When Turkey Refused To Let A Gay Cruise Dock, Patti LuPone Did Not Mince Words
When Turkey Refused To Let A Gay Cruise Dock, Patti LuPone Did Not Mince Words
Ian Kumamoto Thu, July 9, 2026 at 6:32 PM UTC
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Patti LuPone did not mince words when reacting to local Turkish authorities saying they would not allow a gay cruise to dock at its port.Taylor Hill/FilmMagic via Getty Images
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AVirginVoyage cruise ship set to carry over 2,000 gay passengers as well as gay icon and singer-actress Patti LuPone was informed just days before its departure that it would not be allowed to dock in the Turkish city of Kuşadası as scheduled on July 7.
Rich Campbell — CEO of Atlantis Events, which organizes LGBTQ+ cruises including this one — said he was informed of the cancellation on July 2.
According to a social media post from local Turkish authorities, the ship’s docking was “canceled” because the behavior of the cruise ship passengers “do not align with the structure of our society and our moral values.” The first point of irony here is that gay travelers arguably behave more respectfully than the bachelor and bachelorette parties that often plague these cruises. This was clearly code for, “We don’t like the gays.”
LuPone, who was scheduled to be on the cruise to perform, was rightfully livid. “The Atlantis cruise I am performing on next week has been banned from entering Turkey,” she wrote on Instagram. “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. I am ready to perform for all the wonderful men on this Atlantis cruise, who deserve so much better than this.”
Part of what makes this story so baffling is the fact that the company’s gay cruises had already docked in Kuşadası or Istanbul 13 times in the past 25 years, Campbell told USA Today. Although Turkey does not explicitly criminalize homosexuality, there are no laws protecting LGBTQ+ people, which means its treatment of queer people is pretty much decided on a case-by-case basis.
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In 2000, passengers on another gay cruise ship were blocked from entering Kuşadası, but the then-tourism minister, Erkan Mumcu, apologized and said, “We cannot discriminate according to people’s ****** preference,” The Guardian reported. Apparently, this time around, citizens expressed more concerns about the cruise ship docking there.
Whether Turkey felt empowered now to implement that exclusion thanks to the rise in right-wing governments around the world or whether it just decided to ban this group of gay tourists on a whim, this incident is a sobering reminder that much of the world can still deny queer people service with no consequences.
Also, the Turkish authorities should be a little more mindful about pissing off a gay icon as powerful as LuPone. The wrath of gays is far-reaching once someone has messed with our queens. Take Judy Garland, whose death might have played a part in starting the Stonewall Riots.
Nevertheless, this latest saga is an example of the resilience and commitment of gay people to keep the party going regardless of who’s hating. And the cherry on top of all of it was that LuPone, with one online rant, has ascended to Madonna levels of queer male loyalty.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
