Turkey Bars US LGBTQ+ Cruise From Docking, Citing 'Moral Values'

A Mediterranean cruise carrying more than 1,000 American LGBTQ+ travellers has been forced to drop planned stops in Turkey after authorities refused to allow the ship to dock, citing the country's "moral standards" and "family values."

The 10-day "Athens to Venice" cruise, organised by Atlantis Events, is scheduled to depart from Greece on July 5. It had been due to stop at the Turkish resort town of Kuşadası before continuing to Istanbul, but both port calls were cancelled by Turkish authorities. The revised itinerary now includes Cairo, Egypt, and the Greek island of Crete.

Officials in Turkey's Aydın province, where Kuşadası is located, said the visit was cancelled because the ship had been chartered by groups "known for behaviors incompatible with the fabric of our society and our moral values." They added there was "absolutely no possibility of the group in question visiting our province for an event of this nature."

The vessel, Scarlet Lady, is operated by Virgin Voyages, the cruise line backed by British entrepreneur Richard Branson.

Rich Campbell, president and chief executive of Atlantis Events, described Turkey's decision as unprecedented in the company's 36-year history.

"It's pretty stunning, to be honest. I mean, and the reasoning behind it is that it's a gay group," Campbell told CNN.

"It's very concerning to me when a country decides they can pick and choose which tourists are allowed in and which are not," he added, saying it was the first time the company had been "actively told we may not berth here because of who we are."

The cruise is expected to carry about 1,900 passengers, including roughly 1,100 from the United States, with the remainder travelling from countries including the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.

Atlantis informed passengers that "due to circumstances beyond our control, we have had to change the ports in our itinerary to remove both port calls to Turkey" after the scheduled stops were cancelled. Campbell stressed the company was not pursuing a political agenda.

"This is not a political organization. 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," he said.

Campbell also said police in Istanbul had raided a local bar after an "Atlantis brochure" advertised a party there, adding that the promotional material was neither produced by nor affiliated with Atlantis Events.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has adopted an increasingly restrictive stance towards the LGBTQ+ community. Authorities have banned Pride marches in Istanbul since 2015, citing public safety and security concerns, while rights groups have accused the government of intensifying anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric and curbing the rights of sexual minorities.

CNN said it had sought comment from Turkey's Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the Turkish embassy in Washington and Virgin Voyages.