TWO MAJOR CRUISE LINES AXE ALL TURKEY CALLS FOR 2017

In a new move, both Cunard and P&O Cruises have announced that they will cancel all calls at Turkish ports for the entire duration of 2017. The move comes as a follow on to the terrorist attacks in Turkey throughout 2016, primarily the bombing at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport on June 28th that killed 42 people, and the subsequent attempted military coup.

The move follows on from a whole conga line of cruise companies that gave Turkey a swerve after the tempestuous events of the summer, when lines such as Crystal, Disney and MSC Cruises decided to immediately end calls to the three main Turkish ports of Istanbul, Izmir, and Kusadasi.

Cunard and P&O are instead going to offer alternative ports of call in the Greek islands and Albania. But for many, the Turkish trio of ports are a prime motivator for booking cruises in the Eastern Mediterranean in the first case. It is also possible that other lines in the Carnival portfolio such as Costa, Holland America, Princess and the very upscale Seabourn, might also follow suit.

The consequences for the Turkish market are potentially very serious, indeed. But it should be noted that, as of now, it is primarily the lines carrying predominantly English speaking passengers that are abandoning Turkey, mainly in line with advice from the American, Australian, and UK foreign offices. Italian companies are continuing to sail to all three ports, though naturally all lines are continuing to monitor the situation on the ground.

Celestyal Cruises, which has a very port intensive series of three, four and seven day cruises in the region from March through November, has no plans to abandon the Turkish ports- many of which they also use for embarkation-at any time soon, but most of their passengers tend to be from the local Greek and Turkish markets in any event.

Sitting at the fulcrum of both Asia and Europe, Turkey has been seen as a historic fault line for centuries of conflict, and the inherent instability of neighbours such as Iraq- not to mention the virtual implosion of Syria- has only served to highlight that region's potential for unpredictability.

A state of emergency was declared in Turkey itself on September 28th for a period of three months, after which it will be reviewed again and, most probably, extended. And, while passengers will be disappointed to lose access to some prime Turkish sights next year, the cruise lines are absolutely correct in acting to put the safety of their passengers first.