Luxury eight-day riverboat cruises out of Old Sacramento have been scrapped
Luxury multi-day riverboat cruises from Old Sacramento have died a quick death after four departures in February and March.
A new season of eight-day cruises aboard the riverboat American Jazz, starting at $6,000 a person, were supposed to begin last Saturday.
“American Cruise Lines will not be offering the Napa Valley River Cruises again on our itineraries, but we do hope to offer the cruises again in the future,” said Alexa Paolella, a spokesman for the cruise lines.
Paoletta did not respond to questions as to why the cruises were scrapped or mention Sacramento, the starting and departure points for the cruise.
Jennifer Singer, a spokeswoman for the city of Sacramento, said cruise line representatives recently reached out to the city saying the tours were being discontinued because of logistical and operational challenges. She could not offer additional details.
It’s unclear if part of the cancellation was due to difficulties in signing up passengers for a pricey trip out of Sacramento. The cruise line had heavily promoted San Francisco as the departure port for its cruise ships only to substitute Sacramento at the last minute.
The Connecticut-based cruising company was unable to reach an agreement with The Port Of San Francisco over docking fees. All four cruises in February and March 2023. left out of Sacramento
That didn’t sit well with some passengers, who ended up being bused from San Francisco to Sacramento for the start of the cruise.
The cruise aimed at a wealthy clientele, started at $6,000 per person for a 250-square-foot stateroom and went to more than $12,000 per person for larger rooms of 650 square feet.
Sacramento was originally a stop on the river cruise, which also included stops in Napa, Stockton and Vallejo.
Paolella said last March that Sacramento would be the permanent home for the seasonal luxury cruises and had much to offer passengers in terms of history.
“The historical significance of Sacramento to the history of U.S. River cruising on the California Delta cannot be overstated — and as the original terminus of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1869, to the Gold Rush, to its place as California’s capital city today, Sacramento offers river cruise guests much rich history to explore,” she had said in a statement.
The discontinued service shouldn’t be confused with river cruises put on by City Experiences, River City Queen and other outfits. Those services start and end in Old Sacramento as well, but usually last for a couple of hours.
