hermes-holidays

EXCLUSIVE: LGBT+ cruise ship with couple of hundred Aussies onboard now denied entry to Egypt

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 14:14:43 GMT

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The LGBT+ gay cruise, with a couple of hundred Aussies on board, that made global headlines after being turned away from Türkiye has now reportedly been turned away from Egypt.

An update to passengers obtained by Travel Weekly shows Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady will not be allowed into Alexandria, after being denied entry by Egyptian authorities. The ship is now looking for a new place to berth, with Atlantis Events tour organiser said to be working to secure an alternative port.

Kyle Olsen , owner of Hermes Holidays , told Travel Weekly that a couple of hundred Australians were onboard the ship, likely to be the second-largest nationality after Americans.

Many of the passengers had already spent money on their own private excursions in Egypt wanting to see the pyramids, he said, adding that Egypt had been the “dangled carrot” after the ship was turned away from Türkiye.

In the update to passengers, received just hours ago, Atlantis Events said: “We’re incredibly disappointed to share that Scarlet Lady has just been denied entry into Egyptian waters and will no longer be able to call into Alexandria. We’re working hard to secure an alternative port.”

While the solution is still being decided, the update said it wanted customers to know the “unfortunate news”.

The ship, chartered by Atlantis Events for a 10-day “Athens to Venice” cruise carrying roughly 1,900 LGBT+ passengers – including around 1,100 Americans – had already been rerouted once after Türkiye’s rejection.

On 28 June, officials in Türkiye’s Aydın province confirmed via a statement posted on X that Scarlet Lady would not be permitted to dock in Kuşadası on 7 July, or in Istanbul the following day. The charter group was told it was “known for behaviours that do not align with the structure of our society and our moral values”, and that its planned arrival had “caused great discomfort in various segments of our society”.

Atlantis had since rerouted the ship to Cairo and Crete instead but passengers were told on the morning of the scheduled Alexandria call that Scarlet Lady had been denied entry into Egyptian waters altogether.

Speaking after the Türkiye ban, Atlantis Events CEO Rich Campbell revealed it was the first time in the company’s 36-year history that a country had denied it entry outright. He called the decision “stunning,” telling CNN: “The reasoning behind it is that it’s a gay group.”

Campbell noted Atlantis had chartered cruises into Istanbul and Kuşadası 13 times over the past 25 years without incident, and said calls involving the US Embassy in Türkiye had failed to reverse the ban.

Broadway performer Patti LuPone, who was booked to appear on board, said she was “furious” but would continue sailing regardless.

Members of the travel community have since reacted to the news.

Speaking exclusively to Travel Weekly, Mario Paez, co-founder and managing director at Planetdwellers, a travel agency dedicated to serving LGBT+ travellers, says things have deteriorated in Türkiye since Pride was banned in Istanbul in 2015.

“It’s a little bit like Russia used to be,” he says. “You could go to St Petersburg and do gay tours and gay sailings. Once Pride got removed and not permitted, it all changed. Türkiye’s slowly going that way, unfortunately.”

Paez says the shift has been building for close to a decade rather than happening overnight, but the timing of this particular ban still caught the industry off guard, given the itinerary’s long track record.

Olsen sees the ban as part of a wider pattern worth watching.

“From our perspective, incidents like this are a reminder that while international travel has never been more accessible, LGBTQI+ travellers still need to be aware of the rise of far-right governments and movements around the world,” he says. “These political shifts can have a real impact on where our community feels safe, welcome and able to travel openly.”

WorldPride Amsterdam 2026 – And The Best Way To Experience This Global Celebration

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 14:14:42 GMT

Book the Hermes Holidays WorldPride package here.

Twenty-five years ago, the Netherlands wrote history with the world’s first open civil marriage law, and that milestone is the heartbeat of WorldPride 2026 in Amsterdam. From 25 July to 8 August, the city will honour the law’s silver jubilee with a packed fortnight of parties, parades and conversations aimed at taking LGBTQIA+ equality further.

What to expect across the canals

The opening weekend launches with a Pride March from Amstelveld to Vondelpark on 25 July, followed by Pride Park’s day-long picnic and live music. Open-air films will light up Krugerpark, Mercatorplein and Gershwinplein each evening through 31 July, while street parties spill onto a dozen blocks from 31 July to 1 August.

Amsterdam Gay Pride (Unsplash/Ari Dinar)

Amsterdam’s signature Canal Parade returns on 1 August, weaving through Nieuwe Herengracht, the Amstel and Prinsengracht in a blaze of colour. The final week shifts to Museumplein for a village hub, concerts and a three-day WorldPride conference at the Beurs van Berlage. It will all culminate in the WorldPride March and closing concert on 8 August.

Why this WorldPride matters now

Equal rights remain uneven across Europe and within the Dutch kingdom. “Our community cannot rest while hard-won freedoms sit on shaky ground,” Pride Amsterdam organisers note, calling for a visible, united front. WorldPride aims to send activists home energised and connected, ready to spark a fresh wave of LGBTQIA+ emancipation.

Looking back, moving forward…

Amsterdam’s rainbow legacy stretches from EuroPride 1994 to the Gay Games 1998 and a thriving nine-day Pride festival every summer. Can WorldPride 2026 help the city reclaim its “gay capital” crown? At DNA, we believe the answer lies in the bold way the Dutch capital combines celebration with advocacy, forging numerous new alliances along its canals.

The Best Way To Experience WorldPride Amsterdam

Sorting out logistics for WorldPride can be a massive job. If you’d rather just show up and have everything taken care of, Australian gay tour operator Hermes Holidays has a 10-day curated package. This is designed to cover all the essentials, letting you focus on the parties and festivities.

Amsterdam Gay Pride (WikiCommons/Alf van Beem)

The Hermes Holidays package offers far more than just a hotel room and parade seats. The organisers have planned the itinerary so you can see the best of the city without having to do any of the planning yourself.

Inclusions cover your stay in a 4-star+ hotel, a VIP welcome dinner with drinks, and prime viewing for the Canal Parade from a private boat (drinks and snacks included). You also get expert-led tours of the Rijksmuseum and the Heineken Experience, plus a countryside e-bike adventure complete with local cheese and beer.

Amsterdam Gay Pride (Unsplash/Anna Biasoli)

The 10-Day Itinerary

Fri 31 Jul – Welcome to Amsterdam — The Party Starts Here: Check in at the Clayton Hotel Amsterdam American near Reguliersdwarsstraat and Paradiso. Group welcome banquet at The Secret Garden with free-flow drinks, then straight to the Pride street parties.
Sat 1 Aug – Amsterdam Canal Parade & Pride Parties: Watch the Canal Parade from Hermes’ private boats with uninterrupted views, unlimited drinks and snacks, plus onboard bathrooms. After dark, choose Dam Square’s free after-party or ticketed club events.
Sun 2 Aug – Rest, Recovery and Repeat: Easy morning, then a private pizza-and-beer canal cruise through hidden waterways. Evening free for Vondelpark downtime or another party.
Mon 3 Aug – Live Like a Local: Classic Dutch bike tour past the Rijksmuseum, Jordaan and canal courtyards. Dinner, drinks and a private drag show at Paleis van de Weemoed.
Tue 4 Aug – Pride, Progress & History: Guided LGBTQI+ history walk ending with timed entry and audio tour at the Anne Frank House. Afternoon free.
Wed 5 Aug – Bikes, Dykes & Dutch Delights: E-bike the countryside via Edam, a working windmill and Volendam, then meet a local maker in Monnickendam for a light dinner with beers. Return for the Pride Village Opening Concert at Museumplein.
Thu 6 Aug – A Taste of Brussels: Eurostar to Brussels for Grand Place, Galeries Royales and Rainbow House, with lunch at Chez Léon. Back to Amsterdam for Pride Village at night.
Fri 7 Aug – Pints & Punchlines: Private Rijksmuseum tour, then the Heineken Experience with rooftop drink. VIP seats at Boom Chicago to close out the night.
Sat 8 Aug – The Grand Finale – Hangar Beach Club Farewell Party: Silent disco walk to Hangar in Amsterdam Noord for a waterfront lunch and sunshine party. Wrap with the WorldPride Closing Concert or one last club night.
Sun 9 Aug – Farewell & Departures: Final breakfast and farewells. Flights home or extra nights if you’re not done yet.

All the details are handled for you. See the full Hermes Holidays offer here.

Why Are Turkiye And Egypt Turning Their Backs On Gay Tourism? A Travel Expert Explains

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 19:28:04 GMT

Turkiye and Egypt both turned an LGBTQIA+ cruise away this month, within days of each other. Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady, chartered by Atlantis Events, was blocked from Turkish ports over “moral standards,” then refused entry to Egyptian waters with no public reason given at all. So what is actually going on? We put that to Kyle Olsen of Hermes Holidays , a boutique Australian gay tour operator with more than 20 years of experience, and his answer goes well beyond two ports.

The short version is that some governments have decided their politics are worth more than the money.

“It’s a sad reflection of what’s happening around the world,” Olsen says. “We’re seeing a rise in right-wing governments and increasingly conservative political movements, and in many places LGBTQIA+ rights are being rolled back as a result.”

Welcoming visitors is usually the profitable choice. Olsen’s point is that profit is losing. “Some governments are now willing to put ideology ahead of the economic benefits that LGBTQIA+ visitors bring,” he says.

“The decisions by Turkiye and Egypt don’t exist in isolation. They reflect a broader global trend where some governments feel increasingly emboldened to introduce policies that negatively affect LGBTQIA+ people.” If two tourism hotspots can flip this quickly, how are you meant to plan a trip with any confidence?

A Government Is Not Its People

Here is the part worth holding onto. A hostile government does not always mean a hostile population, and Hungary just proved it. In June 2025, up to 200,000 people defied a government ban to march at Budapest Pride, wrecking the previous record of 35,000. Less than a year later, in April 2026, Viktor Orbán lost power to Péter Magyar’s Tisza party after 16 years in charge.

Olsen sees the same lesson. “It’s important not to confuse the views of a government with those of its people,” he says. Those marchers, he adds, sent “a powerful message that governments don’t always speak for their citizens.”

How Do You Know A Place Is Still Safe?

This is the question every gay traveller is asking right now, and Olsen’s answer is not the obvious one. “I don’t think the answer is to only visit traditionally gay-friendly destinations. The world is far more complex than that,” he says. “A destination’s reputation from five or ten years ago isn’t necessarily its reality today.”

His advice is to stay current, not just sentimental about a place. It is also why he backs the big global moments.

In a few weeks he is taking a group to Amsterdam for WorldPride, which runs from 25 July to 8 August and marks 25 years since the Netherlands became the first country to legalise same-sex marriage.

“Not just to celebrate,” he says, “but to stand alongside hundreds of thousands of people from around the world and send a clear message that equality can never be taken for granted.”

Don’t Travel In Fear, Travel Informed

That line is Olsen’s, and it is the whole argument in four words. The practical version: choose places where you feel comfortable, back local businesses that welcome you, and do your research before you go so there are no surprises.

He closes on something heavier, and fair. “The freedoms we enjoy today only exist because previous generations fought for them,” he says. “It’s now our responsibility to make sure those rights are protected for the generations that follow.”

At DNA, we would add just one thing. The Scarlet Lady passengers still got their holiday. The ports that turned them away are the ones that lost.

Twice-rejected American cruise puts spotlight on rollback of LGBTQ rights, passengers say

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 19:28:04 GMT

Greg Morley has spent decades sailing around the world on LGBTQ+ cruises with his husband, visiting far-flung destinations across the Americas, Asia and Europe – all from the safety of a ship where, he says, “everyone belongs.”

So, when the 59-year-old Philadelphian, who now lives in Paris, embarked on his latest “Athens to Venice” voyage, overseen by LGBTQ travel company Atlantis Events, he said he couldn’t wait to see the “amazing and iconic” sights on offer.

But those plans were derailed on Thursday when Egyptian authorities blocked the ship, the Scarlet Lady, from entering its waters at the last minute, according to Atlantis Events, days after the vessel was refused entry to Turkey.

“We had full approval and they denied us clearance at the 11th hour,” Rich Campbell, the president and CEO of Atlantis Events, told CNN.

In a memo to passengers on Thursday morning, seen by CNN, Campbell said: “I know how much this visit meant to so many of you. We successfully sailed a similar itinerary last year without issue, so we were surprised by this unfortunate decision.”

For Morley, the last-minute turnaround brought a huge feeling of disappointment, but he said passengers have turned their frustration into a sense of “recommitment to the community,” including those living in Turkey and Egypt where human rights groups warn of eroding LGBTQ rights.

CNN has reached out to Turkish and Egyptian authorities for comment.

Impact on local businesses

Passenger Randy Slovacek, who CNN interviewed last week about Turkey’s decision, said many people on the ship had gone to sleep early Wednesday night in preparation for morning departures to the pyramids in Cairo – tours which had to be canceled.

As a result of such cancelations, local tour operators, restaurants, taxi drivers and shopkeepers would likely have lost paying customers and the “opportunity for cultural exchange that changes hearts and minds about our community,” according to Meg Ten Eyck, the chair of the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association’s board of directors.

“A cruise ship being turned away from two ports in one week is one of the more visible versions of something LGBTQ+ travelers navigate constantly, in smaller ways, all over the world,” she told CNN.

Gerard Bottino/SOPA Images/Sipa USA/AP/File

Turkey blocks American LGBTQ+ cruise from docking, citing ‘moral standards’

3 min read

Echoing this sentiment, Kyle Olsen , the owner of LGBTQ travel company Hermes Holidays , said the cruise bans reflect a “broader global trend” and were a “sad reflection of what’s happening around the world.”

“We’re seeing a rise in right-wing governments and increasingly conservative political movements, and in many places LGBTQI+ rights are being rolled back as a result,” Olsen told CNN. “The decisions by Turkey and Egypt don’t exist in isolation.”

Despite these challenges, Morley concluded by testifying to the resilience of LGBTQ people.

“Redirecting this ship has created an even greater sense of community onboard,” he said. “It is beautiful to experience.”

LGBTQ+ cruise ship refused entry to Egypt days after Turkey turned it away

Tue, 09 Jun 2026 19:28:04 GMT

An LGBTQ+ cruise ship blocked from Turkish waters this week has been refused entry into Egypt. The Scarlet Lady’s 2,000 passengers, including the Broadway performer Patti LuPone, woke on Thursday morning to find a note placed under their cabin doors informing them that the ship was urgently looking for alternative ports.

“Early this morning, we were informed that Scarlet Lady has been denied entry into Egyptian waters, and, as a result, will no longer be able to call in Alexandria today,” Rich Campbell, the chief executive of Atlantis Events, the tour group that chartered the Virgin Voyages ship, told passengers. “I know how much this visit meant to so many of you. We successfully sailed a similar itinerary last year without issue. So we were surprised by this unfortunate decision,” he wrote. The note concluded: “Please know that both the Atlantis and Virgin Voyages teams worked tirelessly to make this call in Alexandria a possibility. This news came as a surprise to all of us, and we’re just as disappointed as you are.” The visit to Egypt was already a change to the planned tour, hastily arranged after the ship was refused entry to Turkey. No official reason has yet been given for the decision of the Egyptian government. The 10-day Athens to Venice cruise was blocked from Turkey after authorities published a statement online saying the cruise was chartered “by groups known for behaviours that do not align with the structure of our society and our moral values”. The ship’s arrival had been cancelled after it “sparked significant public concern”, they added. “There is absolutely no possibility of the group in question visiting our province for an event of this nature.” Randy Slovacek, who is on the cruise, wrote on his blog: “In the company’s 36-year history, Atlantis had never had a ship denied entry to dock. And now it’s happened in two countries in one week.

“Trust and believe, me and my fellow passengers will be fine: if they don’t want our tourism, we will sparkle and spend elsewhere. As my fellow blogger Joe Jervis once wrote: ‘They wish we were invisible. We’re not. Let’s dance.’”

Kyle Olsen, the owner of Hermes Holidays, another LGBTQ+ tour company, said he believed that if Turkey had not refused entry to the ship this week, Egypt would not have issued its ban. “I worry that other countries are going to be emboldened in turn to ban gay cruises from their ports as well,” he said. “This is a sad representation of the way the world is going. Successive governments are falling to rightwing groups and the rights of LGBT+ people are being taken away as a result across the globe.” Olsen said that after the actions of Turkey and Egypt, he would not be recommending the countries to his customers. “But it’s important to note that the views of the government are not necessarily reflective of the views of the peoples of those countries,” he said. “We’ve been to Turkey and Egypt many times in the past and have found the people very warm, friendly and engaging.”

Olsen, who has friends onboard the Scarlet Lady, said the Egypt stop had been expected to be a high point of the tour by the passengers, who had got up at 6am to be ready for the day. “This was literally a last-minute call by the Egyptian government,” said Olsen. “The night before, everything was fine. “Lots of passengers had paid a lot of money for private tours to see the pyramids and the museums. It was going to be the trip of lifetime but now they’re in limbo.” The ship has now been rerouted a second time, and will be docking in Chania, Crete, on Friday and Montenegro on Sunday.

Campbell called Turkey’s decision “stunning”, telling CNN: “The reasoning behind it is that it’s a gay group.” Atlantis had chartered cruises to Turkey 13 times over the past 25 years without incident, he added, and calls involving the US embassy in Turkey had failed to reverse the ban. LuPone, the 77-year-old Tony award winner who is performing on the ship, shared her shock regarding the news on Instagram on Saturday. “The Atlantis cruise I am performing on next week has been banned from entering Turkey,” she wrote. “A ship – a magnificent ship – full of gay men. And me. Denied entry to Turkey simply because of who is onboard. “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.” Atlantis Events and Virgin Voyages have been approached for comment.