Throughout the years it has been home to cotton tycoons and enslaved people, to musicians who sounded the first notes of songs that still echo around the world today, and to civil rights icons including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Visitors embrace the diversity of this city that has been coined not only the home of the blues but also the birthplace of rock ‘n’ roll and its many music-themed attractions. As one of the most famous music destinations in the world, Memphis is a melodious including Beale Street Historic District, Blues Music Hall of Fame, Center for Southern Folklore, Graceland, Gibson Guitar Factory, Memphis Music Hall of Fame, Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum, St. Blues Guitar Workshop, Stax Museum of American Soul Music, Sun Studio and the W.C. Handy home and museum. An included city tour will be included this day before boarding the “American Queen”, the largest steamboat ever built. [B/D]
Day 03: November 28, 2023: Cleveland, TN
In the heart of the Mississippi Delta lies the town of Cleveland, named for President Grover Cleveland, the town began formation in 1869. Often called the “Birthplace of the Blues,” Cleveland brims with musical history and avenues to learn about it. The blues are very much alive in this Delta community, and one of the best places to experience the heritage and culture that is the blues is just outside Cleveland at Dockery Farms, home to world-famous Delta blues musician Charley Patton. Today, Cleveland is a nice, college town with friendly neighbors. More of a farming community than “small city,” the town’s unique Southern culture is the amalgamation of the blues, hand-spun Mississippi mud pottery, and mouthwatering delicacies like catfish and tamales. [B/L/D]
Day 04: Novermber 29, 2023: Vicksburg, MS
Vicksburg perfectly blends Southern culture and heritage with exciting modern attractions. As a major battle site during the Civil War, this port carries a history unlike any other. Learn about the historic conflicts of the city, taste its cuisine, visit the many museums, and pick out the perfect souvenir. Vicksburg’s best-known contribution to history is probably the part she played in the American Civil War. It is the final resting place for 17,000 Union soldiers, 13,000 of whom are unknown. In 1899, the Vicksburg National Military Park was created to commemorate and preserve the infamous siege line and the historic heritage. Visitors can climb the 47 steps to the entrance of the marble Illinois Monument, featuring a domed roof, pillars, and sculpted bronze bald eagle. Also at the park is the USS Cairo Gunboat and Museum – a historic warship that was torpedoed and later raised after spending over 100 years at the bottom of the Yazoo River. Today, visitors can climb aboard to see some original weapons and gear used by the soldiers. Other attractions of note include the Lower Mississippi River Museum and Vicksburg Riverfront Murals. Painted on Mississippi River floodwalls, these impressive murals begun in 2002 capture the past, present, and future of Vicksburg and its defining roles in history, culture, and religion. Visit the Lower Mississippi River Museum to find out how Vicksburg ancestors lived along the river during the 19th and 20th centuries, including interactive exhibits. The museum also offers an aquarium featuring local fish species.
While the boat is docked, visit the sugarcane estate – the largest standing antebellum mansion in the South. Nottoway is an intricate building with impressive detail. Original furnishings mingle with era-appropriate antiques to create an atmosphere that does justice to the home’s original ambiance. It is fascinating history and luxurious aesthetic packaged in Southern hospitality – an experience that you will not want to pass up. [B/L/D]
Day 05: November 30, 2023: Natchez, MS
Natchez is known for its elegance, hospitality, and impressive preservation of historic homes – found on every street corner. It seems as if history fell asleep and awoke unscathed by the changing of times in this magical port. Natchez is home to over 1,000 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Most of the homes survived the American Civil War and their history flows in abundance along the Mississippi. Natchez has a long and fascinating history, dating back to 1716, making her the oldest continuous settlement on the Mississippi. Even before Natchez was settled by Europeans, the area was home to the Natchez Indians, noted for being the only Mississippian culture with complex chiefdom characteristics to have survived long into the period after the European colonization of America began. The Natchez District, along with the Sea Islands of South Carolina and Georgia, pioneered cotton agriculture in the United States. The city recovered from its post-war decline to become one of the state’s leading industrial centers. Today the production of wood pulp, lumber, petroleum, and natural gas form the basis of the economy; tourism – including casino gambling – and the manufacture of tires are also important. Shops and restaurants now occupy the site of Natchez Under-the-Hill, a 19th-century town of bordellos and taverns that was a haven for outlaws and boatmen. During your visit, explore the unique shops, restaurants, museums, and historic homes, all of which inspired Hugh Bayless to include Natchez in his book “The 100 Best Towns in America.” [B/L/D]
Day 06: December 01, 2023: St. Francisville, LA
St. Francisville today is a testament to the lifestyle of a bygone era, with its cache of charming pre-war homes and striking architecture. With over 140 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places, sprawling estates nestled in the countryside and bustling Main Street shops, this quaint port situated on the Mississippi has a style all its own. This oldest town in the Florida Parishes, St. Francisville has been called the town two miles long and two yards wide; it lies on a loessal ridge created by the dust storms of the Glacier Period. Swept in from the western plains, this soil formed vertical cliffs sometimes 90-feet high which rested on the sand and clay bottom of an ancient sea. These formations occur only in a narrow strip of land extending from Baton Rouge into Tennessee; the ridges are the actual foothills of the Appalachians. This bluff attracted Spanish Capuchins in need of a highland burial ground. They received a land grant from their king and built a wooden monastery between 1773 and 1785. The settlement which straggled up around the cemetery and monastery took its name from the order’s gentle patron. By 1785 the number of land grants taken up by settlers prompted the Spanish leaders to create the district comprising the instep of the boot that is Louisiana today. St. Francisville has survived and reflects the growth and character of the surrounding countryside. A stroll through its historic center awakens a sense of place and an awareness of two centuries of architecture and lifestyles. [B/L/D]
Day 07: December 02, 2023: Baton Rouge, LA
Greenville is a wellspring of music, literature, adventure, imagination, and history. Fertile alluvial soil, moderate annual climate, the blues, and some of the friendliest folk in the South are just some of the attributes of Greenville, Mississippi, the queen of the delta. This city has inspired greatness from Native Americans to cotton barons, Pulitzer-Prize winners, Civil Rights leaders, musicians, poets, and inventors. You can read more about the native authors and their history at the Greenville Writer’s Exhibit at the William Alexander Percy Library. Other attractions include the Winterville Mounds, Greenville History, Old Fire Department, Highway 61 Blues, Jim Henson-Kermit the Frog, Hebrew Union’s Century of History, Greenville Air Force Base, and Flood of 1927 museums – not to mention the country’s oldest fully restored and operational Armitage-Herschell Carousel housed in the E. E. Bass Cultural Center. If it is wildlife and outdoor recreation you are looking for, lakes abound throughout Washington County. On Lake Ferguson one can sail, swim, ski, or fish. The bass fishing here has been called the best in the country. Hodding Carter wrote in 1960, “The sense of obligation to community and fellow citizen was strong and deep when I first came to Greenville – and long before. It has not significantly lessened.” These words still characterize the present leadership, who is committed to do whatever is necessary to continue to make Greenville a progressive force of industry and commerce while at the same time, making sure the town is a wonderful place to live and thrive. [B/L/D]
Day 08: December 03, 2023: Nottoway, LA
”American Queen Voyages” features an exclusive port at Nottoway, located in White Castle, LA, on the south bank of the Mississippi River, part of the Baton Rouge metropolitan area. Here you can visit the estate of sugarcane magnate Randolph Nottoway – the largest standing pre-war mansion in the South (53,000 sq ft) – an intricate building with impressive detail. Original furnishings mingle with era-appropriate antiques to create an atmosphere that does justice to the home’s original ambiance. It is fascinating history and a luxurious aesthetic – an authentic Southern experience you will not want to pass up. The surrounding town of White Castle was established as a town in the 1880s with the influx of people and business brought by the logging industry in the cypress swamps of the area. When the cypress wood was depleted, the main economic activity reverted to the sugar cane industry which had been established in the latter part of the 18th century. Individual plantation sugar mills gave way to larger mills servicing many plantations. By 1970, White Castle had three major sugar mills, Cora Texas, Cedar Grove, and Catherine/Supples. Only one, Cora Texas, is still in operation. During the 1950s, the chemical industry entered the area, congregating around the Mississippi between Baton Rouge and New Orleans. This industry brought economic growth which took White Castle into the 1980s. Companies establishing chemical plants in the area near White Castle were Dow Chemical north of Plaquemine, Georgia-Gulf and Hercules north of White Castle, and Ciba-Geigy on the east bank of the Mississippi. [B/L/D]
Day 09: December 04, 2023: New Orleans, LA
As the river cruise journey concludes in New Orleans, one of the more historic and culturally significant cities of the southern United States. Indigenous people inhabited the rich lands between the Mississippi and Lake Pontchartrain for the same reasons that would later attract Europeans: ecological resources and a network of navigable rivers, bayous, and bays. La Nouvelle-Orleans was founded by Jean Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville in 1718 upon the slightly elevated banks of the Mississippi approximately 95 miles above its mouth. Engineers laid out a grid of streets with a Place d’Armes (Jackson Square) that would become known as the Vieux Carré (Old Square), or today’s French Quarter. New Orleans’s Creole, Cajun and other diverse residents blended to develop art, cuisine, music, and general culture unlike any other in the United States. Enjoy a city and area tour before arriving your hotel for the night. This evening we suggest a visit to the historic and famous French Quarter. [B]
Day 10: December 05, 2023: End of Tour
All good things must come to an end. Transfer to the New Orleans Airport for your return flight home. [B]
