General question re smoking on aft-end balconies & bothering non-smokers

Hi,

My husband and I are planning our first cruise. We're both smokers and while we'd like to be able to smoke on our balcony, we'd also like to minimise the chances of bothering non-smokers that may be nearby.

I read on one website that aft-end balconies are best for smokers as the wind tends to take the smoke straight off the balcony toward the wake, without floating into the balconies either side. By aft-end I mean the cabins that are on the very back end of the ship so you can see the wake, not the ones on the side but in the back third (I'm not quite 100% on my cruise terms yet so I'm not sure if it was clear otherwise!)

So, as a general rule, have people here found it to be true that smoke is less noticeable at the aft-end?

Moreover, does getting a cabin in the middle of the aft-end or toward the side, or the choice of floor have any affect?

Thanks!

I can't speak for aft balconies, as I have never had one, but I hope you are aware that there are some cruise lines that prohibit smoking on balconies, as well as in the cabins. Research well before you book. EM

Many cruise lines no longer allow smoking on your balcony. There are designated smoking areas on the ship. Princess for one has gone this route.

I've have side balconies and not been bothered by smokers. This will be my first aft balcony and everyone I'm trvelling with smokes. But I don;t expect it wil bother me at all.

Carnival allows smoking on balconies and in a few choice locations around the ship.

Most others you can not smoke on the balcony-- you have to leave the room entirely in order to smoke.

Well, yes, obviously we'll try to book a cruise where smoking is allowed on balconies. Maybe I should have specified- but even on lines where smoking is allowed on balconies we'd still prefer to be considerate toward non-smokers, so I'd appreciate any feedback from smokers and non-smokers alike that have stayed in these types of cabins.

Thanks for the posts so far!

I think its really nice of you to be thinking of others. I have found in my experience that smokers try to be considerate of the non smokers.

If you purchased a balcony cabin on a ship that permits smoking on the the balcony, you will be in a smoking permitted area and considered to perfectly "legal". If your non-smoking neighbors object, they should have considered booking a ship that has a 100% no smoking policy. :)

Hi,

My husband and I are planning our first cruise. We're both smokers and while we'd like to be able to smoke on our balcony, we'd also like to minimise the chances of bothering non-smokers that may be nearby.

 

I read on one website that aft-end balconies are best for smokers as the wind tends to take the smoke straight off the balcony toward the wake, without floating into the balconies either side. By aft-end I mean the cabins that are on the very back end of the ship so you can see the wake, not the ones on the side but in the back third (I'm not quite 100% on my cruise terms yet so I'm not sure if it was clear otherwise!)

 

So, as a general rule, have people here found it to be true that smoke is less noticeable at the aft-end?

 

Moreover, does getting a cabin in the middle of the aft-end or toward the side, or the choice of floor have any affect?

 

Thanks!

Well thanks to everybody that has posted. I'm still none the wiser really but I suppose as earlmarie has said non-smokers can't really do a whole lot about it if the policy allows balcony smoking. Still, it'd be nice to avoid drama though!

Thanks again!

I would have thought an aft balcony would be ideal for a non-smoker to avoid the stench of a neighbor's cigarettes, until 2012. One of my fellow cruise critic cruisers had an aft balcony on our Noordam cruise, and was basically unable to use the verandah because other people on the aft smoked and for some reason it just hung there at the back of the ship. I don't understand it, but these are very easy-going people and I don't believe they imagined it or made it up <g>. They were on deck 4, which is the lowest verandah deck - maybe it's not as bad up near the top deck??

Sue/WDW1972

DCL Dream 11/10/13

Nieuw Amsterdam 1/5/14

Actually, the aft balconies get less wind than those on the sides!

Well thanks to everybody that has posted. I'm still none the wiser really but I suppose as earlmarie has said non-smokers can't really do a whole lot about it if the policy allows balcony smoking. Still, it'd be nice to avoid drama though!

 

Thanks again!

Loony - i'm also a smoker, and like to be as considerate as i can of non-smokers. We've been on 2 cruises, both on Carnival, primarily because i knew i could pay for a balcony room and be able to smoke on my balcony.

Last year our first cruise was on the Conquest, and we had a balcony on the Panarama deck (10) near the front, port side. We had a cigar smoker on one side and other smokers above and below, i'm pretty sure i didn't bother anyone nor did they bother me?!? I never thought the smoke was overwhelming - after all it IS outside with a nice breeze.

last month we were on the Freedom and had an aft-wrap balcony on deck 6 (LOVED this cabin!!! LOVED this balcony!!!) Anyway - again, i noticed a few other smokers back there, but i never got the impression that anybody was bothered by it - at least, no one ever said anything...

i try to be sensitive to non-smokers. I get that they don't like the smoke. I don't blow it in their faces and try to avoid smoking on the public decks if it's really crowded and i don't feel like i can keep it away from people. Having said that, my balcony was paid for so that i would have a place to smoke.

I've never had anyone say anything or cause drama on my 2 cruises; hopefully that will continue on my next one!

Hope this helps. Enjoy your cruise!

I had the top aft 8450 on the Liberty. No problem with the smoke, now you might have problems with cig butts on your balcony from above. We had problems with that and the soot. Still loved the room though!

Do NOT throw butts off the ship! Your cabin attendant will get you an ashtray!!!

While underway, yes...the smoke will likely blow away from the rear of the ship. But, if there is a sideways wind, that may not hold true.

I've found that cigarette smoke disperses quickly...so unless you chain smoke, your neighbors shouldn't have an issue. Even on side balconies, we haven't been bothered unduly by smokers. Sometimes, we'll catch a whiff of tobacco, but it's not like being in a smokey nightclub or anything! No worries!

I am very happy yo have found this thread as we are sailing with NCL in Feb in an Aft balcony.

As a non-smoker who is HIGHLY sensitive to smoke...I have only ever found one time someone's smoking bothered me on the balcony but it was directly below us and it was 3 people pretty much chain smoking. It did blow away fairly quick so though it bothered me, not enough to make a fuss about and if we werein our loungers at the back of the balcony I did not notice it. we usually stay in side balconies this was the first time booking an AFt Last Feb we were on Epic and the spa had a fabulous spa only balcony which was aft. We did one of our sail aways from there and decided if possible (available) for now on we are spending the extra for an Aft balcony. The view is spectacular, and completely un obstructed, ..no looking down the length of the ship and seeing other balconies and people.

You will be very pleased with your choice, and spoiled for a regular balcony just as as most people who stay in any balcony are spoiled for an inside or ocean view room.

Which cruise are you doing?

Also..is looneylou also your name on Trip advisor? There is someone with that tag on one of the forums I frequent

DH and I have cruised many times and mostly on the Aft. We are nonsmokers and are rather sensitive to smoke. In my experience, I have never been bothered by smokers in our aft-facing balconies. But we did have 1 experience mid-ship where we couldn't go out on our balcony without being bothered by the smoke. Not sure if this is all a coincidence or not: no smoking neighbors when on the aft?? And I'm pretty sure the time it bothered us, we had neighbors on each side who smoked often on their balconies and we could never time it right to be out there when they weren't :rolleyes:.

I think it is very thoughtful of you to be concerned. My suggestion would be to just be mindful of how windy it is, and make sure you use an ashtray!

I would have thought an aft balcony would be ideal for a non-smoker to avoid the stench of a neighbor's cigarettes, until 2012. One of my fellow cruise critic cruisers had an aft balcony on our Noordam cruise, and was basically unable to use the verandah because other people on the aft smoked and for some reason it just hung there at the back of the ship. I don't understand it, but these are very easy-going people and I don't believe they imagined it or made it up <g>. They were on deck 4, which is the lowest verandah deck - maybe it's not as bad up near the top deck??

 

Sue/WDW1972

DCL Dream 11/10/13

Nieuw Amsterdam 1/5/14

It must have been a group of smokers rather than just one person as it seemed non-stop. Oh, well, we still had a good time.

Thank you for being considerate of non-smokers. It is very kind of you.

Aft facing balconies on Carnival and RCCL were OK. The smoke was not pleasant, but it was bearable and not continuous. It would have been worse if the smokers were below us instead of next door or above. We will not cruise on Holland again. We were not able to use our balcony day or night, the entire cruise due to the smokers. We had a regular balcony on the starboard side of the ship.

Here's a bit of advice for choosing an aft cabin - there will most likely be 3 decks with aft cabins - be sure to book one on te deck in the middle. If you choose the lowest of the three, you'll be over the clubs and may get noise from below and if you choose the highest of the three you'll be below the pool deck so you can expect to hear the crew dragging chairs around each morning. On the subject of chairs, be sure to ask your steward as soon as you first see him to get you a lounge chair for your balcony!!

On our Hawaii cruise we were on a lower deck just standing by the rail when someone from a balcony above, tossed a cigarette butt. This butt landed in my hair! Luckily the person next to me saw it and quickly knocked it off. We immediately called security and they were there in an instant, looked and determined where it likely came from then headed upstairs. One of the reasons you don't toss your cigarette butts overboard. It could have landed on a deck chair and caused a fire.

Many are beginning to only allow smoking in designated areas and not on balconies because of fire risk. As a non smoker i can tell you personally that I can smell a lit cigarette a long way off and that is just not what I go off to sea to smell. We pay for a balcony always and don't want to smell cigarettes while enjoying what we paid for.

As two smokers who only book balcony cabins so we can smoke we do the following. Pack two empty jelly jars. Half fill one with water to put butts in & close cap. When the jar is full, strain water into other jar, put the butts in a zip lock bag to put in trashcan on open public deck and flush water, DO NOT FLUSH BUTTS THEY WILL CLOG THE TOILET! With this method you are sure the butts are out, much safer this way then an open ashtray. NEVER, NEVER THROW ANYTHING OFF OF A BALCONY. The only lines that still let you smoke on balcony are HAL & NCL. I was told today that Carnival no longer allows smoking on balcony. Haven't checked to see if that is true or not. I have had high and low decks, mid ship and aft and I have never smelled smoke from above below or from the side.

As two smokers who only book balcony cabins so we can smoke we do the following. Pack two empty jelly jars. Half fill one with water to put butts in & close cap. When the jar is full, strain water into other jar, put the butts in a zip lock bag to put in trashcan on open public deck and flush water, DO NOT FLUSH BUTTS THEY WILL CLOG THE TOILET! With this method you are sure the butts are out, much safer this way then an open ashtray. NEVER, NEVER THROW ANYTHING OFF OF A BALCONY. The only lines that still let you smoke on balcony are HAL & NCL. I was told today that Carnival no longer allows smoking on balcony. Haven't checked to see if that is true or not. I have had high and low decks, mid ship and aft and I have never smelled smoke from above below or from the side.

Technically you can still smoke on Royal Caribbean until January 1st 2014. I have an AFT balcony on the Jewel for Thanksgiving and plan on taking full and final advantage of my first and last balcony smoking experience. I will...however be sensitive to the people around me.

As two smokers who only book balcony cabins so we can smoke we do the following. Pack two empty jelly jars. Half fill one with water to put butts in & close cap. When the jar is full, strain water into other jar, put the butts in a zip lock bag to put in trashcan on open public deck and flush water, DO NOT FLUSH BUTTS THEY WILL CLOG THE TOILET! With this method you are sure the butts are out, much safer this way then an open ashtray. NEVER, NEVER THROW ANYTHING OFF OF A BALCONY. The only lines that still let you smoke on balcony are HAL & NCL. I was told today that Carnival no longer allows smoking on balcony. Haven't checked to see if that is true or not. I have had high and low decks, mid ship and aft and I have never smelled smoke from above below or from the side.

Carnival DOES still allow smoking on the balconies

Most cruise ships have banned smoking in the rooms and balconies. I only cruise on these ships. If I smell cigarette smoke or see someone smoking on a balcony I report them right away.