After spending a couple of INCREDLE days exploring the Portland area and Mt Hood (more on this coming soon!), it was time to begin our journey along the Columbia and Snake Rivers aboard American Cruise Lines' American Encore.
If you followed along with our adventures in real time on Instagram, you know that I shared each day of this experience as it unfolded on my stories. You can look and see those HERE. Over the next several posts, I want to take you along in a little more detail—sharing what our days looked like, the places we visited, and some practical things that may be helpful if you are researching a similar journey.
Our embarkation day began much earlier than the moment we first stepped aboard American Encore. In fact, before we ever saw the ship, our first day included an early luggage pickup, a bus ride through Oregon, a visit to beautiful Multnomah Falls, and our first glimpses of the Columbia River.
An Early Start to Embarkation Day
Our luggage was collected from our hotel around 7 a.m., while our embarkation group was scheduled to depart at approximately 9:20 a.m. One practical thing that Mom and I discovered as our embarkation group departed—and something we wish had been communicated beforehand—is that you can keep a carry-on bag with you rather than sending every piece of luggage ahead. Smaller bags can travel with you and be placed underneath the bus.
We really wish that this had been communicated to us as we were up very early to ensure that all luggage was all packed up and given to those collecting it to take to the ship. We were never told if we would be on the same bus, or exactly how the process worked so it created a very early morning and because there are several hours between luggage collection and arriving in your stateroom, this is helpful to know if there are medications, personal items, an extra layer, or anything else you would prefer to have available during the day.
Multnomah Falls
Before heading to the ship, we had an excursion that traveled to Multnomah Falls. Both mom and I were very excited about this part of the trip and excursion and I look forward to sharing more with you about Multnomah Falls because it was absolutely beautiful! I will note that the tour guide on our specific bus was a bit of a surprise as she started off by "welcoming us" talking all about how excited she was to drop us off at the ship because she wanted to start her vacation. It was a bit of an odd "welcome" and we had several people who were sitting by us on the bus express to us that this was not typical of tour guides on American Cruise Lines which we were glad to hear. The other strange part was that she was pretty sarcastic about previous guests questions, including laughing at how previous guests have asked what the river was that we were driving by... she "suggested" that they should look at the River Cruise that they booked and they would have their answer. I am sure that she gets all sort of questions, but people do travel far and across the country for this cruise and aren't familiar with the area so questions will range I am sure. Mom and I have traveled so much together that we just looked at each other and decided to enjoy the bus ride by seeing the beauty we were seeing and looked up on our phone some things from the area as the tour guide didn't share much about this. It would have been nice just to hear about Multnomah Falls and leave it at that. It was very off putting and truthfully not the best introduction to our cruise and I felt badly for others on the bus who also had no previous experience with American Cruise Lines that this is how our introduction was.
Thankfully we arrived at Multnomah Falls after about a 40 minute drive and it was beautiful!
Mom and I both enjoyed our time seeing this beautiful area of the world!
We had about an hour and 15 minutes at the falls so I walked up to Benson Bridge, which gave me an entirely different perspective of the falls than the view from below. From the higher vantage point, I could also look out toward the Columbia River and the surrounding landscape.
Looking down from the bridge (you can also hike higher there just wasn't time on our stop)- it is hard to see but mom is very tiny in the picture above! If you are comfortable with the walk, I thought seeing the falls from this level was well worth the climb.
After we were all back on board our bus (yes, haha with the same tour guide) we had about an hour drive to the ship. Our views along the way were stunning!
Having an excursion before actually boarding the ship was an interesting difference from other cruise embarkation experiences I have experienced. Some travelers may really enjoy beginning their sightseeing immediately, while others may prefer the more traditional experience of boarding a ship first and settling into their room. For us, it was simply one of the first ways we began to see that this river cruise experience would be different from others we had taken.
Our First Look at American Encore
We arrived at the port and had our first look at American Encore, one of the newer ships in the American Cruise Lines fleet. The walk from the bus drop to the ship could be a bit of a walk for some people and one detail that immediately stood out to Mom and me was the availability of golf carts to transport passengers between the buses and the ship. American Cruise Lines serves many older travelers, along with guests who may have mobility limitations, and I appreciated seeing this option available. It allowed passengers who might have struggled with the distance to reach the ship without having to make that walk. There was something very dignifying about that small accommodation, and it was one of the details that stood out to us on our first day. We chose to walk to the ship and just enjoy the beauty and as we approached the entrance we were greeted by the captain who welcomed us to the American Encore.
Seeing Stateroom 326 for the First Time
We made our way aboard and down to Stateroom 326, where another difference from all of our previous cruising experiences awaited us: our luggage was already inside our room- along with our keys to our room. I received some questions about this when I shared our arrival on Instagram because our stateroom door was open when we arrived. Yes—this is part of the embarkation process. Your luggage is delivered directly into your room, and your room keys are waiting for you there as well. I think the surprise to most people is questioning whether that is safe or not to just have everything "so open and available to everyone". I think for both mom and I we didn't feel that it was unsafe, but when we found someone else's backpack and water bottle in our room it did feel a bit strange as someone else had obviously been in our room. I took the backpack down to the staff on the first floor and it wasn't a big deal - but again just different. I will be doing a full review of our room, but we were impressed from the beginning at the size and amount of space in our room for the cruise.
Our First Afternoon on the Columbia River
After lunch, we began to see the scenery that would surround us throughout this journey. The views were stunning. Mom and I found ourselves repeatedly stepping out onto our private veranda just to look at the landscape passing alongside us. Mountains, water, and seemingly endless Pacific Northwest scenery surrounded the ship.
There was also an afternoon sail away party with food and drinks, and with such beautiful weather, many passengers were outside enjoying the day.
Later that afternoon, guests had an opportunity to meet members of the culinary team, including the head chef, restaurant manager, and pastry chef. As someone who travels with dietary restrictions and food allergies, I particularly appreciated having the opportunity for a direct conversation with the head chef about what I could safely eat during the cruise. If you are traveling with allergies or dietary restrictions, I would encourage you to take advantage of opportunities like this whenever they are offered and communicate your needs directly with the culinary staff. I had personally never been on a cruise where this option to speak directly to all three at the same time was offered and I thought that was a very unique and wonderful thing that American Cruise Lines offered. I will be doing a full review of the dining and food but this (meeting with the three crew at the same time) is definitely something to highlight a couple of times.
Afterward, Mom and I finally had some time to unpack and settle into our room—although we kept interrupting ourselves to step back outside onto the veranda and take in the views.
Our First Dinner Aboard American Encore
That evening, we got ready and headed to our first dinner aboard the ship. My dinner that night ended up being one of my favorite meals of the trip: a gluten-free pasta filled with vegetables and finished with goat cheese.
After dinner, we returned outside. And perhaps that is the image I remember most clearly from our first evening aboard American Encore: standing outside with Mom, watching the mountains and the Columbia River landscape quietly pass by as we began making our way along the river. There would be much more to experience—and much more for me to share—in the days ahead. But for that first evening, we simply watched the Pacific Northwest drift past us and took in the beauty of where we were.
Thank you so much for reading this article! If you have any questions please feel free to leave them in the comments below or send an email! Happy Wednesday friends! I hope you have the most wonderful day!
Post a Comment