American West Steamboat Company Debuts "Roses & River" Cruise

American West Steamboat Company will feature discounts on select spring 2006 cruises along the Columbia, Snake, and Willamette Rivers. These cruises will give passengers the opportunity to visit Portland, Oregon, the "City of Roses" as well as experience the natural beauty of the American Northwest.

American West Steamboat Company Debuts Roses and River Cruise Package Highlighting the “City of Roses”

Free Extension to Be Added to Select Spring 2006 River Cruises in the Pacific Northwest

SEATTLE, WA (November 15, 2005) – Travelers looking for a value-added cruise experience can now take advantage of American West Steamboat Company’s (AWSC) new “River and Roses Cruise” package being offered on select spring 2006 cruises along the Columbia, Snake and Willamette Rivers. This package gives travelers the opportunity to discover all the wonderful facets of Portland, Ore., the “City of Roses,” where each cruise originates and concludes. In addition to this special offer, passengers will also receive discounts and/or free airfare on select departure dates, plus onboard amenities.

The River and Roses Cruise package is available on limited departures of the Queen of the West and the Empress of the North in March and April. The following elements are included: one-night hotel stay in Portland, Ore. (pre or post cruise), $25 per person gift certificate for dinner at select Portland restaurants; $50 per person shipboard credit; a free Portland City Tour; an in-stateroom Northwest Wine Basket; souvenir luggage tags for two; and an AWSC DVD featuring the river and Alaska cruises. The combined value of all elements is $350 – free when added to a select river cruises*! Plus, each past passenger will also receive an AWSC logo terry robe – a $100 value.

This package is available on the April 15 and April 22 Queen of the West departures. Available dates aboard the Empress of the North include March 26 (Wine & Food theme), April 2 (Wine & Food theme), April 26 and April 23. Retail rates for the all-inclusive cruises start at $2,279 per person, based on double occupancy and cabin category.

In addition to the River and Roses Cruise package, travelers will also enjoy additional savings when booking a tour aboard one of the above departures dates. Bookings on the April 16 and April 23 tours will receive a 25% discount per person. Passengers will save $400 per person on the April 15 departure. Free airfare will be offered on the April 22 departure. On the March 26 and April 2 Wine and Food Cruises passengers can Fly Free and save $400 per person.

AWSC’s river cruises are seven-night roundtrip journeys from Portland traveling along the Columbia, Snake and Willamette Rivers. Tours aboard the Queen of the West follow the “Three Great Rivers” itinerary, while the Empress of the North’s tours follow the “Path of the Explorers” itinerary or the Wine and Food theme itinerary. Both make stops in Stevenson, Umatilla, Lewiston, and Astoria, pass through the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, and traverse eight locks and dams in each direction.

At every port of call, passengers’ cruise experience is enhanced with included shore excursions. Motorcoach trips to sites such as Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument and exciting outdoor adventures such as a whitewater jet boat ride in Hells Canyon National Recreation Area, are just a few of the shore tours that are included in each port of call (a $400 value). In addition to nature’s wonders, dining and entertainment options are also never in short supply. Combined with the casually elegant atmosphere of the dining rooms, gourmet chefs work around the clock to prepare delicious meals with a distinctive Northwestern flair. Onboard historians make daily presentations conveying the history along the cruise route. In the evenings, the showrooms are host to live showboat-style entertainment and different musical themes each night.

Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, American West Steamboat Company operates the 150-passenger sternwheeler Queen of the West year-round on the Columbia, Willamette and Snake Rivers. In 2003, the company launched the newly built, 231-passenger sternwheeler Empress of the North, with cruises featuring Alaska’s Inside Passage from May to September, Puget Sound in September, and the Columbia, Willamette and Snake Rivers throughout the remainder of the year. In November 2005, AWSC was awarded “Best American Cruise” (Pacific Northwest) and “Best Shore Excursions” by CruiseReport.com’s editors.

For reservations, more information or to request a free, full-color brochure, call 1-800-434-1232, write to 2101 4th Avenue, Suite 1150, Seattle, WA 98121, or visit www.AmericanWestSteamboat.com.

Press Release Source: YPB&R Public Relations
Dateline: November 2005