NEW ORLEANS -- The American Queen Steamboat Co. (AQSC) has
acquired a fourth vessel that will be transformed into another overnight
passenger cruise ship, president and COO Ted Sykes revealed over the weekend as
the company prepared to launch its third ship, the American Duchess.
Like the Duchess, the fourth vessel is a former gaming boat.
The former Kanesville Queen was built in 1995 and had only 4,000 hours on the
engines. AQSC has no established plans for the riverboat, though Sykes said it
will likely sail the Mississippi River as it would be too difficult to
transport it to another waterway.
He said AQSC purchased the vessel because "we've got so
much demand," and said that when it is ready to be renovated, the fourth
vessel will be upscale but staterooms will not be as large as the American
Duchess' and the price point will not be as high.
The 166-passenger American Duchess will be christened on
Monday.
The AQSC also owns the American Empress, which sails the
Colombia and Snake rivers in the Pacific Northwest, and the American Queen,
which sails the Mississippi.