Se Amerika ved Steamboat for en True-rød-hvid-og-Blue Cruise Oplev

It's summer and you've got the been-there-done-that blues. If you love to cruise but just can't get excited about the cruise deals you see on TV, why not go all American? Consider a steamboat cruise on a paddlewheel boat. You can see some American cities as they were originally meant to be approached--by river boat.

The paddlewheeler may sound as American as apple pie and it certainly conjures up thoughts of Mississippi gamblers, dance hall girls, and the American frontier. However, paddlewheel ships actually originated in China and can be found all over the world. Americans in the 19th century took the ancient concept of using a paddlewheel and made two improvements: they moved the wheel to the stern or back of the ship (ancient Chinese vessels had the wheel in the front) and they powered these new vessels with the steam engine.

Today, paddlewheel cruises are available from a number of lines. Some of them also feature old-fashioned furnishings and a staff in period costumes. You may also be treated to some themed events during your cruise.

Paddleboats cruised the Mississippi in the 19th century, but most of these ships were working vessels. They carried merchandise as well as passengers up and down the river. Some of the best known ports on the route include St. Louis and Memphis, but the Mississippi runs as far north as Minneapolis and as far south as New Orleans, where it empties into the Gulf of Mexico.

Accommodations on these modern versions of paddlewheel cruises tend to go back to the style of the day when travel was more leisurely but also a bit grander. Expect stately touches on the ship and modern amenities along with antique furnishings. One does not grab a bite on a steamboat; it's more typical to dine. While paddlewheelers today do accommodate our modern preference for the casual lifestyle, this is about as far from the "barefoot" cruise as you can get.

In their day, the American steamboats frequently offered gambling, entertainment that for its day was considered racy, and music from a calliope. A calliope is a very loud, steam-operated instrument most frequently associated with the circus. You'll find them on some steamboat cruises today, along with lots of music in the evenings (the type depends a lot on the cruise you take).

Before the Civil War, many Southern plantations along the Mississippi were deliberately built on the river so that they could send their crops more easily to market. Cruising by paddlewheeler allows you to see some of these antebellum mansions the way they were meant to be viewed … by a party approaching on the river.

Even many Southern cities on the Mississippi were built to be visited not by land but by waterway. The grand dame of all river cities in the United States remains New Orleans. Katrina notwithstanding, New Orleans is back. You can visit the French Quarter (which abuts the Mississippi River) and at least one major cruise line is using New Orleans again as a port.

Probably the best known line for this type of cruise vacation is Majestic America, which offers Mississippi River and other paddlewheel cruises (http://www.majesticamericaline.com).

Paddlewheels also are frequently used on shorter day trips. Brunch cruises, short sightseeing cruises, or even day-long cruises can be found all over the country (including in Orlando, a landlocked city). While this can be a great way to sample the experience of a steamboat trip without committing to a cruise, it's not going to be as true a steamboat experience as a multi-day journey on the river.

While the steamboat may seem old-fashioned or even clumsy, their small size and design actually makes them far more maneuverable than larger vessels. Captains typically have a bit more latitude in setting their course and itinerary, meaning that depending on the time of year and the river conditions, the captain may be able to rejse til lidt forskellige områder for at få den bedste udsigt af vilde dyr eller andre steder af interesse.

Ikke forvente at finde masser af passagerer, et Dampskib krydstogt tager kun et par dusin til eventuelt et par hundrede passagerer på en enkelt tur. Det betyder, at passagerer på et dampskib krydstogt kommer til at kende hinanden, interagere med hinanden, og faktisk genopdage tidsfordriv med samtalen. Selvom du ikke kan finde så mange aktiviteter på et dampskib, som på et stort krydstogtskib (der vil ikke være en minigolfbane, skøjtebane, eller klippevæggen), vil du finde flere muligheder for at komme til at kende andre mennesker .

Da dampskibe altid har været kendt for deres musik, kan du normalt forvente masser af overstadig aftenunderholdning, fra jazz krydstogter på Mississippi til andre danse bands i nord. Dampskibe kan være nostalgisk og statelig, men de er ikke stille, især om natten.

Og mens Mississippi River Cruise skal være indbegrebet af en dampskibet erfaring, vil du også finde River Cruises at gå så langt nordpå som Minnesota, Pennsylvania, staten Washington og sågar Alaska. Alaskan krydstogter, bl.a. prale af, at de kan få adgang til havne og områder, der er off-grænser for store krydstogtskibe.

Uanset om du er på udkig efter en rød-hvid-og-blå krydstogt erfaring eller lige så lidt anderledes spin på den traditionelle Krydstogtsferie, en paddlewheel krydstogt i USA byder på en dejlig ferie oplevelse.

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