American Cruise Lines' (ACL) new, 175-passenger American Symphony, the fifth ship in the line's modern riverboat class, has been successfully launched at Chesapeake Shipbuilding in Salisbury, MD.
In August 2022, this new small ship will begin cruising the Mississippi River on eight-day lower Mississippi River cruises between New Orleans and Memphis. Then it will transition to upper Mississippi River sailings between St. Louis, MO, and St. Paul, MN.
For this year, ACL's Mississippi fleet includes the new ship plus American Melody, American Jazz, American Heritage and American Splendor. In total, the line plans more than 10 different Mississippi River itineraries ranging from five to 22 days.
Final Construction & Outfitting
Immediately after the launch, the new riverboat was positioned in Chesapeake’s East Outfitting Basin where it will receive its upper decks and outfitting. The shipyard has a long history of designing and building new small ships for ACL including the line's recently announced Project Blue fleet, coming in 2023.
The five-deck American Symphony will feature the same sophisticated elegant design and state-of-the-art features as sister ship American Melody, launched in 2021. Among those are a patented opening bow and retractable gangway. ACL first introduced this class of ship in 2018.
The new ship offers "all balcony" accommodations. In addition, public spaces include a four-story glass atrium, indoor and outdoor dining venues, a large fitness center, multiple lounges and a top deck showcasing a Skywalk and an ellipse cut-out cantilevered over the ship’s cafe below.
Construction is also under way at the same Maryland shipyard on the company’s sixth riverboat in the same series, American Serenade.