American Jazz heads for California via the Panama Canal

American Jazz is on a repositioning voyage that follows a similar route to that taken by U.S. mail ships of the Gold Rush era

American Cruise Lines reports that its modern riverboat American Jazz is repositioning from the Mississippi River to the West Coast for new California river cruises. Beginning in February 2023, they will be the first of their kind since the 1940s.

Already underway along the journey from the Mississippi River to San Francisco Bay, American Jazz is expected to transit the Panama Canal in the coming days. American Jazz’s repositioning voyage is following a similar route to that taken by the historic U.S. mail ships of the Gold Rush era that carried passengers, mail, and gold between the East and West coasts.

The expert nautical team aboard the ship is supported each day of the voyage by the company’s shoreside operations team. Throughout the journey, American’s crew and the shoreside team closely monitor vessel systems, weather forecasts, and voyage progress.

American Jazz’s arrival to San Francisco Bay heralds a historic development in U.S. river cruising, as it is the first U.S. built riverboat to offer overnight cruises throughout the Bay and California Delta in over 80 years.

American Jazz will embark along the line’s first 8-day San Francisco Bay cruise on February 24, 2023. The new river cruises will sail San Francisco Bay and Wine Country: cruising the Napa River, Sacramento River, and San Joaquin River.

“Exploring San Francisco Bay and the California Delta by U.S. riverboat is a momentous occasion for domestic river cruising and another first for American Cruise Lines. We are proud to provide this new opportunity for our guests to experience the joys of cruising close to home, as they discover yet another beautiful area of the country by riverboat,” said Charles B. Robertson, president & CEO of American Cruise Lines. “American continues to expand the possibilities for exceptional domestic small ship cruises by introducing brand new U.S. flagged riverboats and small cruise ships each year.”

American Cruise Lines is offering the 8-day San Francisco Bay itinerary, roundtrip from San Francisco, in February and March, and again in November and December 2023.

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