United States
The United States offers a surprising range of river cruising for travelers who'd rather not cross an ocean to find it. On the Mississippi, paddle-wheel-style riverboats link historic river towns between the Twin Cities and New Orleans, while in the Pacific Northwest, the Columbia and Snake Rivers trace the Lewis & Clark Trail through dramatic gorge and canyon scenery. Both are typically all-inclusive, American-crewed, and built around a slower, more intimate style of cruising than their ocean-going counterparts.
All five rivers run aboard small, American-crewed ships rather than the larger vessels common on Europe's rivers, and all lean on a specific seasonal draw — fall foliage on the Hudson and the Upper Mississippi, cherry blossoms on the Potomac in spring, and the milder shoulder seasons on the Tennessee and Columbia & Snake — making timing as important a factor as route when choosing a U.S. river cruise.
