The CEO and President of American Cruise Lines, Charles B. Robertson, has announced the company’s continued expansion plans with new boats, itineraries, and health protocols.
While the operator’s ships remain inactive due to the recent CDC “No Sail” order extension, American has not had an “idle year,” Robertson said in a Monday press conference.
The two new riverboats announced are the American Jazz and the American Melody, which will both sail on the Mississippi River.
“This will give us 14 ships operating in more than 30 states from coast to coast,” the CEO said.
Robertson also promised three new itineraries for 2021: the Cape Codder, the Music Cities cruise, and the Alaskan Explorers cruise.
The Cape Codder will be visiting a “variety of small New England ports, including an exclusive partnership with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.” The Music Cities cruise draws on American musical influences “as it cruises from Nashville to Memphis.” While the 11-day Alaskan Explorers cruise will visit more Alaskan ports than “we’ve ever been to before including spending two days in Glacier Bay,” Robertson said.
Fifty new shore experiences have also been announced by American.
“These are unique experiences that are focused on active excursions, culinary experiences, and musical performances onboard,” the Robertson said. “They also include a number of premium pre-cruise packages in luxury hotels around the country. This includes expanding our relationship with Four Seasons hotels in several of our departure port cities.”
While the company has come up with many exciting plans for the future, they do not “lose sight of the present,” Robertson said.
He explained that since spring 2020, the cruise operator adopted the slogan of “ready to operate, prepared to wait.”
“We have spent many months planning and implementing extensive new health and safety protocols that leverage our advantages with small domestic-only ships. These protocols were rolled out in March and include everything from onboard COVID-19 testing to shipboard medical personnel,” Robertson explained.
“American is fully ready to begin cruising and has the foundational strength to remain paused as long as necessary.”
