MSC Cruises has announced that it has decided to suspend its calls in Turkish ports until further notice.

The decision will impact MSC Magnifica’s itinerary as the ship will be based out of Venice, Italy as of March 26th.

The weekly calls in the cities of Istanbul and Izmir from March 29th, 2016 will, for the time being, be replaced by calls in the Greek capital – Athens – and on Mykonos, one of the most popular and glamorous Greek isles.

This decision was taken by the company amid growing concerns by guests as a result of the recent tragic events in Istanbul.

A bomb blast in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet Square on Monday January 11th killed at least ten people and maimed another 15.

The attack bore the hallmarks of jihadist terror.

Swiss-based MSC Cruises is world’s largest privately-owned cruise line and market leader in Europe, South America and South Africa.