UP, UP AND AWAY!

[HostDave]

A vacation is a very fragile thing. It might not seem like it, of course. It’s just a week or two out of your life, after all. But more thought goes into researching, planning and selecting your vacation than almost anything else you do during the course of the year. The money you spend is your hard-earned reward for good, honest work and diligent savings. It’s also one of the few truly “fun” ways we can spend money during the course of an average year.

While we can pay to go out to a nice restaurant, the need to eat is not something we could ignore otherwise. We could select a more modestly priced restaurant or go to the grocery store and cook something for ourselves at home. But one way or another, we need to eat. The new windows in the house might look nice but, unless there hadn’t been something wrong with the old ones, we never would have bought new ones. The same goes for an air conditioner or even a new sofa. We might enjoy our new purchase very much, but generally it’s something we HAD to buy and we simply did our best to also make it something we WANTED to buy.

A vacation has no such constraints. When we choose our vacation, it is not a choice made of necessity. As a result of being more of a discretionary purchase than a required expenditure, we put extra thought and effort into selecting the perfect vacation. And once we narrow down our choices and make the decision, we expect a lot in return.

Successful companies are those that remember this simple rule. Unsuccessful or short-lived ventures are those that forget the customer always has a choice. At the American Queen Steamboat Company, we never forget for one moment that this is YOUR vacation and it is our job, above and beyond all other considerations, to make sure your dreams come true. We have been doing so for the past two years on the American Queen and we are completely committed to continuing that tradition with the introduction of the American Empress in the Pacific Northwest in 10 weeks.

Our newest addition will be operating 9-day voyages on the Columbia and Snake rivers between Portland, OR and Clarkston, WA with ports of call in Astoria, OR; Stevenson, WA; The Dalles, OR; and Sacajawea State Park, WA. As is our hallmark with every American Queen cruise, we will be offering complimentary shore excursions in each port of call for the American Empress as well. But we find that while this feature is much appreciated and heavily utilized by our guests, many of our travelers seek even more in-depth experiences and that’s why we offer the option to purchase additional Premium Experience Tours.

When we assemble these excursions, we do so with an eye toward more than just the interesting and the unusual. While our riverboats are modern vessels with every contemporary comfort and amenity, their design harks back to the days when a riverboat was often the only means of travel in the rugged wilderness. That’s why we seek out adventures ashore which honor the past and highlight the history of the regions in which we sail. Our Premium Experience Tours in The Dalles are no exceptions.

Sure to become one of our most popular is a visit to the Western Antique Airplane and Automobile Museum (known to its legions of loyal followers as WAAAM). Guests are whisked back to a time when flight was a novelty rather than a daily mode of transportation, when the automobile required a crank and the development of power steering was almost a century away. More than 130 antique cars and several hangars full of restored airplanes from as early as 1917 remind us how far we’ve come in the last 10 decades.

WAAAM boasts that it has “one of the largest collections of still-flying antique aeroplanes and still-driving antique automobiles in the country. The items on display at this museum are not only full of history, they're full of life!” The airplane collection includes a 1917 Curtiss JN-4D Jenny featuring an OX-5 90 HP engine as well as entire collections of flying machines from Piper, WACO, Aeronca and Stearman. The cars include a 1914 Detroit Electric, a Ford Model A or Model T, a Packard, a Studebaker and even a Locomobile. While the name of the museum doesn’t reflect it, there is also an impressive collection of motorcycles such as Harley Davidsons, Indians and Cushmans.

But the museum is more than just a collection of cars, planes and motorcycles. Each vehicle has a story to tell. For example, WAAAM’s 1928 Brunner-Winkle Bird was once owned by female aviator Melba Beard. The museum’s website chronicles the tale of this particular airplane:

“Melba Beard learned to fly in 1929, and paid for her flying lessons by trading babysitting for half-hour increments of flight instruction. Her parents did not want her to fly, so she did it on the sly, hiding her flying clothes in the bushes down the street from her house in Pasadena, California. She had such a passion to learn to fly, that she took five busses and a cable car to reach the Alhambra Airport in the Los Angeles area where she took her lessons. One day while taking a lesson, the dapper Dr. William Beard showed up for some safety instructions for his new Brunner-Winkle Bird airplane. It was love at first sight. They eloped six weeks later and he gave her the airplane as a wedding present. Beard went on to win the Amelia Earhart Trophy Race in 1935 at Cleveland, and was presented with the trophy by Earhart. Melba won other air-meets in the 1930s and was one of the charter members of the women’s flying club, The Ninety-Nines, along with Earhart. Beard had a string of other airplanes over the years, including Birds, WACOs and Ryans. Many of the planes she flew had the original OX-5 engines. Beard also earned her A&P license so she could work on the Kinner engine. Upon retiring from flying, Beard gave the Bird to her flying daughter, Arlene, who took it to the Oshkosh Fly-In in 1991 where it won the Best Open Cockpit Biplane award. As it turns out, the museum also discovered that it has another airplane once owned by Melba Beard, a 1931 Curtiss Wright Travel Air 12-W.”

On every American Empress voyage, there are myriad fascinating tales such as that of the 1928 Brunner-Winkle Bird at the Western Antique Airplane and Automobile Museum. It is our honor to take you to places and time periods you’ve never been. It’s part of what makes a vacation memorable and a mission we take very seriously. When you choose to sail with us, you’re getting more than just a cruise; you’re getting the experience of a lifetime.

For the next two months, the American Queen Steamboat Company is offering a choice of two great savings opportunities. Guests who book early and pay-in-full at time of booking can save up to $400 per stateroom* on any June through October sailing. Just select the voyage of your choice and book your stateroom before March 31, 2014 to take advantage of this generous offer. Or, if you book early and pay in full at time of booking, you could instead choose to receive a two-category upgrade** on not just any American Empress sailing in 2014 but any departure of the American Queen on the Mississippi, Ohio, Tennessee and Cumberland rivers as well.

*Book by March 31, 2014, pay-in-full and Save $400 per stateroom ($200 per person) on any 2014 June-October American Empress voyage. Full payment is required at time of booking to redeem this offer. Offer expires on March 31, 2014. This offer cannot be combined with other offers, promotions or discounts; not valid on Group bookings or existing reservations. Savings are only on the price of the cruise, not valid on taxes, port charges, insurance, gratuities, or airfare. Promotional fares and amenities are capacity controlled, may vary by sailing and category of accommodations and may be withdrawn without notice. Fares quoted are in U.S. dollars, are per person and do not include air or land transportation. Port Charges of $69 to $159 per person are additional and not included in the fare. Additional terms and conditions may apply – call for details.

**Offer expires March 31, 2014 and is valid on new, paid-in-full bookings only. Full payment at time of booking is required to redeem this offer. Estimated savings of up to $3200 ($1600 per person) is based on double occupancy for a standard American Queen 9 day voyage. Offer is not valid on Group bookings or existing reservations and cannot be combined with other offers, promotions or discounts. The free 2 cabin category upgrade means that guests will be placed in cabin(s) that are 2 sequential categories above initial cabin(s) requested at time of reservation. This offer is not valid on cabin upgrades into American Queen categories LS, AAA, SO and SI; and American Empress categories LS, A and CS. This offer is based on cabin availability and only while inventory lasts. Cruise fare does not include taxes, port charges, insurance, gratuities, or airfare. Additional terms and conditions may apply - call for details.