The cruise lines that dropped Istanbul as a port of call after a number of terror incidents in 2016 are now returning to the fabled city, with some already calling there.
Regent Seven Seas has already made a port call earlier this month, the first North America-based line to do that. France’s Ponant and Greece’s Celestyal have also been back. Before the incidents, Istanbul hosted as many as 300 cruise ships a year.
Holland-America and Oceania will be back next May, followed by Silversea and Windstar. Viking, Azamara and Crystal will begin calling at Istanbul again in 2021. A number of lines are also returning to Turkey’s Mediterranean port of Kusadasi, the gateway to the ruins of ancient Troy and modern beaches.
Photo: PHeymont/TravelGumbo
