This just in Re Turkey

[sandij]

What a shame, we did Istanbul years ago and it was truly amazing, so sorry the situation in the world is causing people to miss it for saftey sake.

[goldesq]

I just looked at one of the ship trackers online -- looks like Prinsendam is headed away from Istanbul -- anyone know if she actually ported there?

 

At any rate, her destination is listed as Lesbos.

 

Yikes...Lesbos is the last place I would have thought they would stop at. Thousands and thousands of refugees are using that island as a way point before traveling on to other points in Europe. Even though it is a similar situation in Atehns, Lesbos is tiny comparitively.

[KirkNC]

With 48 hour notice they are lucky to find a port to take them.

[Hows the Serenity]

With 48 hour notice they are lucky to find a port to take them.

 

 

I would say they had probably made this decision earlier than 48 hrs ago.

 

Chris

 

 

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[zeenut]

To clarify some misunderstanding: Prinsendam was scheduled to be in Istanbul on April 1-2. HAL cancelled April 1 in Istanbul and substituted Myrnia (on the island of Lemnos). On April 2, the ship stopped in Istanbul for four or five hours to embark and disembark some crew members and passengers. No passengers were allowed to leave the ship unless it was their final destination. The ship has always been scheduled to stop in Mytilene (on the island of Lesbos) on April 3. The only question remaining is whether the ship will make its scheduled stop in Kusadasi on April 4.

[cruisemom42]

In case anyone is looking for an update, I just checked the cruise tracker I use and it shows the Prinsendam underway with her destination listed as Kusadasi.

 

I wonder if anyone has heard from any passengers onboard recently?

[chefestelle]

Thank you cruisemom42. I'm hopeful they'll stop in

 

 

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[Karnyval]

It looks like Prinsendam is not following the course that would take it to Kusadasi. :(

 

http://www.sea-scanner.com/schiffsposition.php?schiff=prinsendam

[Lil2Angelic]

It looks like Prinsendam is not following the course that would take it to Kusadasi. :(

 

http://www.sea-scanner.com/schiffsposition.php?schiff=prinsendam

 

I have to agree. I sure wish we could get an update from someone on board. Still tracking.

[KirkNC]

I would say they had probably made this decision earlier than 48 hrs ago.

 

Chris

 

 

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One would hope they had contingency plans but the decision was pretty last minute.

[cruisemom42]

It looks like Prinsendam is not following the course that would take it to Kusadasi. :(

 

http://www.sea-scanner.com/schiffsposition.php?schiff=prinsendam

 

I'm not sure they could sail between that large island and the mainland. Could be they have to go around the seaward side.

 

On the other hand, perhaps they are headed elsewhere.

[Zionstorm]

I'm not sure they could sail between that large island and the mainland. Could be they have to go around the seaward side.

 

 

 

On the other hand, perhaps they are headed elsewhere.

 

 

Thus far, Sea Scanner has been dead on with routes between ports. They are for sure not on route currently so we shall see.

 

 

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[chefestelle]

If you look at those maps on their website, it shows the passage going around the big island just as cruisemom42 suggested

 

 

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[Zionstorm]

If you look at those maps on their website, it shows the passage going around the big island just as cruisemom42 suggested

 

 

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Totally, I'm not going to pretend I know anything about which route or how large of ship can fit through where.

 

We will see if they make the turn here soon.

 

 

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[dmcfad2]

A passenger onboard reported on Facebook that they are indeed going to Kusadasi.

[Karnyval]

If you look at those maps on their website, it shows the passage going around the big island just as cruisemom42 suggested

 

 

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They made one turn. Hoping they make the next one.

[zeenut]

To clarify some misunderstanding: Prinsendam was scheduled to be in Istanbul on April 1-2. HAL cancelled April 1 in Istanbul and substituted Myrnia (on the island of Lemnos). On April 2, the ship stopped in Istanbul for four or five hours to embark and disembark some crew members and passengers. No passengers were allowed to leave the ship unless it was their final destination. The ship has always been scheduled to stop in Mytilene (on the island of Lesbos) on April 3. The only question remaining is whether the ship will make its scheduled stop in Kusadasi on April 4.

 

The Prinsendam did, in fact, arrrive in Kusadasi on the morning of April 4. So we now know that HAL (and its parent Carnival) believe Kusadasi to be a safe destination. But does that mean the same for Izmir? All cruise lines EXCEPT Carnival have already cancelled all visits to Izmir for the rest of the year. The ONLY cruise ship planning to call at Izmir this summer is the Vista which is scheduled to make the sixth stop of its maiden voyage in Izmir on May 6. Vista is also scheduled to make 12 other visits to Izmir before it moves to the U.S. in October.

 

Regarding Kusadasi: A number of cruise lines have already eliminated Kusadasi from their itineraries, but a half-dozen other major lines (HAL, Celebrity, Cunard, Windstar, Princess, and RCCL) still have Kusadasi on their schedules.

[Karnyval]

Ephesus would be the primary destination from either port.

[Lil2Angelic]

Great to see that they indeed made it Kusadasi! Thank you to those whose relayed the info from the passengers onboard.

[happy trailer]

I've been sitting on this for a couple of hours, debating whether or not to post it.

In the end, I felt it would be irresponsible of me to withhold this information. I know I'll be criticized, scolded, and I'm weary of all that which is why I was hesitating to post, but our news is highlighting the story, and calling it an unusual occurrence. I'll post this on a few relevant threads, and you might want to post it on others. Hopefully, hopefully all will stay quiet, but I think it is important to be informed.

 

Please note: I am not scaremongering. I am not telling you not to go to Turkey. I am not telling you not to complain if your port stops in Turkey are cancelled. If you read the entire article (I've only copied part of it below), you will see that even with all the alerts after the most recent terror attack, and Israel telling its citizens to get out of the country, over 100,000 Israelis were still planning to visit Turkey at the end of this month.

 

http://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-tells-its-nationals-in-turkey-get-out-now/

 

Israel tells its nationals in Turkey: Get out now

 

Counter-Terrorism Bureau cites ‘real and immediate’ threat of terror attacks, following Istanbul bombing, Turkish intel on IS plots targeting Jews.

 

April 8, 2016

 

Israel’s Counter-Terrorism Bureau issued in a rare statement Friday night repeating a recent travel warning calling on Israelis to avoid visiting Turkey, and urging those currently there to leave as soon as possible.

 

“Following a situational assessment, we are reiterating and sharpening the high level of threat in Turkey,” a statement from the bureau said.

 

"Real and immediate terror threats remain throughout the country,” the statement continued, urging Israelis in Turkey to “avoid crowded tourist areas, follow instructions of local authorities and get out as soon as possible.”

 

"There are immediate risks of attacks being carried out in the country, and we stress the threat applies to all tourism sites in Turkey,” Israel‘s counter terrorism bureau said in a statement.

[pollux]

Carnival did send everyone a email saying we will not stop in Izmir. We have a extra sea day.

This is for now ,May and June sailing on the ship Carnival Vista.

[zeenut]

The Prinsendam did, in fact, arrrive in Kusadasi on the morning of April 4. So we now know that HAL (and its parent Carnival) believe Kusadasi to be a safe destination. But does that mean the same for Izmir? All cruise lines EXCEPT Carnival have already cancelled all visits to Izmir for the rest of the year. The ONLY cruise ship planning to call at Izmir this summer is the Vista which is scheduled to make the sixth stop of its maiden voyage in Izmir on May 6. Vista is also scheduled to make 12 other visits to Izmir before it moves to the U.S. in October.

 

Regarding Kusadasi: A number of cruise lines have already eliminated Kusadasi from their itineraries, but a half-dozen other major lines (HAL, Celebrity, Cunard, Windstar, Princess, and RCCL) still have Kusadasi on their schedules.

 

As has been reported on numerous other Cruise Critic roll calls, Carnival has cancelled all Izmir visits in May and June and substituted what they call a "FUN day at sea". Sadly, unlike other cruise lines that have cancelled Turkish port calls, Carnival did not choose to substitute another destination (such as Santorini or Mikonos or Patmos).

[chefestelle]

Thanks for that update. Canada still has the same advisory. Puzzling at the very least.

 

 

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[happy trailer]

Thanks for that update. Canada still has the same advisory. Puzzling at the very least

 

I saw this posted on another thread earlier today:

 

Emergency Message for U.S. Citizens: Credible Threats to Public Squares and Docks in Istanbul and Antalya

April 9, 2016

 

The U.S. Mission in Turkey would like to inform U.S. citizens that there are credible threats to tourist areas, in particular to public squares and docks in Istanbul and Antalya. Please exercise extreme caution if you are in the vicinity of such areas.

 

http://istanbul.usconsulate.gov/sm_040916.html

[chefestelle]

And our advisory still hasn't changed! If it didn't say "still valid April 9, 2016" I'd think I was looking at a cached page!

 

 

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