Delta Queen Reborn As Chattanooga Hotel

 

The Delta Queen On The Mississippi

A welcome befitting a Queen, the 82 year-old Delta Queen Steamboat arrived in Chattanooga on Wednesday February 11. Hundreds of people turned out to welcome the Queen to Chattanooga which will be it’s new home as it will become a floating hotel.

 

Ambassadors International, which owns the Delta Queen has chartered to Harry Phillips, owner of Chattanooga Water Taxi and Fat Cat Ferry. Mr. Phillips has hired  Sydney Slome, owner of Chattanooga’s Stone Fort Inn, to manage the Delta Queen Hotel. The hotel is slated to open to the public in April. The hotel will have 87 cabins and can hold 174 guests.

The Delta Queen was built in 1926 and has a steel hull and a wooden superstructure. Currently the Delta Queen cannot legally operate overnight cruises at present because its congressional exemption from fire safety laws was allowed to expire on Oct 31, 2008. 

The Delta Queen will host Dixieland jazz bands, cabarets and musical revues. Tours of the vessel will also be available.

So if you are planning on visiting Chattanooga this summer, you may want to book a cabin on the historic Delta Queen.