Passengers are barely settled in when there’s a nudge, a  gentle rumble, the Queen’s horns blast and on-shore objects begin to move backward very slowly. The mighty American Queen’s under way! Her antique calliope belts out lively strains of Oh!  Susanna, Grand Old Flag  and Way Down Upon the Suwanee River. Everyone’s cheering. The journey’s begun.

The Queen shares quite a river. Thousands of connected  barges and massive cargo ships course her determined waters every day of the year. The Mississippi is the largest waterway for bulk freight in North America.  Steamboating didn’t start until 1850, and it wan’t until 1890 the Delta Queen Steamboat Company’s Delta Queen carried local folks and visitors from round the world the world on river jaunts. Today her fleet of three riverboats carry passengers between New Orleans and St. Paul, Minnesota. In the Gulf of Mexico, they also have a route between between Mobile, Alabama and Galveston, Texas.

This summer it’s possible to combine an American Queen  riverboat cruise and some nights in town at one of New Orleans’ downtown hotels on what Delta calls a New Orleans & Riverboat Adventure Week.

The fun on board the American Queen is as fast or slow-paced as you choose. Enjoy afternoon teas and moonlight buffets on the Queen, also exercising, demos and plain relaxing on the ship’s cool, inside Front Porch, where there’s always coffee and a chance to read the latest newspapers. Gala evening shows are impressive stage productions from the worlds of Broadway, Arcadiana, Mardi Gras and the French Quarter.

What’s the food like on the American Queen? It’s special. Executive Chef Mark Amatangelo’s galley serves up regular meals as well as Louisiana southern specials. Try:  

Shrimp Margarita with Tequilla
Alligator Sauce Piquant over Crispy Frog Legs
Turtle Soup au Sherry
Crispy Polenta “Cake”with Creole Ratatouille
Red Bean Soup with Andouille Sausage
Fried Green Tomatoes
Louisiana Seafood Chowder
Roasted Duck, Ligonberry

These are in addition to more worldly fare such as Scallops, Veal, Salmon, Prime Rib, Grilled Lamb Chops and Sea Bass. He also presents suggested dishes for special New Orleans tastes, vegetarian and heart-healthy. Recited desserts surprise guests each night.

Buffet luncheons, if you wish, can include some fascinating southern history revealed by Chris Wistey’s. Hear wiley tales of the Arcadians, the French and Indian struggles and  Evangeline. Wistley also explains the saga of bouncing bullets literally surrounding rascal Huey P. ”The Catfish” Long in his final hour. Another special occasion is the ship’s topside crawfish boil followed by kite flying launches into favorable breezes.

Shore trips are a must for some, not for all. Almost as if jumping into another’s private dream, it’s possible to awaken aboard the Queen along side a river levee, and straight behind it see a long, straight path under perfectly arching live oaks. Squarely at the end is a huge antebellum mansion. You can make this gracious home your own reality if you take the informative tour. More shore tours share present-day adaptations to old Louisiana ways. You can learn Cajun dancing, visit the USS destroyer Kidd or take on a swamp experience aboard a comfortable, canopied boat. For some, a City Sampler is the ticket. 

During the city portion of an Adventure Week, you’ll learn how much fun New Orleans really is and take part on it. Yes, she’s famed for her below-sea-level burial grounds, some said to be haunted, and jazz funeral processions but she’s also known for her famed admirers. Her past is a world of greats, the authors or subjects of fictional fame and performers once in mellow blues showcases … Scarlett O’Hara, Blanche DuBois, Mark Twain, William Faulkner, Walt Whitman, Truman Capote, Tennessee Williams pepper this  past. The syncopated sounds of Louis Armstrong, Antoine “Fats” Domino, Jelly Roll Morton, Al Hirt, Pete Fountain and Louis Prima made her air electric. This is Mardi Gras town! And. No other like it.

The brand-new Mid-City Canal Streetcar is air-conditioned and runs frequently. Her well-planned route takes passengers from City Park down to the Mississippi Riverfront and its French Quarter, Harrah’s Casino, RiverWalk and free river ferry to Algiers. Canal Street and the track bed for the trolleys was once called New Orleans’ “Neutral Ground,” because it divided the living areas of the early, sophisticated French settlers and brash American newcomers who trickled in after the Lousiana Purchase.

The American Queen’s Adventure Weeks combine a few days of riverboating with few more days’ stay in a downtown New Orleans hotel. Early booking can mean special roundtrip airfare opportunities. The Adventure also includes two meals from a list of 21 famed restaurants including Antoine’s, Court of Two Sister and three of Emeril’s restaurants. Also select admission to at least two attractions from a list of 30 offered. Downtown hotel choices are commensurate with the stateroom category you choose, not the least of which is the Fairmont New Orleans, and still home to its famed block-long  golden lobby and Sazarac Room. 

Telephone contact:
888.435.6267
Sizzlin New Orleans Vacation Package:
http://www.freeneworleansvacation.com/sizzlin.php?content (see slide show)
Delta Queen Steamboat Company:
http://www.deltaqueen.com/
New Orleans Convention & Tourism Board:
http://neworleanscvb.com/
Mid-City Canal Streetcar day passes:
http://www.norta.com

© Marty Martindale, Largo, Florida, 2004