Mississippi River Boat Cruise on the Lower Mississippi from Memphis to New Orleans in a Solo Cabin Aboard American Cruise Lines’ American Heritage

Mississippi River Boat Cruises

By Jackie Sheckler Finch

As a long-time solo traveler, people often ask me if I get lonely or feel afraid traveling alone. Nope and nope. I do enjoy being with family and friends, but I also like alone-time to journey to fascinating destinations.

River Cruise ships seem to offer the best of both worlds. American Cruise Lines, for example, features solo staterooms that are less expensive than regular staterooms (that are priced based on double occupancy). For my week-long Mississippi River cruise from Memphis to New Orleans aboard the 150-passenger American Heritage, I enjoyed staying in one of the ship’s 18 solo cabins — stateroom #221 on Deck 2.

Being a solo cruiser meant I had the freedom to enjoy the company of others and the freedom to be alone when I wanted to be.

When I walked into the ship’s dining room for my first lunch, a woman seated at a window table asked if I was traveling alone. When I answered that I was, she invited me to dine with her. Two other women quickly joined us and the three became regular dining partners.

Sandi from Colorado, Lena from Florida and Diane from Alaska also were in solo cabins. Each woman is fascinating, and I never tired of their lives, their travels, their hopes for the future. If I weren’t traveling alone, I probably would never have gotten to know them so well.

The Ship

Inaugurated in 2015, American Heritage has 84 staterooms — we had 145 passengers on our cruise, nearly a full house, with 52 crew members.  The river boat has six main public areas, plus a dining room, fitness room, free self-serve laundry, putting green on the top deck, small library with books and games, and two speedy elevators that connect the five passenger decks.

The American Heritage is part of the growing fleet of American Cruise Lines, a family-owned and operated cruise line founded in 1991 that specializes in small-ship coastal and river cruises on American-built, American-flagged and American-crewed vessels.

The 150-pax American Heritage. * Photo: American Cruise Lines

Arriving in Memphis on My Mississippi River Cruise

To start my cruise experience, I flew from Indianapolis to Memphis. As part of all their cruise packages, American Cruise Lines features a complimentary one-night pre-cruise overnight hotel stay. In this case, at The Guest House at Graceland in Memphis. It’s a smart move on the part of American Cruise Lines.

With the way flights are often cancelled or delayed, that first hotel overnight means that passengers have an extra day to arrive since ship departures wait for no one.

As I wanted more than a night in Graceland, I opted for the two-night Graceland Pre-Cruise Package ($725 for a solo guest or $525 per person for two guests in one room) so I could visit the home of Elvis Presley.

A perk for staying at the Guest House is free shuttle pickup from the Memphis airport. When my plane landed, I called The Guest House to request the complimentary shuttle. I asked the hotel receptionist how I would recognize my ride, she just laughed.

“Oh, you will know it right away,” she said. “Don’t worry about that.”

How right she was.

A few minutes later, a sleek blue-and-gold shuttle arrived with huge likenesses of Elvis on the sides and back.

Graceland transport. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

The Guest House at Graceland

Opened on Oct. 27, 2016, and located only steps from Graceland, the AAA Four Diamond Guest House hotel is like a small city, with 430 spacious guest rooms and 20 luxury suites, an expansive outdoor swimming pool and fitness facilities, two restaurants, lobby bar, coffee shop, 464-seat theater, gift shop, meeting and banquet facilities, Chapel in the Woods and much more.

Elvis photos don’t dominate the décor. But look for Elvis touches such as the large comfortable lobby chairs with high backs that mimic the way Elvis wore his upturned shirt and jacket collars. The sparkly lobby ceiling was inspired by the jewels in Elvis’ jumpsuit capes.

The Guest House lobby at Graceland. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

One of my favorite spots is down the hallway from the lobby where a staircase is modeled after the one at Graceland that led to Elvis’ private upstairs area of the house. The chandelier was designed for Graceland but was deemed too large so Elvis put it in storage. When The Guest House was built, it seemed the perfect place for the chandelier, which has become a popular photo stop.

Graceland staircase to Elvis’ private quarters. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Behind-the-Scenes Elvis Tour

We were treated to lots of trivia. For instance, did you know that Elvis wore a size 11D boot? Given white cotton gloves (to keep), we could hold Elvis’ boot for photos and hear stories about other memorabilia not on general public display.

Two sisters from Florida, Grace and Abby, said the cotton gloves were going home with them as souvenirs. “They touched the boots that were touched by Elvis,” Grace explained.

Free Elvis Movie and Snack

We returned to The Guest House just in time for the evening showing of “Love Me Tender” in the huge comfortable Guest House theater. Complimentary Elvis movies are shown nightly at 7pm.

Released in 1956, the movie was where Elvis made his acting debut.

After the movie, we lined up in the hallway like little kids for a free peanut butter and jelly sandwich with chocolate milk or coffee. The bedtime snacks are a nod to Elvis’ favorite fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches.

Visiting Graceland

Elvis was 22 when he bought Graceland for $102,500 on March 17, 1957. It was where he lived for the next 20 years, where he died of a heart attack on Aug. 16, 1977 at age 42, and where he is buried in Meditation Garden.

Elvis Preley’s grave. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Adjacent from Elvis’ grave is the tomb of his 27-year-old grandson, Benjamin Keough, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot in 2020. Next to Benjamin is his mother and Elvis’ daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, who died of cardiac arrest in 2023, at age 54.

The gravestones of Elvis’s grandson and granddaughter. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Across the street from the Graceland mansion is Elvis Presley’s Memphis, a sprawling $45 million entertainment complex that opened March 2017. It is the five times the size of the previous complex which opened in 1982 and is filled with Elvis museums, memorabilia, songs and videos, plus a couple of dining spots that are very reasonably priced.

Shuttle buses take visitors from the new complex across the street to the Graceland mansion (you can also walk),  which has been kept pretty much as it was when Elvis lived there.

Elvis’s pink Cadillac. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Leisurely Graceland Tour

For the VIP Graceland tour, I wore an iPad around my neck and headphones to hear the voices of actor John Stamos, Priscilla Presley and Lisa Marie Presley share details about life at Elvis’ beloved Graceland.

The tour was eerily quiet, partly because visitors were listening to headphone information and partly because we knew we were walking through the home of Elvis as it was when he lived there.

One time, a guide told me that a young Japanese guest had knelt at Elvis’ grave when a gentle spring rain began falling. The guest started crying, her tears mingling with the rain. She gently splashed rain drops bouncing from Elvis’ grave onto her face. After about a half hour, she slowly walked away, still crying.

Motorcoach Tour of Memphis Before Embarking American Heritage

The next day, boarding the American Heritage was simple and easy. My suitcases were picked up in my room and delivered to the ship while I was enjoying another luscious Guest House breakfast. Then I stepped aboard one of the American Cruise Lines coaches for a morning tour around Memphis.

The red, white and blue buses with American Cruise Lines logos followed along on our cruise to make sure that transportation was always there when and where it was needed. The coaches were large and comfy and carried cold bottles of water for us.

First stop was Sun Studio where 18-year-old Elvis plopped down $4 to make his first recording on a hot summer day in 1953. Legend says the shy truck driver recorded “My Happiness” as a gift for his mother.

The author at Sun Studio. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Peabody Hotel March of Ducks

Next was the Peabody Hotel to watch the morning parade of ducks from their $200,000 Royal Duck Palace atop the hotel to the lobby fountain led by Duckmaster Kenon Walker.

The ducks will splash and entertain visitors in the lobby fountain until it is time to march to the hotel elevator to return to their penthouse for the night. Kenon told us how the duck tradition started.

“It all started as a practical joke.”

Peabody Hotel morning duck parade. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Back in 1933, Frank Schutt, general manager of the Peabody, and a friend, Chip Barwick, went on a weekend hunting trip in Arkansas. “They took another colleague along with them. His name was Jack Daniel,” Kenon says.

“They had a bit too much of that Jack Daniel’s fine sipping whiskey and thought it would be funny to sneak some of their live duck decoys into the Peabody lobby fountain,” Kenon says. “That’s back when you were allowed to have live duck decoys. So they put the ducks in the lobby fountain and went up to their room to sleep it off.”

When they woke up the next morning, the two men worried what mayhem the deserted ducks might have caused. Walking into the hotel lobby, the duck owners were shocked at what they found.

“They were surprised the ducks were still in the fountain and that a huge crowd was having a great time watching the ducks swimming around,” Kenon says.

Thus began the famous Peabody tradition.

Lorraine Motel Site of MLK Assassination

Then came a visit to Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968, at age 39. The motel exterior looks like it has been stuck in time. Antique automobiles are parked beneath the second-floor balcony where MLK was standing when he was shot by James Earl Ray from a rooming house across the street. Inside is the National Civil Rights Museum.

We didn’t visit the museum because our guide said it would take several hours. Great reason to return to Memphis.

Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated; it’s now a museum. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Boarding American Heritage

Arriving at the ship, we showed our IDs to security and stopped at our rooms to be sure our luggage had arrived and to pick up our digital room keys and name badges that will be scanned every time we go off or on the ship.

Then I went to the dining room for lunch. My first meal on the new American Heritage gave a hint of the delicious cuisine to come over the course of the week.

My first lunch was BBQ ribs with broccoli salad, a corn and cheddar muffin, baked beans and cole slaw. Dessert was berry crisp with butter pecan ice cream. All very tasty.

The dining room was light and airy with linen tablecloths and napkins, and comfortable chairs. No reservations were needed. No seats were assigned. Just walk in, sit down and be prepared to be pampered.

The dining room. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Complimentary Cocktail Hour

A 5:30 happy hour was served in the River Lounge before dinner. Cocktails, beer and wine were complimentary on the cruise. A great idea since it can get very tiresome signing expensive drink bills on cruise ships. I paid almost $5 for a can of Coke one time on an ocean cruise. Never again. American Cruise Lines doesn’t nickel and dime passengers as some other ships do. Pay one price. Forget about hidden costs.

Further, there was always something to eat 24 hours a day in the Sky Lounge with packages of nuts, candy, chips and snack bars. In the self-serve fridge, passengers could always get soft drinks, fruit drinks and water, plus make coffee and tea from the machines on the counter.

My Solo Stateroom

My 230-square-foot solo stateroom was cozy and beautiful. Not as large as regular cabins but it was just me staying there. It had a plush double bed with quality bed linens and duvet, three bed pillows and a cushion, a long dresser with plenty of drawers and a desk on part of the dresser, a chair, mirror, Keurig coffee maker, nightstand next to the bed with lamp and clock, large flat screen TV, closet and lots of storage space.

Although the shower was small, it had plenty of hot water and great water pressure.

What I liked best about my cabin was the balcony with two deck chairs and a table. A great place to watch the mighty Mississippi.

Outside my stateroom door was a neat gadget that replaced those awkward “Do Not Disturb” signs that seem to fall off door handles or get lost. All I had to do was turn the message in the gadget to “Welcome,” meaning the cabin attendant could enter to clean or turn it to “Do Not Disturb,” meaning exactly that.

An American Heritage solo cabin with balcony. * Photo: American Cruise Lines

American Heritage Dining

Each meal aboard American Heritage offered multiple choices to please any appetite. One day, breakfast was bacon tomato eggs benedict with fried potatoes or an omelet or fried eggs, sweet potato pancakes, oatmeal or quiche, plus side choices of bacon, sausage or breakfast potatoes.

Lunch choices included a shrimp po boy sandwich with gumbo, Memphis style spareribs with beans and corn bread or a Hot Brown sandwich with corn salad.

Dinner was eggplant parmesan with penne pasta, short ribs with potatoes and mashed zucchini squash or pan-seared halibut with whipped potatoes and asparagus. Desserts ranged from Kentucky Derby pie, strawberry shortcake, bourbon pecan pie to lemon meringue.

Traditional Mardi Gras King Cake served at dinner. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

A nice option was ordering half a serving or even half of one entrée and half of another. My favorite dinner was the Surf & Turf — crab stuffed lobster tail, beef tenderloin, baked potato and lemon zest asparagus.

Surf and turf was an option one evening. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Overall I enjoyed the dining, though I (and my three dining companions) found the beef and pork a bit dry on several evenings.

Entertainment on American Heritage

Local musicians were brought onboard for entertainment each evening. Jonathan Len shared old tunes one night and country songs the next night. A former police officer, Connie G. did a great job as Tina Turner.

Connie Garrett performs a Tina Turner tribute show. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

The three-member Flashback shared Hits Through the Decades for two evenings and comedian Judy Davis delivered some laughs.

Riverlorian Steve Marking kept busy doing presentations on the golden era of steamboats, Mississippi River history, life story of Mark Twain and much more.

A talented photographer, Steve also had photos to illustrate his stories and didn’t mind sharing tips with passengers about taking photos.

Cruising the Mighty Mississippi

Although the red-and-white paddlewheel churning the muddy Mississippi on the back of American Heritage is an eye catcher, the historic-looking paddlewheel is just for looks. It doesn’t really power the riverboat, but it can be hypnotizing to watch it roll round and round, dripping water from its massive wheels.

The ship’s upper deck was a wonderful place to sit in a rocking chair and watch the mighty Mississippi rolling along. The second-longest river in North America, the Mississippi is known for its brown, sediment-filled waters.

The riverside landscape changed quickly as the American Heritage cruised the muddy waters. Tree-lined riverbanks gave way to cornfields, little towns, folks fishing from small boats or standing on shore with fishing poles and coolers.

Towboats were often parked along the river waiting to move on and download their cargo. Large industrial towers spouting huge puffs of white smoke signaled our arrival into industrial areas and large cities. Always something different to see.

The American Heritage’s wheel. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Excellent Shore Excursions

When I told a friend that I was cruising for eight days from Memphis to New Orleans, she laughed. “You could drive that in about six hours,” she said. “Why is it taking so long to cruise there?”

Well, for one reason my American Heritage cruise was traveling on rivers, not on major interstate highways. For another, the journey was what was important. We stopped at cities and towns along the way and took shore excursions, plus we spent several days cruising leisurely while watching the river flow while relaxing on the decks of American Heritage.

The itinerary of my Lower Mississippi River cruise to New Orleans included stops in:

• Cleveland, Mississippi
• Vicksburg, Mississippi
• Natchez, Mississippi
• St. Francisville, Louisiana
• Baton Rouge, Louisiana
• Vacherie, Louisiana
• New Orleans, Louisiana

Each stop offered about a half dozen or more shore excursions, many of them complimentary with others reasonably priced. For example, a tour of Houmas House and Gardens, a 19th-century sugarcane plantation in Vacherie, cost $45. Often, passengers would take a complimentary tour in the morning and another one in the afternoon.

Houmas House and Gardens in Vacherie. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

A big plus was the hop-on hop-off cruise coach which would ride to the main stops in a new destination. A local guide aboard the bus pointed out sights and shared history of our destination.

I liked to ride the whole loop, then start the ride over again and get off for the places I wanted to visit. The cruise coach usually came around again in about a half hour.

Cajun music on a shore excursion in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Learning American History, Intriguing Tidbits

Since it would take me reams of words to describe what I saw and learned on my cruise shore excursions, I’ll just share a couple of them. You can learn more by taking the same Lower Mississippi River cruise I did.

At Vicksburg National Military Park, I heard the story of Old Abe, the eagle whose scary screech led his Wisconsin regiment into battle during the Civil War. His figure rests atop the Wisconsin State Memorial monument.

Civil war monument in Vicksburg. * Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

In 1921, Old Abe was honored as the bald eagle on a black shield insignia of the 101st Airborne Division Air Assault. The 101st Airborne also is nicknamed the “Screaming Eagles” as a salute to Old Abe.

As a bit of trivia, perhaps the most famous 101st Airborne Division alum is also one of the greatest guitarists ever.

Enlisting when he was 19 years old, Jimi Hendrix served with the 101st for about a year before he was honorably discharged from the Army in 1962.

The rest, of course, is history.

How Teddy Bears Got Their Name

Elvis Presley sang about them. My little sisters had them propped up on their beds. But it was on my riverboat cruise that I learned the true history behind the ubiquitous teddy bears.

Once upon a time, President Teddy Roosevelt was invited by Mississippi Governor Andrew H. Longino to go hunting in the woods about 25 miles north of Vicksburg, Mississippi. The men set out for a four-day hunt on a fine November day in 1902.

However, big game hunter Teddy had no luck tracking a bear. Not wanting the president to be disappointed, his assistants cornered and tied a black bear to a willow tree. Summoning the president, the men signaled for him to shoot the captive animal. Viewing it as extremely unsportsmanlike, the nation’s leader refused to kill the bear.

Hearing about the story, political cartoonist Clifford Berryman drew a sketch of Teddy Roosevelt with a little bear tied to a tree and the caption “Drawing the line in Mississippi.”

Soon toy manufacturers were producing “Teddy’s Bears” in honor of the event. The stuffed toys were later called teddy bears and of course are still around today.

That fascinating bit of trivia is featured on Vicksburg’s Riverfront Murals, 32 murals painted on the city’s flood wall by renowned artist Robert Dafford. Each mural measures a huge 12-by-20 and was paid for with private funds. Not bad for a city with a population of about 21,000.

Vicksburg’s Riverfront Murals. * Photo: Photo: Jackie Sheckler Finch

Disembarking American Heritage

Disembarking American Heritage was as simple as it was boarding. My luggage was picked up and put on the motorcoach for a complimentary ride to New Orleans airport while I ate breakfast and bid farewell to my newfound friends.

I Recommend the American Heritage for Mississippi River Boat Cruises

As for whether I would recommend the American Heritage — definitely. Not just because the ship is a beauty, which it is, but mainly because of the crew.

No matter how top-notch a ship is and how yummy the food or how good the shipboard entertainment, if the ship’s crew is lazy, surly or nowhere to be found — the cruise is a waste.

The crew of the American Heritage — from captain to cabin attendant — was friendly, efficient, caring and downright excellent.

As a solo traveler, I have many happy memories of my cruise, my fellow passengers and the adventures we shared.

READ MORE: Here are some pros and cons of cruising solo (there are lots of pros!)

Included in Cruise Fares:

•  Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages
•  All meals (no specialty restaurants or added costs)
•  All ship gratuities.
•  Pre-cruise hotel stay
•  Most shore excursions
•  WiFi Internet
• Entertainment and riverlorian presentations

Interested in Lower Mississippi River Boat Cruises?

A single occupancy stateroom with balcony like mine starts at $6,585, while a double occupancy room with balcony starts at $4,925 per person. Prices may change depending on the season. Airfare is sometimes included on special cruises.

Check out more details about this Lower Mississippi River cruise HERE.

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