A Virgin Voyages vessel was turned away by Egypt after Türkiye blocked its planned calls over “moral values”
A cruise ship chartered for an LGBTQ-themed voyage has been denied entry to Egypt after being barred from planned stops in Türkiye earlier this week. Organizers have been forced to change the itinerary for a second time, media outlets have reported, citing the cruise operator.
The Virgin Voyages-operated Scarlet Lady departed on July 5 on a ten-day ‘Athens to Venice’ sailing organized by US-based LGBTQ cruise company Atlantis Events, carrying around 2,000 passengers. Alexandria was added to the itinerary after Turkish authorities blocked scheduled calls at Istanbul and the port city of Kusadasi, where the vessel had been due to dock on July 7.
According to The Guardian and The Washington Post, passengers were informed early on Thursday that the Alexandria stop had also been canceled as organizers searched for an alternative port. The visit had included excursions to Cairo and the Egyptian Museum.
Atlantis Events CEO Rich Campbell said Egyptian authorities withdrew permission to dock at the last minute, calling the move “really unheard of” and “strange and sad.” He added that around 1,200 shore excursions had already been booked through local operators.
The Egyptian authorities had not publicly explained the decision at the time of writing. Türkiye announced its ban before the ship reached the country. In a June 28 statement posted on the official X account of Aydin Province, officials said the Kusadasi call was canceled because the charter group was “known for behaviors that do not align with the structure of our society and our moral values,” adding that the visit had “sparked significant public concern.”
Campbell said Türkiye’s decision marked the first time in Atlantis Events’ 36-year history that one of its chartered cruises had been denied entry by a country. He noted that the company had operated 13 cruises to Türkiye over the past 25 years without incident and that efforts involving the US Embassy failed to reverse the decision.
Broadway performer Patti LuPone, who was scheduled to appear on the cruise, criticized Türkiye’s decision, writing on social media last week that she was “furious” the ship had been denied entry and that its passengers “deserve so much better than this.”
The Scarlet Lady has since been rerouted to Chania on the Greek island of Crete for a Friday port call before continuing to Montenegro on Sunday.
