AMERICAN QUEEN review in today's Times-Picayune

Not a word about the AQ in today's (Sunday) Print NY Times Travel Section, nor an ad to book a trip. No fault intended, just a comment on the Newspaper Industry in the 21st Century & the e-world we live in.

At the present time, we are masking windows to paint. In using several newspapers, I have seen no less than 6 ads for the AQ in both the TP and USA Today. I know, too, that the Memphis Commercial Appeal has been running ads. Jim, have you seen any in the Post-Dispatch? I'm thinking maybe I have...

Another victim of 'progress'

As I posted elsewhere, the T-P is going to a 3 day a week paper in the fall. They have also recently redone their nola.com website, which has taken grief from probably 95% of its users. The absence of this article online today (at least I can't find it either) is a great example of the downgrading of the TP in the name of digital progress (but in reality in the name of the Bottom Line for a national corporation).
We've had no ads in our papers, but then we never have had any. And while we are no huge metropolitan area, we ARE ON THE RIVER and have provided many customers over the years to the DQ. I wish they would reappropriate the money it costs to post their ad on my computer most everytime I log on and use it to attract new customers. That ad can appear till Infinity and it won't get another nickel out of me - I've shot my wad on the Pittsburgh/Cincy trip this summer...

On the second page of the mentioned article, there is this statement: "There is room for both boats [referring to the Queen of the Mississippi]-- and more, said Kyte, who hopes to announce within 90 days that his company is acquiring a second riverboat."

Dare we hope this is our beloved DQ?

I had heard they were building another boat, Bob.

Online Version of AQ Review

This article by Marjie Lambert of McClatchy Newspapers looks like the one Bob wrote about, complete with the reference to Christopher Kyte's statement about GASC hoping to announce the acquisition of a second riverboat within 90 days:

American Queen brings paddlewheel cruising back to the Mississippi : page all - NorthJersey.com

The article quotes Christopher Kyte commenting on the potential market for river cruises in this country:

"With about 70 million retirees in the United States, 'we would need one-hundredth of 1 percent to think a river cruise is a great idea to keep 10 American Queens filled,' he said."

Another retirees article

Thanks for the article. But I just got done reading one about the most current version of our state's pension reform bill, which will give us the choice of less pay or no health insurance. This is unconstitutional, but this is also Illinois! At any rate, should this pass, there will be fewer Illinois retirees able to afford the AQ...

Bob, I don't think I have seen (Print Ads in STL P-D) any since she has been ready to begin service. The "feature" Sun 27 May was an overnight boat on the Seine. [Viking Spirit-built 2001]. For some of us who were around when the MQ was announced and who happened to see a, shall we say, "underground drawing" of the proposed "monster" the photo of the Viking Spirit included with the article brings back memories of the time and place.