The Tennessee Riverboat Company operates the Star of Knoxville Riverboat cruising the Tennessee River. The Tennessee River is one of the most beautiful rivers you will ever cruise. You will enjoy one of the most breathtaking views in Knoxville. Not only will you see some of the history of the river, you will most certainly be relaxed by the river’s beauty. Join us on a lunch or dinner cruise.
We did a lunch cruise on the Star of Knoxville, and the boat ride was very peaceful and relaxing. The views were pretty as well, definitely worth seeing. But I'd recommend just doing a scenic tour, instead of getting the meal too. The buffet lunch of BBQ and sides tasted like cafeteria food. The sweet tea and the rolls were great, but otherwise I wasn't too thrilled with the meal. The server was wonderful and very friendly. It was also difficult to hear the captain talk about the scenery, their sound system wasn't very good. Restrooms: seemed clean. Parking: the entrance to the parking area is shared with Calhoun's, and it's awkward to navigate, but they had plenty of available parking close to the boat dock.
My husband booked us the dinner cruise for my 40th birthday and paid extra for the window seats. The boat is very old which isn’t an issue but it wasn’t very clean. Cobwebs & dead bugs all along the outside railings. Windows inside were dirty, dead flies and ants. The windows are not tinted and do not offer any shade so if you plan to do this (especially in the summer) be aware the sun will be beating down on you along with the glare from the sun on the water so bring sunglasses and get ready for it to be extremely hot and uncomfortable while trying to enjoy the meal. Everyone was walking upstairs to try and get a breeze because it was hot below during dinner. There was a giant fan blowing in the room by the dj and people were trying to get cool from that. Our assigned table was closest to the dj and we couldn’t even hear each other across the small table because the music was so loud. We enjoyed the food until it got so hot but weren’t prepared for a buffet. Please update your website to show this is not a sit down, served meal. When we couldn’t take the heat any longer we went upstairs with everyone else and tried to find a seat. The only seating offered is folding chairs. Offer more seating. People were standing around awkwardly waiting for people to get up. It was so crowded because everyone was trying to get cool. The only saving grace of the night was the singer playing his guitar upstairs. He was fun and amazing. The sun was still beating down on us up there for a good hour but we stayed for the sights and little breeze there was. We forfeited our desserts, sadly, because we didn’t want to go back downstairs. The staff was friendly but the captain didn’t offer any info about the sites. We did get some great photos.
A wonderful trip, so relaxing. The Captain was knowledgeable and pointed out special places along the cruise. We were on the top level which is for spectators. There are tables and chairs on that level and its open (great breeze). The bottom level is the dining area if you sign up for lunch or dinner. This level is glass enclosed with air conditioning. Both levels have bathrooms. The only negative remark is the smoking allowed on the top level. I was fine during the first part of the cruise, but when the diners from the bottom level came up after their meals most of them were smokers. I have lung issues and can't breath around smoke. It was a disappointing way to end the cruise
It was raining so we could not see very well. Table was dirty and there was an ant 🐜 issue. We kept having to sweep ants off the table. Food was average, very cafeteria like. If we did it again I would just do the sightseeing tour. The dinner cruise is not worth the price.
Took a vacation trip with my wife & we enjoyed the riverboat cruise very much. We meet some great people on the cruise. Will most definitely share this experience with friends & family. 🙏🏾😄👍🏽