I don’t know about you, but I seldom experience a product that exceeds my expectations. I tend to enter any travel experience with a pretty realist idea of what is going to be delivered, and most of the time it is.

I thought I had reasonable expectations concerning my American Empress adventure on the Snake and Columbia rivers. I have to tell you, my expectations were greatly exceeded. The product is exactly what it presents itself to be, and quite a bit more.

Let’s start with the pre-cruise add on that included Glacier National Park, private driving up and through the Continental Divide on the Red Jammers, lunch and boat ride on St Mary Lake, lunch and guided tour through a house of prostitution in Wallace Idaho, (it closed in 1988), sight-seeing on the beautiful lake Coeur D’Alene, caving at the Crystal Gold Mine, and stepping back in time at the Cataldo Mission.

Every single aspect of that pre-cruise itinerary was more than I expected it to be. Well done! I can go on and on about it, but just suffice it to say you won’t be disappointed. Our tour conductor was literally a delight. She’s a professor at Gonzaga U, and could not have been more captivating.

Then we came to the pre-night hotel in Spokane prior to boarding the ship. WOWZER. The Historic Davenport Hotel has more wow factor than almost any hotel in which I have ever laid my head. Gorgeous in every way. Great place to begin your journey. We enjoyed our walks around downtown Spokane and the restaurants we encountered there. The morning sight-seeing in Spokane was interesting and ended with a bunch of grown ups whooping it up on a carousel. You had to be there.

We then drove to Clarkston where the scenery along the way was breathtaking, and the embarkation process was smooth as silk. We were greeted warmly by not only the staff serving our immediate needs, but the staff operating on the periphery as well. Very comforting experience. Those among us with dietary needs were met by the chef and created their own menus and preference lists. Well done, AQV (American Queen Voyages).

We began our premium excursion in Clarkston with a jetboat through Hell’s Canyon. The adventure was so much more than I expected, and worth every single penny. In fact, it’s worth twice the cost.

The hop-on hop-off services at every port along the way were flawless. I kid you not, AQV has got this down to a science. We loved it.

We included a couple of different wine tastings along our way, and a tour of the Maryhill Museum which turned into a totally fascinating step back in time.

We were awe-struck by the Timberline Lodge at Mt Hood, Multnomah Falls, and the Bonneville Dam.

The Riverlorian did an excellent job delivering daily insight into the Lewis and Clark expedition. Ending the cruise with the Lewis and Clark Experience in Astoria was the icing on the cake.

The food onboard was absolutely divine. I’ve never been on any trip where prime rib and lobster tails were included in your fare. You can literally devour those nightly. Believe it or not after the third time you’re ready to try something else.

Did you know there’s an open bar that’s part of your fare as well? Excellent adult beverages are available at no extra cost, as are wine and beer with lunch and dinner. It’s very much a country club atmosphere.

Nightly entertainment proved to be a blast, as did the afternoon and late evening piano bar.

I literally do not have enough room to adequately portray the excellence of the experience we had onboard the American Empress. It’s the perfect fit for anyone who enjoys river cruising. It’s a great fit for those who want to travel within the United States in the same luxury they’ve come to expect from European river cruising.

Even better, it’s a fantastic opportunity for travelers whose mobility and stamina limitations prohibit them from travel outside of the United States.

AQV, an excellent American made product that’s a perfect fit for many of my customers. Is it right for you?

Life Onboard the American Empress