Carnival Cruise Lines has decided to reverse their decision to not allow passengers on a group drag-themed cruise to dress up in drag attire.
According to NBC News, Carnival Cruise Lines blamed its previous ruling on a miscommunication. Gerry Cahill, CEO of Carnival Cruise Lines, said this in an email to passengers that were booked on the drag-themed cruise:
“When the group was presented to us we were advised that only the performers would be dressed in drag during the private events. However, we are now aware that this was not clearly communicated to members of the group and therefore anyone who wishes to dress in drag may do so.
Cahill wanted to make it clear that they did not mean to discriminate. He did this by saying:
“At Carnival, we are proud to carry more than 4.5 million guests every year and we welcome them all aboard. We do not practice any form of discrimination against the LGBT or any other community.”
Cahill also apologized to the passengers for “any unintended offense we have caused.” Also, because of the misunderstanding, Cahill said that the booked passengers can cancel their reservations “for any reason” and will receive a complete refund of fare.
The passengers, if need be, will even get a refund “for any non-refundable travel related expenses.”
The drag-themed cruise on the Carnival Glory is scheduled to depart on December 2.
What do you think of the Carnival’s first decision to not allow their passengers to dress up?