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Celebrity Cruises Cancels All Overnights in Istanbul

LauraS

By LauraS,
in Celebrity Cruises

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  • 2 weeks later...
Mercruiser

Mercruiser

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Posted

I am in Istanbul right now for a business trip. Equinox was in Istanbul overnight on Friday. I have pictures to prove it. Strange that they would make such an announcement. By the way, I am having a great time in Istanbul.

 

 

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Mercruiser

Mercruiser

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I don't follow their logic. Its unacceptably dangerous to have an overnight port call in Istanbul but it's acceptably dangerous to have an overnight in port if it's at the beginning of a cruise because it would be inconvenient otherwise?

 

 

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peteukmcr

peteukmcr

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I am in Istanbul right now for a business trip. Equinox was in Istanbul overnight on Friday. I have pictures to prove it. Strange that they would make such an announcement. By the way, I am having a great time in Istanbul.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

We have just returned from Istanbul and Constellation (from which we disembarked) docked on Friday, 18th and left again late that evening as the overnight was cancelled.

 

Equinox arrived very early on the 19th and was due to depart at 11pm the same day, so as the Captains Club rep stated to us whilst on board Constellation, no Celebrity ships will spend overnight in Istanbul for the safety of the passengers having consulted with their security teams in Istanbul.

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TLCOhio "Live from...." Rare

TLCOhio

Posted
Posted
I am in Istanbul right now for a business trip. Equinox was in Istanbul overnight on Friday. I have pictures to prove it. Strange that they would make such an announcement. By the way, I am having a great time in Istanbul.

 

Appreciate this and other posts about the current status of "affairs" in Istanbul. It is one of our most favorite and fascinating cities in the world. Such amazing history, architecture, food, culture, etc. Have friends who have been there during this past week. In the upcoming days, I will be talking with them and getting their impressions, info, insights, etc.

 

For those who have not been there, below is one my personal top visual favorites as we approached during our cruise ship arrival. We were fortunate to have two full days there with a personal guide, seeing and learning so much on this great city.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Dozens of nice visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc. We are now at 204,200 views for this live/blog re-cap, including much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

 

Here was our first view of Istanbul in June 2006 from our just-docking cruise ship as we smelled the sweet blend of this historic Turkish city. YES, you could really smell how “special” is this unique city with so much culture, charm and interest! Istanbul has such a wide variety of history, culture, architecture, people, food, charm, etc. It’s the total experience here that is so amazing.:

 

1A-Istanbul-Harbor.jpg

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az_tchr

az_tchr

Posted
Posted
I don't follow their logic. Its unacceptably dangerous to have an overnight port call in Istanbul but it's acceptably dangerous to have an overnight in port if it's at the beginning of a cruise because it would be inconvenient otherwise?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What do you not understand about their logic? It is not "inconvenient" to change the starting or ending point of a cruise. It is darn near impossible as every one of the passengers on two cruises (some 4200+) would need to rebook air and possibly accommodations along with probably a couple hundred crew or more that are rotating in or out.

 

There were some discussions about moving the start to Canakkale, but the issue of bus transport made that really impossible requiring some 100 buses to handle passengers and all their luggage and it is a couple hours each way.

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ptrpanpens

ptrpanpens

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I just hope this is resolved by next October. I still intend to spend a week in Istanbul prior to my cruise unless things are so bad that the State Department forbids travel. But I wont be spending my time anywhere around Taksim Square!

 

Good to know things are still OK there for the time being even if Celebrity has chosen not to dock overnight. And lets just hope they stay that way after upcoming Turkish elections.

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Mercruiser

Mercruiser

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I just hope this is resolved by next October. I still intend to spend a week in Istanbul prior to my cruise unless things are so bad that the State Department forbids travel. But I wont be spending my time anywhere around Taksim Square!

 

Good to know things are still OK there for the time being even if Celebrity has chosen not to dock overnight. And lets just hope they stay that way after upcoming Turkish elections.

 

I was at Taksim Square last night. It was full of people enjoying their Saturday night on the town.

 

I'll be going to Istanbul next August, followed by a Med cruise. If the cruise line decides to cancel, I'll still go to Istanbul, followed by a "Blue Cruise" on a gulet along the Turkish coast.

 

Sent from my Nexus 7

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  • 3 weeks later...
Wine-O

Wine-O

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With the recent bombing and carnage in Ankara, I'm thinking Celebrity will be doing away with stops in Istanbul in the immediate future. I suppose it's too late to cancel Constellations two embarkations this month.

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az_tchr

az_tchr

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Yup. Think visiting Turkey is off the table until things smooth out. Not sure where they move the start/end of those cruises in the future, but reschedule they will. Possibly Athens.

 

Was in Istanbul earlier this year and found it wonderful and had no sense of fear even after dark when we got lost.

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need2cruisesoon

need2cruisesoon

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Yup. Think visiting Turkey is off the table until things smooth out. Not sure where they move the start/end of those cruises in the future, but reschedule they will. Possibly Athens.

 

Was in Istanbul earlier this year and found it wonderful and had no sense of fear even after dark when we got lost.

 

What a shame as it is a beautiful city for sure.

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ShawninFL

ShawninFL

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I'm still looking forward to our stop in Istanbul next year. Hopefully things will settle down in Turkey by then. If we aren't able to call on Istanbul I will be disappointed, but we'll still have a great trip. Everyone's safety is the most important factor.

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colliercruiser

colliercruiser

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Has this info relating to 10/23 sailing of constellation, been confirmed with Celebrity? Passengers have not been informed regarding stop in Crete and missing Kusadasi.

 

 

Are you saying some cruises are not stopping in Kusadasi (Ephesus)? I haven't seen that anywhere else, but only the stops to Istanbul.

 

 

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DYKWIA

DYKWIA

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Posted (edited)

They may need to swap Turkey out of next year's itineraries to get bookings- we were looking to book one of the Eastern Med Cruises next year but are reluctant to go to Turkey at the moment. I just don't see these issues being resolved in Turkey in the near future.

 

The Black Sea got pulled from all itineraries this year.

Edited by DYKWIA
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