Ohio River Cruises & America’s Heartland Rivers

The Rivers Between the Mississippi and the Appalachians

Ohio River cruises open up a part of America most travelers only see from the interstate. The Ohio begins at Pittsburgh, where the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers meet, and runs roughly 980 miles to join the Mississippi at Cairo, Illinois. Along the way it passes the old river towns of Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky and Indiana, and the cities of Cincinnati and Louisville. Two of its great tributaries, the Tennessee and the Cumberland, reach south to Chattanooga and Nashville.

This site covers the overnight cruises on those three rivers, plus the Music Cities route that links Memphis with Nashville. For every river cruise in the United States, our sister site US River Cruising has the full picture.

All four are sailed by American Cruise Lines. Routes and ports vary by departure; our cruise advisors confirm the details.

Why Cruise the Heartland

• Easy to reach. Pittsburgh, Louisville, Nashville, Memphis and Chattanooga all have airports, and many travelers can drive.
• Living history. Frontier settlement, Lewis and Clark’s departure, Civil War battlefields and the steamboat era.
• Music and food. Memphis blues, Muscle Shoals soul, Nashville country, Kentucky bourbon and Southern cooking.
• Quiet scenery. Wooded hills, locks, lakes and river towns with brick main streets.

Locks, Lakes and Dams

These rivers are working waterways, managed by a system of locks and dams that turn long stretches into calm pools. On the Tennessee and Cumberland, dams create Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley, with the Land Between the Lakes (USDA Forest Service) recreation area between them. Passing through a lock is a highlight of many voyages. Barges are frequent companions, and watching a tow push a long string of them around a bend is part of the experience.

Frequently Asked Questions