gemsm

Sigh... just got the smoking email... I actually have a casino at sea offer for a free cruise on epic,sun,jewel,breakaway or getway any week from Oct-2nd week Dec... and we have New Years Eve booked on Getaway and Norway Fjords on Star in June.... now I'm back to square one...

 

Hubby is a smoker, I am not. In 20 cruises we've always done suites. We moved away from Princess/RCCL to NCL/HAL just because hubby prefers the solitude and quiet of the suite and nightcaps on balcony.

 

I, like others, think the casino will be horrible now... and certainly am not going to take that free cruise - I was on the fence to begin with - but this really seals the deal I'm sad to say. :(

 

What this does give me - is more options to go back to RCCL which I enjoy and hated giving up. Not sure if we'll bother cancelling our current cruises - although I did look today at what else is available - nothing really hit me as better. Hubby will simply use his e-cig on the balcony and we'll see what comes of it. I know crew certainly won't say anything - it's vapor - you can't clean vapor outdoors afterall and anyone straining to lean over the dividers to take pics when there is no smell or effect - well that's just being a busy body/peeping tom IMHO. Still it's not comfortable - it's vacation - and breaking 'rules' is not our thing. We are low-key. Oh well... sad for hubby but again - I do miss that Irish Bar on RCCL - but hate the thought of giving up the brazilian restaurant - it's our favorite of all dining venues. Time will tell - guess it's back to all about the itinerary... may the best cruise line win!

doubt anyone will notice anybody using an e-cig on the balcony. THe vapor dissipates so quickly in the wind the busybody neighbors won't have time to notice it because it just won't be there

Probably from their own forum. John Heald HATES Cruise Critic big time lol

Yes he does but the beards at Carnival apparently pay attention over here

I don't think it's "backlash". He said in his original post about the smoking change that they would be working on some sort of accommodation on an open deck for smokers. Today's post was just confirmation of that.

 

As an occasional cigar smoker (especially on cruises) I'd like to see a Serenity-like area on deck that is designated a smoking area. Someplace that is reasonably shielded from the wind, with at least part of the area covered against rain, and with drink service.

I don't know. I heard that there were enough cancellations of balcony cabins after the change that they are looking to appease folks now. Have no idea of how true that information is as it was TA gossip

For those that think EU is the smoking wild wild west.

 

Currently, 17 EU countries have comprehensive smoke-free laws in place. Among these, Ireland, the UK, Greece, Bulgaria, Malta, Spain and Hungary have the strictest smoke-free provisions with a complete ban on smoking in enclosed public places, on public transport and in workplaces, with only limited exceptions allowed.

 

The EU is not that far behind the US when it comes to restricting smoking.

 

Do not think the restrictions will negatively impact EU sailings. They are far more impacted by the high air travel costs which is limiting US passengers from taking European cruises.

The important thing here is that the EU does not restrict smoking OUTDOORS like the US attempts to

But they don't just have the Casino. There are also designated outside areas for them to smoke in.

Which is useless in bad weather hence everyone goes to the Casino

That is correct, they're treating E-cigs as if they were actual cigarettes.

Not like it matters. Nobody would even notice if I vaped on my balcony.

John Heald just posted on his facebook page that the head beard is looking at ways to make smoking areas much better on Carnival ships and that an announcement would be coming in 2 weeks. THat backlash didn't take long.

I do not think that the smoking policy is the reason some balconies are still available. While you will find an occasional exception the vast majority of their cruises sail with sold out balconies. Now if they would just ban the wearing of cheap perfume on balconies:D

Or loud music, loud cell phone conversations, people arguing, people leaving their light on all night LOL

My experiences color my ideas on what they should do. I was on the Liberty. We had to go to one small area on Deck 10 in the wind to smoke. There was a small roofed in area by the door to go into the elevators (near Cagney's entrance) and we all congregated there to try and stay out of the wind and the rain. We had about 5 chairs and no tables. There was 2 instances of setting the trashcan on fire because they provided one ashtray for an entire ship of smokers.

We would spend our evenings in the Casino (we would do that smoking allowed or not). You couldn't get any kind of drink service at the smoking half of the bar because it was always so crowded with people smoking you couldn't get to the bar. Every smoking machine in the Casino was usually taken up by non-smokers which was a pain in the ass.

I do table games. Most seats at the smoking table were taken up by non-smokers. The 2 times I wanted a cigarette out of consideration for the other folks I would vape my e-cig instead of smoking real ones.

What I would like to see:

A covered area on the outdoor deck in case of inclement weather and preferably with some sort of wind break. Everyone is discussing fire hazards and the biggest one IMHO is smoking on a VERY windy deck. Perhaps have one small outdoor bar be 1/2 smoking like NCL does on their Lido deck.

If they are going to try and limit smoking in the casino to active players, give smokers the right to have non-smokers removed from the smoking machines.

If a non-smoker sits at a smoking table and complains the pit bosses should remove them from the table.

I'm not sure where you're getting your info, but I've been on RCL and Princess and all balconies were full!

And you know this how? Just go on expedia...You can currently book balcony cabins for July 26 sailings

Ah no.

Check my post above yours and think again maybe

I think we need that picture that showed up earlier in the thread to be posted again.

http://money.cnn.com/2014/07/15/smallbusiness/bathroom-time-penalty/

Company limits bathroom breaks to 6 minutes a day

Perhaps not!!!

 

So .. no smoke detector issues? Hmm?? Does this mean the stoners can smoke their hash oil with out any issues with the detectors?

Why yes it does...However they will have issues with the drug dog detectors :)

Really?

Yes Really...You haven't noticed that Russia is becoming more like US of old and US is becoming more like Russia of old?

You do realize that Princess has had this non-smoking rule for several years now and it has been very successful and they fill their ships. In fact, it is one reason I stopped cruising Carnival and NCL.

No they don't...there are all kinds of cabins available for their next 3 weeks of sailings

I work for a bank. You can dispute the charge but if you got value then you lose. They also make you sign under penalty of purgury so I would be careful making a false statement.

 

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a 250.00 cleaning fee is not value.

To where? There's nowhere else to go but HAL (and that won't be long) or some of the smaller European cruise lines possibly or not cruise at all.

btw- They said the same thing about restaurants when they stopped indoor smoking years ago & it didn't seem to affect them at all.

Land based vacays. And yes many bars were affected by the smoking ban...some to the point of closure. Some took 5 years or more to bounce back.

By the way...Both RCCL and Princess can not fill their balcony cabins with non-smokers. I'm sure it has somewhat affected both lines bottom line

There will be many smokers who will be upset and choose not to cruise as a result, but it is a numbers game for cruise lines and decreasing numbers of smokers, increasing public restrictions elsewhere and a general trend toward smoke free environments across the board will be coming to sea in the near future.

Actually just so you know...the smoking rate is actually increasing in the United States. Back up to 20% from 18% according to current estimates.

I beg to differ. . . . The bank's customer RARELY loses when disputing a charge. (Trust me, I dispute my fair share) If it comes down to he said, she said between a bank's customer and a cruiseship employee, the bank is going to back their customer. I think the most Carnival can do is ban the non-paying offender from ever cruising on Carnival again. Once a bank customer files a dispute it becomes a numbers game. Is it worth it to the merchant (in this case Carnival) to pursue the charged amount or is it more financially feasible to drop the charged fine and just ban that passenger for XX amount of months/years. I can assure you, Carnival will do the latter, without fail.

 

If a bathrobe turns up missing from your cabin and Carnival wants to charge you $50 for it but you tell the bank that you left the robe on the bed, trust me. . . . . Carnival DOES NOT get $50 from your credit card (unless they have x-ray video showing the bathrobe in your luggage at the airport, which, of course, they will not.)

 

As far as leaving people on these islands. . . . it is a slippery slope. In America anyone one can sue anyone for anything, contract be darned. At the point the evicted cruiser files suit against carnival using a contingency based attorney, again. . .it comes down to a numbers game. What is the cost analysis of cutting this whiner a check and having him/her sign a confidentiality agreement as opposed to fighting this case in court with Carnival's very very high priced attorneys and the media watching. . . . Again, if the case has not garnered too much media attention, cutting the whiner a check and barring them from future cruises is by far cheaper and better than fighting this in court. Carnival does not want to defend leaving a family in the DR, Jamaica, St. Kitts, and having a member of that family robbed, raped, maimed, kidnapped or murdered as they attempted to get back to the states (all for smoking a cigarette??? CNN would have a field day with that. hahahahaha). No contract will stand up to that type of public opinion beating. . . . Easier to either turn a blind eye to the offense (sneaking liquor onboard) or pay off the injured party.

 

We would all like to believe that there are stiff penalties for rule breakers. However, in the unfairness of life, there often are not. . . . Many people will continue to smoke on their balconies (like chair hogs) and Carnival will announce a bunch of penalties, carry out a few and then hope for the best.

Actually I tried to go there before but nobody believed me. If every smoker on a particular cruise chose not to follow the rules there isn't a whole lot Carnival can do to enforce them other then put PAX off the ship.

Because it is a cop out used to make people thnk that what they are doing is better/safer/different. :rolleyes:

Aw darn...too bad all research has proven it is better, safer, and different

Funniest part of all of this is all the non-smokers who claim they will now buy balcony cabins...ON the 2 lines that implemented this policy on Jan 1 of this year (royal and princess) neither one has any cruise with balconies sold out. Both have cruises with interior rooms sold out. So just isn't happening.

Well I have to assume now that the cigs have been banned . NCL will have the foresight to place spittoons around the ship for the people that switch to the unregulated chewing tobacco ... MMMmmm could get ugly ..

If you're on a balcony , dont look up :eek: That aint no seagull ..

An excellent idea...Last time I checked they didn't have a no spitting on the balcony rule. I can just imagine the "blowback" from my using snuff and spitting juice into the wind on my balcony for my ANTSZ neighbors next door LOL

I doubt someone who is only in the casino to smoke is going to sit there all day. I don't smoke, but if its a machine I want to play I can wait it out. It doesn't take that long to smoke a cigarette. It may be less of a problem than you think.

Considering Carnival found it completely unenforcable I know it will be less of a problem then I think

There is no liquid residue in e-cigs with a screw in cartrige to spill ..it's in and contained within the cartrige....no residue to spill.

Again you can vape and vape within your cabin until the cows come home and immediately open you door....no smoke, no residue no odor( except for the cows)

I use a PV with a tank and a cartomizer. I spill a little bit of e-liquid every time I fill my tank

I like the opening phrase. Why then are they nearly the last to ban smoking on balconies?

Cause they are going to lose a lot of European cruisers by doing so.

Then again it really is all about insurance costs. Princess used to have a reasonable e-cigarette policy. I see they caved on that. Personally I think they should make all the alcoholics on a cruise spend their entire cruise in the bar...Same mentality as the e-cigarette policy.