American Queen Steamboat Co. (AQSC) will be adding the 248-passenger American Countess to its fleet next year, Ted Sykes, AQSC president and COO, told Travel Weekly on Thursday.
After announcing this past fall that the company has acquired a fourth vessel that will be transformed into another overnight passenger cruise ship, Sykes revealed that the vessel will be ready for launch in 2019 and will predominantly sail on the Lower Mississippi.
Similar to the 166-passenger American Duchess, which launched in New Orleans in August, the Countess is a former gaming vessel. The former Kanesville Queen was built in 1995 and will be outfitted with a paddlewheel.
But whereas the Duchess featured much more modern decor than the vintage-style Americana interiors on the company's first two vessels, the American Queen and American Empress, Sykes said that the Countess will once again be more classic in styling.
"We are sailing full," said Sykes. "Everything is selling out," he noted, adding that the company desperately needs the added capacity due to strong demand for U.S. river cruising from both repeat passengers as well as those who are new to the travel style.