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Post by mary on Dec 1, 2014 23:54:46 GMT
I've been meaning to return to post a mini-review of my Queen of the Mississippi cruise from New Orleans to Memphis, Oct. 25, 2014 to Nov. 1, 2014
Embarkation: The cruise included a pre-night at the Hilton Garden Inn on S. Peter's St. in New Orleans. There was included transportation from the hotel to the boat via a bus. The hotel is close to the port where the boat is docked. My luggage was handled at the bus and arrived in my stateroom. Upon arrival, I provided my name and embarkation document to the Cruise Director who checked my name off of a list and I was onboard. Easy!
Accommodation: I was on this river cruise as a solo and booked stateroom #115 on the Main Deck. There are 12 solo staterooms on this boat. There was a medium size picture window which let in a lot of natural light. The room was vey large with a desk, chair, flat screen tv, two nightstands, large closet, hairdryer and large bathroom. I was very pleased with the size of the room. I was very comfortable throughout the cruise. It was located next to the dining room and stairs.
WiFi: WiFi was included!
Dining: The food was outstanding. The menus were varied. The service was excellent. There is one seating at meals as it is open seating. As a solo traveler, I like this as I had an opportunity to meet and talk to many different people. Lots of friendly people on board. Beer and wine were complimentary at lunch and dinner.
Cocktail Hour: There was a complimentary cocktail hour each evening before dinner. Lots of yummy hors d'oeuvres! Everyone mixed and mingled.
Snacks: Sodas, bottled water, coffee, cookies and candy were always available and included. Root beer floats in the evening, tea in the afternoon - always something if you wanted a snack. All included.
Crew: Young, enthusiastic and energetic. Strived to make sure you enjoyed your cruise. They were very helpful with older individuals who had mobility issues.
Shore Excursions: All were included, with the exception of the excursion to Graceland. I did not go on that excursion as I had been to Graceland, but heard positive feedback from those who did go.
Ports: Oak Alley, Baton Rouge, St. Francisville, Natchez, Vicksburg, Memphis.
Entertainment: It was good. Local entertainers who were brought on board.
Riverlorians: Kate and Mike - Both had excellent knowledge of the Mississippi River and I enjoyed their lectures and humor.
Demographics: 40's to 80's.
I recommend this cruise. I loved being on the Mississippi River and experiencing the river and the history of this part of my country. I had so much fun, I booked another one while onboard for 2015 on the Queen of the West on their Columbia/Snake River Wine cruise. They offered 15% discount for booking onboard and many people did so.
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Post by tiffany on Dec 2, 2014 13:00:36 GMT
Welcome back Mary. I'm looking forward to reading about your trip!
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Post by tiffany on Dec 2, 2014 13:09:14 GMT
Departure Day - October 24, 2014
I checked in and the hotel gave me keys to a room that was already clearly occupied, so I had to go back to the front desk. Fortunately, no one was in that room when I entered. I finally settled into a room and as I was hungry, I decided to find a place to eat lunch.
This happened to me and my friend when we were in London, however, the room was occupied when we walked in! Fortunately, the guy was sleeping, and slept through us walking into the room as well as the porter, who walked into the room after us with our luggage. My friend and I made sure to use the security lock while in our room after that, just in case the hotel gave someone else the key to our room, and they walked in while we were sleeping. |
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Post by mary on Feb 17, 2015 15:05:33 GMT
I've been off the board for a time due to some major work obligations. I decided rather than a day-to-day review of my Mississippi cruise as I originally planned, to do a mini-review. I hope all of you have been enjoying many travels in the past few months and I look forward to catching up on this board with everyone's adventures and plans.
Mary |
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Post by mary on Feb 17, 2015 15:12:11 GMT
I plan to post some pictures of my trip this weekend under this thread.
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Post by Tonnet on Feb 17, 2015 22:51:21 GMT
Thank you for your tale, Mary.
Some of the greatest gems of travel are found within your own country and are not available readily to the normal tourist who has to rush through a brisk itinerary.
River cruising is great! Does any company do anything with the huge canal system on the East Coast? |
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Post by tiffany on Feb 17, 2015 23:57:38 GMT
I’m glad you had such a great time Mary. My friend did a River Cruise in Europe a few years ago with her mom, and she still raves about it.
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Post by mary on Feb 18, 2015 3:03:36 GMT
Thank you for your tale, Mary.
Some of the greatest gems of travel are found within your own country and are not available readily to the normal tourist who has to rush through a brisk itinerary.
River cruising is great! Does any company do anything with the huge canal system on the East Coast? Tonnet,
The company does river cruises throughout the U.S. I went to a presentation they had onboard and I know they have cruises on the Eastern seaboard and Hudson River as well as many other areas of the country. I am going on their Columbia & Snake River Cruise in October.
The company is American Cruise Lines. The cruises are pricey as they are required to be US flagged, hire US workers and pay US wages, etc. Once I was on the Mississippi River cruise, it was all inclusive, except for one shore excursion to Graceland in Memphis which was an additional charge. I did not take that shore excursion as I had visited Graceland previously.
Once you cruise with the company, they give you a nice discount - 15% if you book another cruise onboard.
Mary
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Post by Oz-T on Feb 19, 2015 21:10:05 GMT
Glad to hear you had a great time, Mary. Looking forward to seeing some photos.  |
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Post by mary on Mar 3, 2015 3:19:56 GMT
Day 1 Photos:
These photos from Day 1 are just a selection. This was the day we boarded and left from New Orleans.
Picture #1 - Mississippi River - Leaving New Orleans
Picture #2 - My Cabin on Queen of the Mississippi. It was much larger than it looks, approximately 200 sq. ft. I only took this one picture. It's not representative of how nice and comfortable the cabin was during the cruise.
Picture #3 - Paddlewheel on Queen of the Mississippi
Day 1 photos will be continued on next post.
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Post by mary on Mar 3, 2015 3:59:48 GMT
Picture #4 - The Victory Belles. They sing mainly WWII era songs, a la The Andrew Sisters. They are affiliated with the National World War II Museum in New Orleans. They were my favorite entertainment of the week on board. In the evening, in the lounge, during the entertainment, the staff brought around root beer floats for anyone who wanted one.
Picture #5 - We had two Riverlorians on board, Mike Link and Kate Crowley, who shared with us their knowledge and history of the river and this area of the U.S. Here is a picture of Mike.
Photos - Day #2
Picture #1 - Our port on Day 2 was the Oak Alley Plantation. We docked at the levee and we were able to walk to the plantation house.
More photos from Day 2 will be on the next post.
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Post by mary on Mar 3, 2015 22:20:30 GMT
Picture #2 - Oak Alley plantation house. The house was a gift from Jacques Telesphore Roman (1800-1848), a wealthy Creole sugar planter, to his bride Celina (1816-1866). Africans were enslaved on this plantation from 1835 - Civil War. Sugar cane is still produced in this area of Louisiana.
Picture #3 - Our guide at Oak Alley. We were permitted on the grounds and had our tours of the house before the general public. Everyone received a Mint Julep!
Picture #4 - A view from the second floor balcony of Oak Alley plantation house.
I will post Day 3 photos tomorrow. |
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Post by Oz-T on Mar 4, 2015 0:08:51 GMT
Great photos, Mary. I'm amazed at the size of these paddle-steamer boats - how many people onboard?
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Post by mary on Mar 5, 2015 1:49:06 GMT
150 passengers on board plus crew.
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Post by mary on Apr 5, 2015 0:58:51 GMT
Day 3 Photos:
Picture #1 - Rosedown Plantation - Located near St. Francisville, Louisiana. Most of the working people in this area are employed by Angola State Prison, made famous in the movie "Dead Man Walking". This cotton plantation was owned by Daniel and Martha Turnbull who had 450 Africans enslaved. It has a beautiful formal garden on the property. It is now a state historic site overseen by the Louisiana Office of State Parks.
Picture #2 - Part of the Rosedown Plantation formal garden. This was a beautiful path among the crepe myrtle.
Picture #3 - Baton Rouge, Louisiana - There was an included city tour of Baton Rouge which means "Red Stick". A red stick was used by local Native Americans to mark the boundaries between tribal territories. This is a picture of the state capitol.
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Post by mary on Apr 5, 2015 1:29:11 GMT
Day 4 Photos:
Picture #1 - This is Longwood, the largest octagonal house in America. It is located in Natchez, Mississippi. Construction on the mansion began in 1860 for wealthy cotton planter Hunter Nutt and his wife, Julia. A great octagonal rotunda is open to the entire six stories crowned by a Byzantine-Moorish dome with a 24 foot finial. When the Civil War began, the Philadelphia craftsmen working on the home dropped their tools and fled north. Nutt was eventually able to complete the basement level as living quarters for his family. The home was never finished. Nutt died in 1864, but his wife and eight children lived in the basement until her death in 1897. The basement level was elegantly furnished and decorated. It is currently maintained in its unfinished state by the Pilgrimage Garden Club of Natchez.
The Garden Club was decorating the house for Halloween when we toured the interior. They run a haunted house at Halloween at Longwood which is apparently one of their fundraisers during the year to raise money to maintain the home.
Picture #2 - A view looking up to the inside of the dome of the six story mansion.
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