LGBTQ+ Cruise Aboard Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady Turned Away from Turkey

For the first time in the 36 years Atlantis Events has been organizing LGBTQ+ cruise groups, one of its ships has been turned away from a port. 

Authorities in Turkey turned away Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady because the ship had been chartered by groups “known for behaviours incompatible with the fabric of our society and our moral values,” CNN reported.

The 10-day “Athens to Venice” cruise was scheduled to depart Greece on Sunday and stop in Kuşadası, Türkiye, two days later before continuing to Istanbul. Instead, the ship will now stop in Cairo, Egypt, and Crete, Greece, Atlantis said.

The decision affects about 1,900 passengers, including roughly 1,100 from the United States. Canadians, Australians and British citizens are among the other passengers.

 Rich Campbell, president and CEO of Atlantis Events, told CNN: “It’s pretty stunning, to be honest. I mean, and the reasoning behind it is that it’s a gay group.” He said it was the first time in the company’s 36-year history that Atlantis had been “actively told we may not berth here because of who we are.” 

Broadway legend Patti LuPone, who is scheduled to perform on the cruise, condemned the decision in an Instagram post Friday.

“I am shocked,” LuPone wrote. “The Atlantis cruise I am performing on next week has been banned from entering Turkey. A ship — a magnificent ship — full of gay men. And me. Denied entry to Turkey simply because of who is on board. I am furious, but I am sailing, as the ship will make other ports of call.”

She added, “I am ready to perform for all the wonderful men on this Atlantis cruise, who deserve so much better than this.”

Based in West Hollywood, California, Atlantis Events has built a lucrative business around large-scale LGBTQ+ cruises.

The port ban comes as LGBTQ+ advocates warn that Turkey is considering an even broader legal crackdown that would further criminalize LGBTQ+ people, including prison sentences of up to three years for “attitudes and behaviours contrary to biological sex and public morality” or for praising or promoting such conduct.