Turkey has blocked an LGBTQ+ cruise ship chartered by a US travel company from docking at two Turkish ports, saying the voyage was incompatible with the country’s “moral values” and forcing organizers to change the Mediterranean itinerary, Turkish Minute reported.
The governor’s office in Turkey’s western Aydın province said on X that the Scarlet Lady, a Virgin Voyages cruise ship chartered by US-based Atlantis Events, would not be allowed to stop at the Aegean port of Kuşadası as scheduled on July 7 because it had been leased by groups “known for behaviors incompatible with the fabric of our society and our moral values.” The ship had also been scheduled to visit İstanbul later in the voyage.
The governor’s office said “there is absolutely no possibility” that the group would be permitted to visit the province “for an event of this nature.”
It added that the cancellation applied only to this voyage and would not affect other cruise traffic to Kuşadası, one of Turkey’s busiest cruise ports. Tourism activities in the province would continue as usual, it said.
Atlantis Events, a US company that specializes in vacations for LGBTQ+ travelers, said Turkish officials had canceled both of the ship’s planned stops in Turkey, which forced the company to revise the itinerary. Instead of visiting Kuşadası and İstanbul, the Scarlet Lady will now call at Cairo and the Greek island of Crete.
Rich Campbell, the president and CEO of Atlantis Events, said the company had never before been denied permission to dock because of the identity of its passengers.
“It’s pretty stunning, to be honest. I mean, and the reasoning behind it is that it’s a gay group,” Campbell told CNN. Campbell said about 1,100 of the cruise’s 1,900 passengers are from the United States, with the remainder coming from countries including the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.
Rejecting suggestions that the cruise had a political purpose, Campbell said, “We are not there for anything except to spend money, have a good time, take tours and be incredibly respectful to every culture we visit.”
CNN reported that it had contacted Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the Turkish Embassy in Washington and Virgin Voyages for comment.
The planned cruise also prompted action in İstanbul before its scheduled arrival. On June 27 the Beyoğlu District Governor’s Office closed Tek Yön, a gay bar in the city’s Cihangir neighborhood, after inspections ordered by the İstanbul Governor’s Office. Officials said the venue was shut down because its operations violated regulations but did not specify the violations. The bar had advertised a party for cruise passengers.
The government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has banned Pride marches in İstanbul since 2015, citing security and public order concerns. Rights groups say restrictions on LGBTQ+ events and organizations have expanded in recent years, while Erdoğan has repeatedly described LGBTQ+ rights as incompatible with traditional family values.
