Sailing Ship Columbia

This ship was set for people to come on and just look at it since they are getting ready for the Star Wars construction the River Boat was parked on the other side of the river where I believe this one usually sits when not in use. I’ve been in this a couple of times but never went below deck so it was cool to check out below deck. Got to see the Capt quarters and their eating and sleeping area as well as the weapons and other things. I don’t know how long this will be like that I assume not for long cause once they start construction for Star Wars land it will probably be all closed and blocked.

Ahoy matey! I don’t make it a habit of riding the Columbia or Mark Twain but it was a busy Friday afternoon and since I know they are temporarily closing to make room for Star Wars land, I wanted to take one last opportunity to take a ride before they close for a while.
It’s a fun ride to enjoy great views of the park that you can’t really get from other places at Disneyland. The theme is well-​executed and it’s fun to wander around the ship during the quick journey around the Rivers of America.

A great attraction to sail on the Rivers of America.
very fun for kids of all ages. They can turn the wheel, go below deck to see displays about 18^th century life. And a cannon is even shot! My boys love this!
The ship is really beautiful.
Only negative is there isn’t much seating (one bench and the floor), so you pretty much have to stand.

Fun boat ride around the Rivers of America. Not too many places to sit, though, and won’t cool you down on a hot day.

This is so much better than the Mark Twain Paddle-​Steamboat thing! Not only is it easier to hear everything the taped narrator is telling you, but there’s so much more to see and experience on board.
And, before I forget, this ship sails from the same dock as the Mark Twain boat — right across from Big Thunder Mountain. They have it on a schedule so that the two boats rotate through the embarkation point, which you may not realize, since this ship’s slip is across from The Haunted Mansion.
It’s definitely more interactive, with a whole «scene» below decks, «cannon» along the rails, and some kind of see-​saw contraption that makes the kids think they’re contributing to the movement of the ship.
I was surprised by how crowded the ship got, especially given the fact that it «broke» while we were in line the first time (they told everyone that the ship was down for an undetermined amount of time, right after they cleared it of passengers from its prior cruise).
You’re not covering any new ground, if you’ve been on the Mark Twain boat, but it’s presented differently enough that I found I enjoyed this ship much more.
Down below, you get a glimpse into the living/​working quarters of the crew and the Captain. You can see where they stored their necessities (including guns!), where the Captain took his meals, and where they slept — though, I found myself hoping — for the sake of the crew — that their sleeping berths were miniaturized for the park.
Up top, the «crew» of the ship are more involved with the cruise, as well. They even «fire the cannon» once or twice, at one point! Yes, I was amused by that!
Returning to the dock was kind of cluster, with one crew member telling us to move further down the ship, then turning around and telling us we had to move from the spot he had just moved us to, but it’s not a big deal. They manage to make the enter/​exit phase pass smoothly and efficiently, and they managed to corral the unruly kids that were running, climbing and screaming at the beginning of the cruise.
I know this ship doesn’t sail very often, so if you happen to see it floating around the lagoon, do yourself a favor and get in line for its next tour!

Finally got to ride the Columbia… it’s the same route the Mark Twain uses, so if you’ve been on that ship, you’ll see the same sights. However, you can go below the Columbia’s decks to see recreations of the captain’s and crew’s quarters.
Also, one of the cast members assigned to the Columbia that day had a peg leg! We didn’t notice until the Columbia had docked, and he was making his way to get the disembarkment exit ready saying, «Make a hole; one legged sailor coming through!»

We jumped on the Columbia on the second half of day one. The girls fell asleep about ¹⁄₃ of the voyage, but I thoroughly enjoyed the journey. Fun experience sailing through the river of adventure land, seeing Daniel Boones raccoon skin hat on the door of the cabin in the woods and the crew shooting warning shots off the starboard bow to ward off aggressive injuns. Great fun. A must see with a turkey leg, some sunscreen and a very large drink.

I have never gotten the chance to ride the Columbia, and while we were killing time waiting for our FP for another ride, we noticed it pulling into the dock and hopped on! Okay, so it’s no thrill ride, but I enjoyed it. It felt more exciting being on the Columbia than on the Mark Twain paddlewheel boat. More pirate-​y perhaps? Easier to imagine traveling on the open ocean? This is the only boat I can «sail» on that doesn’t make my landlubber hubby sick, anyway.
The small children on board seemed to really enjoy this one. They fire a little cannon at the front of the ship twice. At the end of the ride, the cast member got everyone to wave their hands in the air and wave ‘em like they just don’t care to the sea chanty playing over the loudspeaker. I cracked up.
Be sure to let your kiddo ring the bell!

Tons of fun sailing the seven seas on this pirate ship. Lots of history on the decks as well. Great for the kids.

please refer to my mark twain riverboat review :)
all in all, a great experience if youre looking to kill time or with tourists who are very into pirates.
if youre trying to ride all the big rides though, take a gander at it for about 10 seconds, and then move on! nothing special here unless you want to play pirate! :)

This ride really isn’t good for anything other than a time killer.

What a fun experience! Get to go on the Sailing Ship Columbia and pretend you’re a pirate! You can even go below decks and see how pirates use to live. Let’s just say those beds were not at all comfy!
This ship takes you on the Rivers of America and all around it like a tour. For those of you with small kids, this is a wonderful experience for them.

my son prefers the columbia over the mark twain… b/​c it is a PIRATE SHIP! i personally don’t care… either way you are on a 15 minutes cruise around pirate island and it is cool either way. of course my daughter would rather be on the «pretty white boat» aka the mark twain (that doesn’t sound so cool to a little girl)
…we make up names to make the rides more appealing… like the first time she went on Matterhorn, she was mortified of the snowmonster! so we told her it was a big fluffy white teddy bear… so we went a second time and she loved it! now it is un-​officially called the teddy bear ride.
like Eric N. said… no bathroom on this (but that is the case for the mark twain too).
as an adult… i feel that if you like one boat… you’ll like the other the same.

There is no poop deck on the boat… make sure to use the restroom before you depart on your journey around the Rivers of America.
I am sorry for the 3 stars Sailing Ship Columbia… the Mark Twain is my favorite of the big boats at Disneyland.
The Sailing Ship Columbia is nice but it just seems like the Mark Twain is a bit more on the fun side and tells a better story. The Columbia also has a tenancy to be docked most of the time while the Mark Twain Riverboat is in service on most days.
Most people believe that the Columbia is a pirate ship… they could not be farther from the truth. The boat is actually modeled after the ship from the 18^th century that discovered the Columbia River and became the first American ship to circumnavigate the globe. I did not know this fact for the longest time and once I found out I had to actually ask around to make sure it was correct but it totally is. I actually was a bit happier thinking of it as a pirate ship. I guess with Pirates of the Caribbean being within walking distance that would have been a bit redundant.
Unlike the Mark Twain there is only two levels on this ship… the main deck and the lower deck. You spend more time checking out the stuff around the river than you spend checking out the boat on this attraction.
On busy days both the Mark Twain Riverboat and the Sailing Ship Columbia are running. If it was me I would wait to ride the Mark Twain but either ride is just as magical as it’s counterpart.
:0)