One of the biggest German cruise lines TUI Cruises is canceling ship arrivals in Turkey, reports the respected cruise site Schiffe und Kreuzfahrten. The last call in Turkey will be in April 2019, when the cruise ship “Mein Schiff 4” will be visiting the port of Bodrum for the last time. TUI Cruises is the last major shipping company to cancel calls in Turkey. Previously most of the cruise lines such as Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises, Princess Cruises, Aida, and Carnival have canceled Turkey due to security issues and unpredictability in the country. In 2018 only handful of cruise lines will visit Turkey such as Marella Cruises, Fred Olsen Cruise Line, Star Clippers and TUI Cruises with Mein Schiff 2,3,4, and 5.

All calls in Turkey will be replaced and the ships will be re-routed to the Greek islands.  So far, Turkey has been an important strategic destination for TUI Cruises, in which Antalya has been used as a hub for the Mein Schiff fleet in the eastern Mediterranean. From the summer season 2019, the port will be replaced with Heraklion (Crete). This had happened in the past on individual routes, where TUI Cruises already routed and started to travel from Crete, which should have started from Antalya.