The 76m-long, 2,200-tonne ship was named Dongfangzhixing in Chinese
It was carrying 405 passengers - mostly elderly tourists but also one three-year-old - as well as five travel agency employees and 46 crew members.
The ship is owned by the Chongqing Eastern Shipping Corporation, and passengers had BOOKED their trip through a travel agency in Shanghai.
The cruise left the eastern city of Nanjing in April and was travelling to Chongqing in the south-west via the Three Gorges - a journey of at least 1,500km (930 miles).