Columbia River Cruises - Columbia & Snake Rivers Cruise West Small Ships

Scenery. History. Native American culture. You’ll find it all here.
While most river cruises carry you past urban centers and crowded shorelines, much of the Columbia & Snake Rivers remains pristine and wild. You can clearly see evidence of the great floods that carved this region thousands of years ago in the breathtakingly beautiful Columbia River Gorge, the golden coulees and scablands, the great black pinnacles of basalt that guided Lewis & Clark. The volcanic forces of the coast are apparent in snow-capped mountain peaks and the emerald evergreen forests coating the Cascade Range. And you’ll find that the past and present coexist here, from Oregon Trail wagon ruts to the eight locks and dams built to tame the mighty Columbia River.

Adventures beckon daily. Take a jet boat up Hells Canyon past 7,000-year-old Indian petroglyphs. Wander the hidden city beneath wild and wooly Pendleton, where Chinese emigrants once carried out their daily lives. Visit fascinating museums or Lewis & Clark landmarks like Fort Clatsop, where they spent the chilling winter of 1805-1806. The history of the Columbia River region is not one preserved in amber, but one you can touch, breathe and experience first-hand when you travel with Cruise West on our unique Columbia River cruises.