American Cruise Lines christened American Maverick in Newport, Rhode Island last week during the ship’s inaugural 9-Day New England Islands cruise, sailing roundtrip from Providence, Rhode Island. The celebration took place on board with guests, crew, community partners, and many employees from the Line’s headquarters in Connecticut.

American Maverick is the newest small cruise ship in the country and the latest in the company’s growing fleet of ships exclusively designed for cruising the U.S.A., featuring many amenities surpassing those of the finest riverboats in the world. American Maverick will be followed by the deliveries of American Ranger, American Mariner, and American Navigator over the next year. American Cruise Lines also just launched the newest riverboat in the country, American Encore, in May.

American Maverick’s christening festivities took place on a glorious sunny day overlooking Newport Harbor with many people close to the company, including more than 50 employees from the Line’s home office in Guilford, CT. American’s President & CEO, Charles B. Robertson, gave remarks as did American Maverick’s Godmother, Susan Renner, American’s Board Chair and Treasurer. All christening attendees gathered on American Maverick’s top deck for the official blessing and ceremonial bottle smash, followed by a traditional New England lobsterbake at Fort Adams State Park just steps from where the ship was docked.

“We set the bar high for ourselves with American Maverick and were surprised to see that we set the bar for the rest of the river cruise industry in the process,” said Charles B. Robertson, President & CEO of American Cruise Lines. “The American Maverick is the new standard by which others should follow and with 8 more ships under construction, shows that the U.S. river cruise market will lead the way.”

American Maverick’s Godmother, Susan Renner

Brand new American Maverick accommodates 130 guests. The small ship features 4 decks, all-private balcony staterooms, including singles and suites, plus, numerous spacious lounges (including a top deck lounge with a walking track), a chart room, a main restaurant and a casual café, as well as a fitness center, among other onboard amenities unusual for cruise ships of this size.

American Maverick now takes the mantle as the newest cruise ship built in the U.S.A., but it is also the latest in a long line of innovative new small ships introduced by American Cruise Lines.

The company’s 100% U.S.-flagged fleet and total dedication to the development of the domestic cruise market honors the true spirit of American ingenuity and innovation. This 4th of July, as the country celebrates its 250th birthday, American will have more domestic itineraries and more new small ships exploring along U.S. waterways than at any other time in the company’s 50-year history.