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Holidaymakers forced to abandon their cruise ship after it collides with oil tanker off the coast of Turkey leaving huge dent in hull.

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  • Celestyal Crystal cruise liner collided with tanker STI Pimlico on Saturday 
  • More than 850 passengers on board evacuated by sea boat to Gallipoli
  • Two crew members and a passenger suffered minor injuries in incident
  • Emergency services moved quickly to stop a fire from the oil tanker 

More than 850 passengers had to be evacuated after their Mediterranean cruise ship collided with an oil tanker off the coast of Turkey, leaving a huge dent in its hull.

Authorities said a huge disaster was averted after emergency service quickly responded to reports that the Celestyal Crystal and the tanker STI Pimlico had crashed at 1.30am on Saturday morning in the Dardanelles Strait.

Cruise operators said two crew members and a passenger suffered minor injuries in the accident as the vessel, registered to Malta, made its way from Greece to Istanbul.

All of its 853 passengers and 382 staff were taken to safety by a sea bus to Gallipoil, and the rest of their journey was cancelled while structural damage to the front of the ship is being fixed.


Damage: The hull of the Celestyal Crystal was badly damaged after the incident at 1.30am on Saturday

Emergency services moved quickly to douse the tanker in water to prevent a fire or explosion after fuel spilled out of the 182-metre long tanker, which had been travelling from Russia to Malta carrying flammable naptha fuel.

It has not yet been established how the collision took place.

A statement from the cruise line published on travel website www.cruisecritic.co.uk said Celestyal Cruises, which operates the ship, will arrange for passengers to continue their holidays on other boats.

It has also offered full refunds for holidaymakers’ cruise fares as well as second, complimentary seven-night cruises

Spill: Emergency services working quickly to stop a fire or explosion when oil poured out of the tanker 
Spill: Emergency services working quickly to stop a fire or explosion when oil poured out of the tanker 

‘With the safety and care of our passengers as our utmost priority, we will ensure the smoothest possible disembarkation for those on board since the current cruise will have to be cancelled’, it said.

‘We apologize for the inconvenience and would like to assure that we will spare no effort in ensuring that our passengers are provided with the best hospitality under the circumstances.’

Mayor of Çanakkale, Ahmet Çınar, told Turkish television channel NTV a huge disaster was prevented just in time and potential danger has been minimized thanks to ‘intensive’ work by emergency crews, the Daily Sabah reported.

Ferry services along the Strait were cancelled for several hours during the clean-up operation.

Delightful detours on the Black Sea

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The Sept. 29-to-Oct. 8 sailing aboard the Silver Spirit, the largest ship in the Silversea fleet, was originally going to be a total Black Sea cruise. But the unrest in the region caused Silversea, like other cruise lines, to eliminate calls in Ukraine (i.e., Yalta, Sevastopol and Odessa) and Sochi, Russia.

Silversea still started and ended the cruise in Istanbul, one of the great cities to explore; kept their calls on the west side of the Black Sea (as did most cruise lines); and then added in some lesser-known ports in Greece and Turkey. For me, one of the appeals was that beyond Piraeus/Athens, all of the other ports were new places to see.

The onboard experience was outstanding in every way: food, service, entertainment and the ship itself. And it turned out to be an excellent series of stops.

Here is a recap of some of the ports of call:

Athens/Piraeus: There’s no way to see all that Athens had to offer in one day.

The absolute highlight has to be the Acropolis, sitting high on the hill where the Parthenon, its most famous structure, is in full view. The massive renovation project is nearly done, making a visit ideal for everyone; there’s a bit of a climb to reach the site, but it’s not too rigorous.

Museums abound in Athens; the best one for Acropolis buffs is the Acropolis Museum, featuring a great collection, videos and outstanding views.

Organized tours included a variety of stops: Constitution Square and the Royal Palace (with the very proper changing-of-the guard ceremony), Olympic Stadium, Temple of Zeus and more. Everywhere one looks, there’s history.

And then there’s the shopping and eating mecca, the Plaka district and adjacent Ermou Street.

Experienced travelers can just jump in a taxi at the port of Piraeus and go into Athens; for two or more people, it’s cost- and time-efficient compared to cruise line transfers.

Izmir, Turkey: Izmir is Turkey’s third- largest city and its biggest seaport on the Aegean Sea. The primary shore excursions are trips to Ephesus, which has to be one of the most breathtaking ancient treasures ever to be uncovered. New areas, such as the Terrace Houses, continue to be discovered.

Having already been to Ephesus a few times, I chose to take the Izmir city orientation tour that included the Agora ruins, which are constantly undergoing discovery and rebuilding. It also went to the Archaeology Museum; the mosaic exhibit may be the best I’ve ever seen. Izmir’s waterfront goes on for miles with one restaurant after another (grilled calamari time!) on the inland side and walking paths and statuary on the water side.

Constanta/Bucharest, Romania: Constanta is the largest Romanian city on the Black Sea, but the highlight was the ship’s full-day, complimentary tour to Bucharest.

I’ve never really enjoyed three-hour bus rides (in both directions) but this was really worth it. The ride was pleasant enough with some nice scenery, and the two skilled tour guides did a terrific job.

Bucharest itself was fascinating, with stops made at key highlights: Palace of Parliament; Patriarchal Hill and Church; the open-air Village Museum; lunch featuring local cuisine and folk dancing; and photo stops or drive-bys at some of the well-preserved Eastern European-style buildings and churches.

Nesebur, Bulgaria: The last scheduled port of call was to be Nesebur, a rocky peninsula sitting on the coast. Unfortunately the waters were rough and the tendering operation had to be scrapped. Thus I did not get to see the city considered to be one of the great Unesco World Heritage Sites with its Greek and Roman ruins.

While I had planned on touring Nesebur, fellow guests had planned on seeing Pomorie, rumored to be a lovely resort city on the Black Sea. I guess I’ll have to go back.

2015 itineraries

Lines are still adjusting itineraries for 2015 due to the situation in Ukraine. Silversea, for example, will not be calling at any Black Sea ports, while Seabourn will still be calling at Constanta, Izmir and Nesebur.

Both lines will be calling at some smaller spots in Greece and Turkey, including Limnos, Thessaloniki, Volos and Santorini in Greece and Marmaris and Kusadasi (also a port call for Ephesus) in Turkey. This creates a terrific mix of port calls for experienced as well as first-time visitors to the region.

As long as the cruise begins or ends in Istanbul, a pre- or post-hotel stay is an absolute must. For those concerned about safety in the area, Istanbul is at least 500 miles away from the Syrian border; it’s not a city to be avoided because of regional issues.

In Turkey, a world away from nearby unrest

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By Tom Stieghorst
*InsightWhile in port in Kusadasi, Turkey, on a recent cruise we heard the ezan, as the Islamic call to prayer is known in that country. The sound carried to the balcony of our cruise ship from whatever mosque it had issued from.

It was a reminder that we were in a country where the predominant faith is Islam. The rest of the trip was a reminder of how different each country in the Middle East is for cruise visitors.

Although Turkey shares a common border with both Syria and Iraq, the fighting in those countries was the furthest thing from our minds while in Turkey. We toured ancient ruins, had a delicious lunch out in the countryside and haggled at the shops in Kusadasi for scarves and pants.*TomStieghorst

It wasn’t very evident we were any place where religion plays a special role in daily affairs. More women had their heads covered than was true in our stops in Greece, but many wore colorful wraps, not the dour black garb that can be seen in Afghanistan, to pick another Muslim country often in the news.

Our guide for the day pointed out that Turkey is the only country that sits both in Asia and Europe. Kusadasi is far from the Syrian border and closer to Athens than to Damascus.

It was in touring the Greek and Roman ruins in Ephesus, about 10 miles inland from Kusadasi, where I was most grateful that the Turks have order and peace in the volatile Middle East.

The well-preserved ruins include temples and churches of the Greek, Roman and Christian areas, and are part of a Unesco World Heritage site. They’re the kind of thing endangered by looting and religious intolerance sadly plaguing nearby Syria and Iraq.

For cruise passengers, it is important to make distinctions between countries in the Middle East that are open for tourism and those that are a hazard. The magnificent ancient treasury at Petra, in Jordan, can be reached through a port call at Aqaba, on the Red Sea. It is also a Unesco World Heritage site, and unaffected by the fighting elsewhere in the area.

Turkey, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates — all have lots to offer to the cruise traveler with an interest in history or foreign cultures. Travel agents and their clients should not write off going to these countries because of the unrest in nearby lands.