The Savannah River carried rice, cotton, and indigo to Atlantic ports for two centuries before a paddlewheel dinner service claimed its evening hours. By the 1980s, freight traffic had migrated to trucking corridors, and the waterfront shifted to tourism. Where flatboats once loaded plantation goods at Factor's Walk, replica sternwheelers now depart nightly from the cobblestone wharf at River Street, carrying three-course meals instead of cargo. The dinner cruise model borrows directly from Mississippi steamboat tradition—open-air decks, calliope whistles, and live entertainment echoing the Mark Twain era. Savannah's version runs a compressed route: east past the Talmadge Memorial Bridge, west toward Hutchinson Island, then a slow return under the lit silhouette of City Hall's gold dome. The two-hour circuit covers roughly six river miles, paced to match a plated meal service. Gospel Monday sailings add choir performances; Friday and Saturday departures feature jazz ensembles or Southern folk acts. The riverboat itself is a steel-hulled facsimile—no steam engine, but twin diesels concealed below decks to preserve the paddlewheel aesthetic. Three climate-controlled dining levels hold 400 passengers; open promenade decks line the bow and stern. The menu rotates seasonally: shrimp and grits in spring, she-crab soup in winter, peach cobbler year-round. Portions lean generous; the kitchen sources from regional suppliers along the Georgia coast. River views shift as the boat moves. Eastbound, Factor's Walk warehouses and the cotton exchange dominate the north bank; westbound, Yamacraw Bluff rises above the railyards. Waving Oak's branches overhang the water near the Savannah Yacht Club. By sunset, the river turns amber, then indigo. City lights reflect off the current as the boat returns to dock. Boarding begins at six; departure is prompt at six-thirty. Late arrivals forfeit their reservation. The Savannah dinner cruise format has remained unchanged for four decades—predictable, efficient, and calibrated to tourist schedules. It delivers exactly what it promises: a meal, a view, and two hours on the water.