<
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/06/turkey-blocks-lgbtq-cruise-ship-citing-moral-values-ntwnfb>
"A cruise ship carrying 2,000 LGBTQ+ passengers and the Broadway performer
Patti LuPone has been blocked from entering Turkey after local authorities said
their behaviour didn’t “align with the structure of our society and our moral
values”.
Virgin Voyages’
Scarlet Lady set sail from Athens, Greece, on 5 July for what
was billed as “an epic all-gay voyage” over 10 days run by Atlantis, a US
company that puts on cruises and vacations for LGBTQ+ people.
The
Scarlet Lady was expected to dock in the Turkish port town of Kuşadası on
7 July, followed by a trip to Istanbul.
But authorities in Turkey’s Aydin province, where Kuşadası is, published a
statement online saying the cruise was chartered “by groups known for
behaviours that do not align with the structure of our society and our moral
values”.
The ship’s arrival had been “cancelled” after it “sparked significant public
concern”, they added: “There is absolutely no possibility of the group in
question visiting our province for an event of this nature.”
Atlantis has docked gay cruises in Istanbul and Kuşadası 13 times in the last
25 years, Rich Campbell, the president and chief executive of Atlantis Events,
told
USA Today."
Via Susan ****
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
