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NCL going smoke free in casino?

CTSandy

By CTSandy,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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CTSandy Great Review Rare

CTSandy

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I just read a social media post that said NCL is going smoke free in their casinos fleet wide.  Post did not have a link, just wondered if this is true and when it’s going to start.  I quit sailing them about 7 years ago after a cruise on Breakaway where the entire atrium stunk.  I’ve switched to Celebrity because casino is smoke free, but if NCL is doing this would consider some of their cruises again.

 

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AwesomO

AwesomO

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Not sure but it would be something I personally like. I remember having to walk through the Casino to access other parts of the ship on the Gem, and not caring for that, especially with my children. Our cabin was on deck 5 at the time (casino deck 6), so maybe that had something to do with it. I don't mind designated smoking areas, as long as I can avoid them. Nothing that would cause me not to sail with them or anything, just a personal preference. 

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bookbabe

bookbabe

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We just got off Bliss, and there was a separately enclosed smoking casino off the main one.  You couldn’t smell the smoke unless you were in the short side hallway leading to it.  The vast majority of the casino was completely smoke-free.

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deliver42

deliver42

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I think what NCL has done to separate the smoking area in the casinos in some ships is great. It would be better if they can retrofit the other ships in the fleet. I'm a smoker, but other than the cigar lounge or outside area, I won't smoke in the casino. I can skip a few hours, and my lungs appreciate it.

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phillygwm

phillygwm

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18 minutes ago, bookbabe said:

We just got off Bliss, and there was a separately enclosed smoking casino off the main one.  You couldn’t smell the smoke unless you were in the short side hallway leading to it.  The vast majority of the casino was completely smoke-free.

I'll be on Bliss in 3 weeks and will be spending a lot more time in the casino.  I'm CAS rated but always play exclusively at off-peak times because of the smoke.  

 

That said, I know a lot of people who may play less but I hope, to previous conversations about marketing decisions, that it has a more positive impact than negative.

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Turtles06 Great Review Rare

Turtles06

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1 hour ago, CTSandy said:

I quit sailing them about 7 years ago after a cruise on Breakaway where the entire atrium stunk.


We were on the Breakaway last month for the first time. I’d previously read about the casino smoke permeating the atrium and other open areas, but once I was on board, I found it even worse than I was expecting. (And the ship was only 38% occupied!)  What a poor design.  Thankfully, the Jewel-class ships, which we love, are better designed, though NCL really should ban smoking in its casinos. Celebrity shows it can be done. 

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Sand and Seas

Sand and Seas

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1 hour ago, bookbabe said:

We just got off Bliss, and there was a separately enclosed smoking casino off the main one.  You couldn’t smell the smoke unless you were in the short side hallway leading to it.  The vast majority of the casino was completely smoke-free.

Bliss, Encore & Joy have the enclosed smoking area in the casino. 

I would love it if they could retro-fit other ships with the same enclosed casino area.

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Sand and Seas

Sand and Seas

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3 hours ago, CTSandy said:

I just read a social media post that said NCL is going smoke free in their casinos fleet wide.  Post did not have a link, just wondered if this is true and when it’s going to start.  I quit sailing them about 7 years ago after a cruise on Breakaway where the entire atrium stunk.  I’ve switched to Celebrity because casino is smoke free, but if NCL is doing this would consider some of their cruises again.

 

I just found a social media poster on the Epic that said this, but then he posted an update.

He said he talked with casino manager and that it would only be on European cruises 'currently'.

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MagnoliaBlossom

MagnoliaBlossom

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We are frequent visitors of various casinos.  When casinos were opened after the big shut down there was a smoking ban for health reasons (spewing your breath out everywhere).  It has been wonderful!  Although the state has lifted this ban, many of the casinos have kept it in place.  I’m sure the casinos and staff would love to have a good reason to prohibit this workplace and housekeeping burden.

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KAYKAY121

KAYKAY121

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On 11/21/2021 at 9:54 AM, bookbabe said:

We just got off Bliss, and there was a separately enclosed smoking casino off the main one.  You couldn’t smell the smoke unless you were in the short side hallway leading to it.  The vast majority of the casino was completely smoke-free.

It blows you away if you are sitting in the casino when those doors open. I played in there because that is where some games I like were located on the Encore, I couldn't wear my sweater the rest of the week. It was awful.

 

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phillygwm

phillygwm

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27 minutes ago, KAYKAY121 said:

It blows you away if you are sitting in the casino when those doors open. I played in there because that is where some games I like were located on the Encore, I couldn't wear my sweater the rest of the week. It was awful.

I don't want to generalize, BUT....

 

Sometimes the biggest gamblers are the heaviest smokers.  Perhaps that's partially cultural but it might be because people  (like me...) are dissuaded from playing more than we would because it's too smoky.

 

I'm on the Bliss in a couple weeks.  If I'm pleasantly surprised I'll play in the casino past 7 PM 🙂

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KarimaJ

KarimaJ

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I hope they all Go smoke free. I loved the casino on Celebrity and Crystal. It certainly did not prevents people from gambling. The Escape was awful, you could smell it in the whole atrium area and right in the Asian restaurant as well.

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Uff da

Uff da

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I hope so. The sooner the better. My last cruise was on Bliss and the non smoking casino and the lack of smoke smell throughout 678 Ocean Place was lovely, especially since this is where much of the dining is located. My next one is Getaway and I'm worried. I will spend less time in the casino and atrium if it's too much. 

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kollegekreed

kollegekreed

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It really is pretty ridiculous at this point. Pre Covid , everyone could still make the argument that they may lose gambling revenue if they went nonsmoking. Post Covid, every land casino I know of north of New York City (maybe PA seems to be an exception), and probably several hundred miles further out, are completely nonsmoking now. And the revenue has certainly not dropped…they are busier than ever. 
 

Add the fact that more than half of the people polluting the casino don’t actually ever gamble and just use it as their personal smoking section because it’s closer than going upstairs to a smoking area…….it’s time for it to go, permanently. 

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UKstages

UKstages

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On 11/23/2021 at 1:04 PM, phillygwm said:

Sometimes the biggest gamblers are the heaviest smokers. 


and most of the time, they are not.

 

just walk through the high limit room in any land-based casino. you will find that most people do not smoke. if there are 100 players in there, 12 or 13 of them will be smoking., this is not news... a 2008 university of nevada study found that the percentage of smokers in nevada casinos mirrored the general population.

 

the casinos warn of economic ruin and a drop in tax revenue if smoking were to be prohibited (restaurants made the same arguments before smoking was prohibited in them). but that argument has always been false and, as pointed out above, it's completely been debunked following the reopening of casinos during the pandemic. and the casino industry has never presented data demonstrating that gamblers who smoke play longer, bet more or lose more. if there were such data, the casino industry would have shared it years ago and ended this perennial debate.

 

in america, less than 13% of the population smokes. and that percentage continues to drop. it was over 20% just a decade or so ago. the percentage of people who smoke varies by country, and there are certainly international travelers on NCL ships, but the percentage who smoke continues to drop worldwide.

 

carve outs to state smoke-free laws for casinos have been made at the behest of Big Tobacco for decades,  but the data on which they base their decisions has always been suspect. there has never been a peer reviewed independent study (not tied in some way to the tobacco industry) that has ever proved economic harm to casinos from a smoking prohibition.

 

33 minutes ago, kollegekreed said:

Add the fact that more than half of the people polluting the casino don’t actually ever gamble and just use it as their personal smoking section because it’s closer than going upstairs to a smoking area…….it’s time for it to go, permanently. 

 

in land-based regulated gambling jurisdictions, most casino exceptions to smoke-free air acts specifically state that the exception is being made for "active players." in other words, what you describe... just standing around and smoking... isn't allowed. you must be playing,. but this rule is rarely enforced. as best as i can tell, there is bo such rule onboard NCL ships. the only time they enforce "no smoking" in the casino is when the ship is in port and the casino is closed.

Edited by UKstages
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MotownVoice

MotownVoice

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On 11/23/2021 at 1:04 PM, phillygwm said:

Sometimes the biggest gamblers are the heaviest smokers. 

 


 

All of the casinos in Detroit are smoke free with designated areas.  
 

if this theory were true casinos would have to install chimneys. 

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BirdTravels "Live from...." Rare

BirdTravels

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10 hours ago, kollegekreed said:

It really is pretty ridiculous at this point. Pre Covid , everyone could still make the argument that they may lose gambling revenue if they went nonsmoking. Post Covid, every land casino I know of north of New York City (maybe PA seems to be an exception), and probably several hundred miles further out, are completely nonsmoking now. And the revenue has certainly not dropped…they are busier than ever. 
 

Add the fact that more than half of the people polluting the casino don’t actually ever gamble and just use it as their personal smoking section because it’s closer than going upstairs to a smoking area…….it’s time for it to go, permanently. 

The argument has not changed. Real gambling locations like Vegas have always allowed smoking. 

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