MOcruiserman

We have our eyes on this one for 2026.

We're going on the American Harmony in August 2025, leaving from Portland.  My wife has mobility issues so I'm glad this topic has come up.

Open seating means you can arrive at any time during the dinner period and sit anywhere you like.

The cocktail hour is one of the best parts of the cruise.  There are excellent appetizers, entertainment and an open bar - wine, beer and spirits.  On my cruise down the Mississippi they had my favorite bourbon, Makers Mark.

The bar is not technically open during other parts of the day but I noticed people drinking at other times.

19 minutes ago, SuBHoney said:

Hi Doug - Hubby and I are looking forward to our first river cruise with ACL next week. You've noted a couple times that you want a balcony. It's my understanding that part of the beauty and advantage of ACL (and maybe most river boats) is that most cabins are with balcony. We take American Song for our PNW cruise next week, and I believe there are no cabins without a balcony. You should be able to enjoy the views and extra space of a balcony whichever cabin category you choose.

 

We've dreamed of this for 20 years and finally have the resources to take the leap!

 

Sue

Not only do almost all cabins have a balcony but the cabins are very roomy - much more so than the cramped staterooms on the many ocean ships I've been on.

We decided to book the American Harmony, a 2019 ship (not a paddlewheel), for the summer of 2025.  We're looking forward to it.

4 hours ago, georgiacat said:

thank you.  Did you have much rain?

We didn't have rain but we may have been lucky because it can be rainy in April.

3 hours ago, georgiacat said:

Thank you for posting the daily handouts.  We are thinking of a lower Mississippi cruise for 2025.  I am looking for any information I can find.

We took that cruise in April.

Excellent, informative excursions.

Beautiful, comfortable ship, good food, low key entertainment (perhaps too low key).

One night on The Serenade I didn't care for the items on the menu and requested a vegetarian meal, which was provided.

Bottled water is available at all times.

We informed ACL of the date and time we wanted to fly and they took care of it.

Are there any major differences between the newer ships and the older ones with paddlewheels? Are the older ships noisier, less comfortable?

2 hours ago, fb0075 said:

I was assured by rep that there is NEVER a charge for a drink but from message boards,its   impossible to find a bartender during the day

There's a bar set up during happy hour (5-6:30) and during the evening's entertainment (starting around 8pm that I took advantage of every day and I noticed folks with drinks at breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Most of the passengers are older but very few require wheelchairs and walkers.

Entertainment is limited compared to the ocean going cruise ships but the quality is very good. We had a excellent pianist/singer and guitar player as well as a fine female singer.

The staff may be inexperienced but I thought they did a fine job.  They were also very considerate.

It's an expensive cruise but keep in mind that everything is included and there are less than 200 passengers.

My wife and I are both in our 70's and she's mobility challenged.  The ship (the Serenade) was very accommodating to her as they had wheelchairs and golf carts available:

1. The Intercontinental on St. Charles Street.  We didn't stay there because NO was the end of our cruise and we'd already booked the Wyndham, in the French Quarter, so I can't answer your questions about restaurants close to the hotel.  We ate in two excellent restaurants, Tujague and Antoine's, which were very close to our hotel and a short cab ride from the Intercontinental. Tujague had the best food I'd ever eaten.

2. We went on an excellent three hour city tour as an excursion from the ship. It ended at the Intercontinental so I assume it begins there as well.

3. Coke products.  I'm not sure about the coffee drinks available other than decaf, which I drank at every meal.

I recently went on the Lower Mississippi cruise on the Serenade.  It's a completely different experience than RCL ocean cruises (and I've been on three of them).  I have no experience with the paddle wheel ships but I was very pleased with the Serenade, which is only a year old.  The food on our cruise was good but the lunch and dinner menus often included shellfish, which I don't eat (though my wife loved it).  However alternatives are always available, including vegetarian dishes.  We enjoyed the cruise.  The service was great and the excursions were excellent. But it's very low key, which if you're used to ocean cruises you might find somewhat boring.

Are there any free excursions on the Pearl Mist 7 night Great Lakes and Georgian Bay cruise?

I've only been on one ACL cruise so other more experienced ACL cruisers may have had different experiences.

1-We didn't tip any ACL employees but did tip non-ACL excursion guides.

2-I didn't see any tables for two in the dining room.  We always sat at a table for four and there were a sufficient number of tables so no one joined us.

3-You could order beer or wine with lunch or dinner.  I don't know about mixed drinks with dinner, though various liquors were available at the bar during the happy hour (5 to 6:30)..

4-Our hotel was free for the night prior to our cruise.

We greatly enjoyed our recent cruise on the ACL Serenade and are thinking of our next one.  But we're torn between the Columbia/Snake River cruise and the Great Lakes cruise on Pearl Seas, the other line in the ACL family.  I would appreciate any input from people who've had experience on both.  Thanks. 

While I loved my cruise on the American Serenade I have to admit that the evening entertainment was the weakest part.  We had two performers, a pianist and a guitarist, who were excellent during the happy hour but also performed many of the evenings as well.  I would have liked to have seen more variation.

1 hour ago, Lorey2007 said:

Thank you, did you do the Graceland pre cruise pkg add on? If your trip was mid to late April what was the weather like more Spring or Summer? 

No we didn't as neither of us are big fans of Elvis.  The weather was good, mid 70's to 80, no rain.

My wife and I returned from my lower Mississippi cruise on the Serenade two weeks ago and I mostly agree with BaumD.  I'd like to add that the crew was super friendly and were very accommodating to the needs of us older folks.  Also our favorite part of the cruise was the happy hour, from 5:30 to 6:30, in the River Lounge where two excellent musicians played and sang and we were provided with an array of very tasty appetizers.

Norwegian was supposed to provide the transfer, gratis. But they refused to comply with their own offer, claiming that I didn't follow the correct procedure, which I did.

So they've lost my future business.

I've had a very unpleasant experience with Norwegian Cruise Lines and they've definitely lost my future business.

I'm supposed to leave for a cruise tour in Hawaii in a few days.

On January 25 I received an email from Norwegian informing me that Norwegian will arrange for a transfer from the Honolulu airport to my hotel but only if I let them know my arrival time. They gave me a phone number to call. I called the number and gave them my arrival information. Today I was reviewing my cruise documents and didn't see anything about the transfer. I called my Norwegian cruise agent and was told that there was no record of my phone call and it was now too late to take advantage of the transfer. I argued my case and was referred to a supervisor. The supervisor said, basically, too bad, there's nothing she could do. I let them know that I had booked an 11 day cruise to the British Isles in September, for which I hadn't paid yet, and that I would cancel that cruise and do no more business with them unless they gave me the transfer. The response was still, "sorry, there's nothing we can do."

Norwegian's decision to deny me the transfer is a business decision they may have had the right to make. But as a consumer I also have the right to take my vacation business elsewhere, which I will do.

I strongly recommend that my fellow cruisers consider this post before using Norwegian.

Thank you.

I've booked the City View Cruise Tour and I see that during day two the bus will let us off at the Polynesian Cultural Center at 12:15 pm and return to the hotel in Waikiki at 5:15. My wife and I would like to stay at the Center and go to the Luau and see the show. The show ends at 8:45pm

What would be the best and most cost effective way to return to our hotel after the show? Bus? Cab?