Royal Caribbean to host largest ever gay and lesbian cruise

The biggest cruise ever aimed at the gay and lesbian market starts on Sunday on board Allure of the Seas

Atlantis Events Inc has chartered the 225,282 ton Allure of the Seas for a 7 night Eastern Caribbean sailing which begins in Fort Lauderdale. According to the company chartering the huge vessel nearly 5,400 people have signed up for the cruise. This will be the first time Allure has been chartered to an outside company.

Atlantis Events is the world's largest company specializing in gay and lesbian holidays, and it traditionally offers several cruises a year on chartered ships. The company says demand for the Allure of the Seas sailing has been so strong that it already has chartered the vessel for a second gay cruise to take place in January 2012. The Western Caribbean voyage will go on sale on Feb. 23rd.

Atlantis CEO Rich Campbell said "Our guest response to this first Allure of the Seas sailing was incredible, with the charter selling out in three weeks with no advertising whatsoever, we knew they would love this cruise, but had no idea just how strong the response would be."

Atlantis says it has lined up an array of gay and lesbian comedians, singers, cabaret stars and performance artists for Sunday's sailing.

Allure of the Seas is 16 decks high, stretches nearly 1,200 feet long and boasts such never-before-seen-at-sea features as an open-air "central park" with live trees and a family-friendly amusement area called Boardwalk. Allure of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas are joint world’s largest cruise ship.