American Cruise Lines: most-reported complaints
Automated analysis of 739 public Trustpilot reviews published 2025-07-17 to 2026-09-20. TrustScore 4.8 from 10,539 total reviews — see the Trustpilot page. Quick answer: is American Cruise Lines legit? Issues below reflect what reviewers reported, not findings of wrongdoing.
Reviewers most often report issues with food quality, citing instances of old meals being served. A significant number of customers also describe poor core service and note that the experience did not match the description, particularly regarding the age of the ships. Additionally, some reviewers mention unhelpful support interactions, including reports of rude or aggressive staff behavior.
How to reach American Cruise Lines
These are the contact details American Cruise Lines publishes on its Trustpilot profile, as of our last check on 2026-09-23 — phone 888-458-6014, email [email protected], address 741 Boston Post Rd Ste 250, Guilford, 06437, US.
The company claimed its Trustpilot profile on 2022-05-16, uses Trustpilot’s paid features, uses Trustpilot’s AI-assisted replies, and last replied to a negative review on 2026-09-22. Trustpilot ranks it 2 of 5 in Cruise Line Company. We last checked this profile on 2026-09-23 and found 51 new reviews. These are facts Trustpilot publishes about the profile, as of our last harvest.
Elsewhere: 4.1★ on Google (155 reviews)
TrustScore over time
4.8 → 4.8 across 14 census measurements since 2026-08-17. Our own record, independent of Trustpilot’s display.
Reply behaviour over time
Solid: % of negative reviews replied to. Dashed: typical days to reply. Both as reported on this company’s Trustpilot profile, recorded whenever our census re-checked it and a figure had changed — the gaps between points are not equal: 2026-08-17 (86%, 9.8d) · 2026-08-20 (83%, 9.8d) · 2026-08-24 (81%, 9.8d) · 2026-08-27 (77%, 9.6d) · 2026-08-30 (77%, 9.6d) · 2026-09-02 (75%, 10.6d) · 2026-09-05 (75%, 10.6d) · 2026-09-08 (74%, 10.6d) · 2026-09-11 (74%, 10.6d) · 2026-09-14 (72%, 10.6d) · 2026-09-17 (72%, 10.6d) · 2026-09-20 (74%, 11.8d) · 2026-09-23 (77%, 11.6d).
Severity: 36% of this company’s 81 graded complaints were classified as severe (money lost, an essential service cut off, or a problem unresolved for months). See the harm index.
1★ share of negative reviews over time
Share of 1–3★ Trustpilot reviews that were 1★
In June 2022, 6% of 16 one-to-three-star reviews were 1★; in August 2026, 23% of 13.
Counted from June 2022 onward — the period for which our capture of 1★, 2★ and 3★ reviews is complete for all three. Months with fewer than 10 such reviews are omitted.
Reviewers here waited a median of 10.6 days between the experience and publishing their negative review (288 reviews record both dates).
Measured reply time: across 231 negative reviews that received a public reply, the median wait was 1.6 days — the company profile reports an average of 12 days. The two are measured differently: ours counts only replies we captured to negative reviews.
Reply quality: of 231 company replies to negative reviews analysed, 6% engaged with the specific problem and 85% were generic templates.
50% of its 625 recent 5★ reviews came from accounts that had written only that one review when we captured it (the median across companies is about 39%). A high share is a reason to look closer, not evidence of fake reviews.
Sector benchmark: other makes up 28% of this company’s complaints vs a 19% median across 96 ranked companies in its sector.
Review velocity: 2,759 of this company’s 10,539 Trustpilot reviews (26%) were written in the last 12 months.
What are the most common complaints about American Cruise Lines?
Other
23 reports · 28% of complaintssteady“serve the guest old food that has been cooked days ago”
The company replied on 2025-08-21: “Thank you for your feedback. Please email [email protected] should you wish to discuss this matter further.”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
3 readers marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“Food was presented unattractively, was seldom fresh, often portions too small”
The company replied on 2025-10-08: “Your feedback and recommendations are helpful and will be shared with the appropriate departments for review. Should you wish to provide additional information, please email…”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
3 readers marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“the captain was not friendly and the staff were cold with a don't bother me attitude.”
2 readers marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
Poor core service
12 reports · 15% of complaintsrising since 2026-06“I called customer service who said after r10 pm we were on our own.”
The company replied on 2026-07-30: “We are sorry to hear about the issues you experienced while traveling to your recent cruise and have shared your comments with our Guest Travel department. We take guest safety seriously and we hope…”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
1 reader marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“I had to fight with them to get money they overcharged me for.”
The company replied on 2025-07-23: “Your feedback and recommendations are helpful and will be shared with the appropriate departments for review. Should you wish to provide additional information, please email…”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
1 reader marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“I had to ask 2 times about getting the mold cleaned up in our shower”
The company replied on 2025-08-18: “Thank you for your feedback regarding your cruise aboard American Symphony. We will ensure your comments are shared with the ship and that the stateroom issues sited have been addressed. We hope for…”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
1 reader marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
Not as described
12 reports · 15% of complaintsrising since 2026-06“It turns out we paid top dollar to travel on the oldest ship in the fleet - so old that it was literally being sold for scrap at the end of the season.”
The company replied on 2025-10-20: “Your feedback and recommendations are helpful and will be shared with the appropriate departments for review. Should you wish to provide additional information, please email…”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
3 readers marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“The real problem was the comfort and lack of communication.”
1 reader marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“our booked adjuoining rooms were not - no key, no locksmith ordered.”
The company replied on 2026-06-08: “Your feedback and recommendations are helpful and will be shared with the appropriate departments for review. Should you wish to provide additional information, please email…”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
1 reader marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
Support unhelpful
10 reports · 12% of complaintssteady“They are insulting, they call you a liar, they yell at you”
The company replied on 2026-07-30: “Thank you for your review regarding your reservation experience. We take this level of feedback seriously and have shared this with Customer Service management as it aids us in training efforts. We…”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
1 reader marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“The real problem was the comfort and lack of communication.”
1 reader marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“my mother (a long time American Cruise Lines customer) lost almost $2600.00!!!”
The company replied on 2025-07-29: “We appreciate the feedback provided regarding your mother's cancellation. Should you wish to discuss the sales or cancellation process in further detail, please call (800) 894-8570 and our Customer…”
Our classifier read this reply as a substantive response.
It promised: to make contact.
1 reader marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
Refund refused
10 reports · 12% of complaintsfalling“They refunded $9643.25 and kept $2369.25.”
The company replied on 2025-12-17: “Thank you for detailing the experience of your reservation cancellation. While we regret you are unable to sail with us, your cancellation was handled in accordance with American Cruise Lines'…”
Our classifier read this reply as a deflection.
3 readers marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“denying us a refund or a travel credit”
The company replied on 2025-09-30: “We regret to hear you were unable to travel with us. We strive to handle each situation with empathy but must adhere to our cancellation policies in fairness to all guests. We recommend reaching out…”
Our classifier read this reply as a deflection.
3 readers marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“they insisted upon applying their "policy" and retained 25% of the total, or $500.”
2 readers marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
Support unreachable
9 reports · 11% of complaintssteady“I never got an email back or a call back after I emailed them six to seven times.”
The company replied on 2025-11-03: “Thank you for submitting this information. To discuss further, please send an email to [email protected] and someone will be able to assist.”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
3 readers marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“Submitted a message reporting this on the ship's app; no response”
The company replied on 2026-07-30: “We are sorry to hear about the issues you experienced on your recent cruise and have shared your comments with our Hotel Operations department for correction. Should you wish to discuss your…”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
2 readers marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
“I called customer service who said after r10 pm we were on our own.”
The company replied on 2026-07-30: “We are sorry to hear about the issues you experienced while traveling to your recent cruise and have shared your comments with our Guest Travel department. We take guest safety seriously and we hope…”
Our classifier read this reply as a template response.
1 reader marked this review helpful on Trustpilot.
Compare American Cruise Lines with…
Method: reviews are classified into a fixed complaint taxonomy by an automated reader; every category shown is backed by at least two verbatim quotes from distinct reviews. Trends are computed from dated review counts only. Negative reviews are deliberately over-sampled for evidence depth; headline percentages use an unbiased recent sample only. Report updated 2026-09-20.