We enjoyed our first "Christmas Away From Home", on board the "Queen of the Mississippi", along with 135 other passengers. Arriving a few days prior to the trip, we stayed at the Dauphine Orleans hotel in the French Quarter - a good choice for location and top quality service. Café Du Monde (and their famous bignets) and the St. Louis Cathedral, and Antoine's were highlights.

Our taxi dropped us off near the "Queen of the Mississippi" where we were greeted by crew members who took over our luggage and escorted us to our cabin. We set sail on Saturday around noon. The cruise included port stops and tours each day - since we have traveled with American Cruise Line in the past, all our tour costs was free. Each day we returned to the boat for Happy Hour at 5:30 - all snacks and drinks were "on the house". Each evening there was local entertainment - of course, on this cruise, that included a lot of jazz, New Orleans style. No problem with outside or hall noise.

We were very pleased with the size and "freshness" of our cabin; our 3 meals a day in the dining room included our choice of wines at both lunch and dinner. The crew and staff were all friendly and seemed to enjoy their job and anxious to be of service to us. Read more