By Jerry Limone

American Queen buys riverboat for Pacific Northwest cruises

Partnering in preservation

American Queen Steamboat Co. has formed a partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a privately funded nonprofit based in Washington.

Beginning June 30, the American Queen Steamboat Co. will donate $5 to the National Trust for every booking, in support of the campaign to protect National Treasure sites along the Mississippi River and in the Pacific Northwest.

Through the partnership, American Queen Steamboat Co. and the National Trust for Historic Preservation aim to “help tell the stories about important historical places along the travels of the ship,” said Terry Richey, chief marketing officer for the National Trust.

Passengers will have the opportunity to visit three National Treasures sites on their cruise: the Mississippi Delta Heritage area, Willamette Falls in Oregon and the Manhattan Project in Hanford, Wash.

The American Queen Steamboat Co. has purchased the Empress of the North, a riverboat that last sailed for the defunct Majestic America Line in 2008, from the U.S. Maritime Administration for an undisclosed price.

The 223-passenger paddlewheeler will be renovated and renamed the American Empress. The crew will comprise 80 hotel staff and 17 deck staff, all locally hired in the Pacific Northwest region.

As it did when the riverboat was last in service, the American Empress will sail Pacific Northwest cruises, plying the Columbia and Snake rivers, starting next April.

“We are looking at the region [the American Empress] draws from,” said Ted Sykes, president and COO of American Queen Steamboat Co. “We’ve had a lot of people on the American Queen say, ‘Give us some more geography.’ The repeat customer knows of the luxury on the American Queen, and now they want that luxury somewhere else.”

Cruises will sail between Portland, Ore., and Clarkston, Wash. Ports of call include Astoria, Wash.; Stevenson, Wash.; The Dalles, Ore.; Umatilla, Ore.; and Richland, Wash.

The American Queen Steamboat Co. revived Mississippi River cruising last year with the American Queen, another former Majestic America Line riverboat.

“The American Queen has ushered in a rebirth of U.S. river cruising, welcoming thousands to discover the heartland of the United States and its iconic port cities,” stated Sykes. “Now the American Empress will continue that tradition as an ambassador to the Pacific Northwest, a region equally rich in American and natural history.”

Sykes said the American Empress will be ready to take online bookings by the end of the week.