''American Cruise Lines, Inc.'' is a small-ship

cruise line A cruise line is a company that operates cruise ships that operate on ocean or rivers and which markets cruises to the public. Cruise lines are distinct from passenger lines which are primarily concerned with transportation of passengers. Though ...

with its headquarters in

Guilford, Connecticut Guilford is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, that borders Madison, Branford, North Branford and Durham, and is situated on I-95 and the Connecticut seacoast. The population was 22,073 at the 2020 census. History Guilfo ...

, United States. The line operates thirteen small U.S. flagged cruise ships along the Eastern Seaboard and Western Seaboard (including

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

) as well as the

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

and Columbia-

Snake Snakes are elongated, Limbless vertebrate, limbless, carnivore, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales. Ma ...

river systems of the United States.

History

American Spirit visiting Liberty Bay - panoramio

American Cruise Lines was incorporated in 1991. The 49-passenger ''American Eagle'' launched in 2000 and was followed in 2002 by the same-sized ''American Glory''. The ''American Spirit'' was launched in 2005 and held twice as many passengers. A fourth ship, ''American Star'', was launched in 2007. In 2010 the 104 passenger ''

American Independence The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

'', built with a wider beam and active wing stabilizers, was launched. The wider beam allows for larger staterooms, public spaces, and balconies. American Cruise Lines acquired an authentic

paddlewheel A paddle wheel is a form of waterwheel or impeller in which a number of paddles are set around the periphery of the wheel. It has several uses, of which some are: * Very low-lift water pumping, such as flooding paddy fields at no more than about ...

cruise ship, '' Queen of the West'', renovating it by decreasing the capacity to 120, making for a much larger, more comfortable dining room, lounges, and decks. The company has also launched two 150-passenger

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

paddle-wheelers, '' Queen of the Mississippi'' in 2012 and a new ''American Eagle'' in 2015. On 14 July 2015, ACL announced that a third Mississippi River paddle-wheeler named ''

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

'' will enter service in 2016. On 4 August 2015, the company announced that '' Queen of the Mississippi'' would be renamed American Pride and repositioned to the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...

in early 2016, being replaced by the new

. On October 23, 2015, ACL announced a new, coastal cruise ship. At 170 passengers, this vessel is significantly larger than its previous 100-passenger and 104-passenger yacht style coastal ships. This ship was named ''American Constellation'' and entered service in May 2017. Its sister vessel was launched in 2018 and named ''American Constitution''. On November 8, 2021 ACL announced a redesign and renaming of their paddle-wheelers. Riverboats ''America'', ''Queen of the Mississippi'', and ''Queen of the West'', will become ''American Splendor'', ''American Heritage'' and ''American West'' ("American Pride" will retain its name).

Modern riverboats

On March 1, 2017, American Cruise Lines announced a new class of five new river vessels. Unlike ACL's current riverboats, the new vessels will be of the more modern variety commonly found on European rivers rather than the Victorian-era-style paddle wheelers currently deployed. The new vessels will be four decks high, long, and carry 200 passengers. The styling is design is similar to the upcoming coastal cruise ships ''American Constellation'' and ''American Constitution''. The vessels will feature state-of-the-art amenities like private balconies, enlarged cabins, and bathroom facilities more in line with those in hotel rooms. In late February 2018, the company announced the beginning of the second ship's construction. The vessel is expected to enter service in 2019, while the first ship of the new class, ''American Song'', made its inaugural cruise in October 2018.

Fleet

Coastal cruise ships

* ''American Spirit'' (2005) * ''American Star'' (2007) * ''

'' (2010) * ''American Constellation'' (2017) * ''American Constitution'' (2018)

Columbia riverboats

* ''

American West The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...

'' (1995) * ''American Pride'' (2012)

Mississippi riverboats

* ''American Heritage'' (2015) * ''

American Splendor ''American Splendor'' is a series of autobiographical comic books written by Harvey Pekar and drawn by a variety of artists. The first issue was published in 1976 and the last one in September 2008, with publication occurring at irregular interva ...

'' (2016)

Modern riverboats

* ''American Song'' (2018) * ''American Harmony'' (2019) * ''American Jazz'' (2020) * ''American Melody'' (2021) * ''American Symphony'' (2022) * ''American Serenade'' (2023)

Costal Cats

* ''American Eagle'' (2023) * ''American Glory'' (2023)

Retired

* ''American Eagle'' (2000) - ''was moored at Chesapeake Shipbuilding as housing for contractors. It has since been sold for scrap in Baltimore, MD.'' * ''American Glory'' (2002) - ''scuttled off coast of Delaware on November 4, 2019 for artificial reef'' American Glory at Chelsea Piers

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://www.americancruiselines.com Cruise lines American companies established in 1991 1991 establishments in Connecticut Transport companies established in 1991 River cruise companies Privately held companies based in Connecticut