It was supposed to be an exciting voyage calling at Greece, Turkey, Croatia and Italy on Virgin Voyages-owned liner Scarlet Lady. 

But the itinerary planned by Atlantis Events - the company that chartered the cruise and is known for hosting all-LGBTQ+ holidays - hasn't gone to plan.

The ship was due to stop at Kusadasi, a resort town along Turkey's western Aegean coast, and Istanbul earlier this week but authorities turned the ship away before it could dock. 

Officials said the cruise was chartered by groups 'known for behaviours incompatible with the fabric of our society and our moral values'. 

Instead, the 'Athens to Venice' trip rejigged its itinerary and added a full day on the Greek island of Crete, as well as Alexandria, in Egypt - but the vessel was denied entry into Egyptian waters and was unable to make the stop yesterday.

The company said 'extremely disappointed' with the situation.

American singer and performer Todrick Hall, 41, was one of the headliners on the cruise and reflecting on how he felt when the ship was first turned away from Turkey, told the Daily Mail, 'I was disgusted and disappointed, to be honest.' 

'I was really shocked that they wouldn't even allow us onto their soil to experience their culture,' he added. 'The fact that they didn't want us there was so disappointing and disheartening.'

In Turkey, homosexuality is legal but the government has been known to hold conservative views on the matter and remains taboo, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan openly speaking out against the LGBTQ+ community. 

Similarly, same-sex relationships are not against the law in Egypt, however they remain very taboo and there are tough prosecutions for 'debauchery' and public morality laws. 

'I don't think any of us want to be in a country that doesn't want us,' Hall insisted. 'I think we're fabulous and they would have been lucky to have had our money.'

No reason for the refusal of entry to Egyptian waters was given and Rich Campbell, the chief executive of Atlantis Events, revealed 'this news came as a surprise to all of us, and we're just as disappointed as you are'.

'When I saw that we were denied from another port, I just sat down and thought we have so much work yet to do,' Hall added.

On whether he would like to return to Turkey or Egypt one day, Hall says, 'I love to travel and never say never.'

'I can't imagine that I would say without a shadow of doubt, I would never go there again. 

'But I would love to see Egypt. I think that it's such a beautiful place, and the culture and the historical elements of it are something that I definitely was eager to experience.'

For cruise passenger TJ Taylor, 33, being turned away from ports was 'just a reminder that where you go for your tourism and where you spend your holiday dollars is actually really important'.

He told the Daily Mail: 'Choosing places that are accepting of who you are is important in life.'

When the ship was prevented from stopping in Turkey it came as a 'surprise'.

'At the end of the day, who you love doesn't change the fact that we are all humans taking photos and seeing these beautiful places,' Taylor said. 'Just because you love someone of the same gender doesn't mean that it changes how you are as a tourist.'

The holidaymaker was particularly excited to visit Egypt and had booked a tour to see the iconic landmarks with his friends. Fortunately, they didn't have to pay upfront and the tour operator was very apologetic and understanding. 

Taylor, who is originally from Barnsley but now lives in Singapore, has been on three Atlantis cruises. 

'I can tell you that people spend when they go to the ports, it's 2,000 queer men that will eat and drink and go on tours and book all kinds of expensive things in all the different places,' he said. 'So it's really an impact to the local economy as well.'

The incident has made him rethink other aspects of his life and travels, too. 

'I was actually considering at Christmas flying Turkish Airlines home,' Taylor said, explaining the fare is cheaper at the moment. 

'But I'm now going to be skipping Turkish Airlines and going somewhere else.'

Both Hall and Taylor praised Atlantis Events for handling the situations well and rearranging new port calls. 

'The cruise line were incredible, and Atlantis were incredible at kind of jumping on it and being really really open, really transparent,' Taylor explained.  

'I think the actual ship and the experience itself really is a big part of it for everybody,' he said, insisting 'it hasn't ruined my holiday in any way'.

Hall echoed this and said: 'I'm really really proud of Virgin for the way they handled it and also very proud of Atlantis. They just made everything as great as they could.'

Rich Campbell described the entry refusal to Turkey on Tuesday as 'pretty stunning'.

He told CNN: 'The reasoning behind it is that it's a gay group. It's very concerning to me when a country decides they can pick and choose which tourists are allowed in and which are not.' 

Atlantis Events later told the Daily Mail that it had been to Egypt 'multiple times in the past 25 years, including onboard Virgin Voyages last year with 2,500 guests and the previous year on another ship with 1,200 guests' and 'never had any issues or incidents'.

It added: 'Our guests have been very understanding of the changes beyond our control and, so far, have enjoyed every aspect of this cruise.'

The Daily Mail has approached Turkey's Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities for comment. 

A Virgin Voyages spokesperson said: 'We were incredibly disappointed to learn that Scarlet Lady was denied entry hours before our planned call.

'We successfully operated a similar itinerary last year without issue and will continue to do everything possible to ensure the charter guests complete an incredible vacation, now calling on Kotor, Montenegro as an alternative.'