Cigarette smoke on your aft facing balcony from the new crew smoking ar

[HaveDogWillTravel]

I am currently on the Grand Princess in a Baha deck aft facing balcony. I have been smelling cigarette smoke consistently on my balcony. At times it is not tolerable and I must leave my balcony at other times it is moderate and uncomfortable but tolerable. The aft promenade deck has been closed off for a crew smoking area. 
 

I brought it to the attention my steward and then spoke to Sheila the guest services manager. She is a very caring and compassionate person. I told her that I understood there really was no other alternative at the moment for the crew given covid protocols…… department personnel don’t mix off duty increasing the need for the entire aft section, crew have variable schedules precluding set times for smoking, the front of the ship is far too windy to allow smoking…..and so on. I also realize as a 30 year smoker ( 20 years free of it now yeah!) how important smoking is for the crew. They work hard, they are away from their families, they have stress and long hours. I would not want them to be denied this outlet. 
 

I would appreciate if you’ve sailed recently on the Grand or the Ruby (Sheila is going to get back to me but I believe the Ruby has also closed the aft for crew smoking) or as you sail on the upcoming cruises if you’d report back about the smell of smoke or lack of smoke on your balcony. 

Edited October 31, 2021 by HaveDogWillTravel

[pms4104]

And, pre-Covid the crew smoked where?

[geoherb]

2 hours ago, pms4104 said:

And, pre-Covid the crew smoked where?

 

Probably in the crew bar.

[redrobin]

Yes!! I too smelled smoke on the Oct. 14 sailing on my aft balcony, and now it all makes sense!!

 

I was disappointed on the Grand that you could not walk laps around the promenade deck. (I was looking forward to it, since I sailed on the Majestic in August, and that's not possible.) I just assumed they were doing some type of ship maintenance.

 

When I first smelled the smoke I questioned whether I was imagining it. As it continued, I thought a passenger might be smoking on their balcony. I didn't mention it to anyone, but did wonder where the heck it was coming from. 

 

 

[nini]

So this is a REAL BUMMER! Our first cabin choice is an act balcony, typically closer to port side. This really will not work for js. I truly pray this will change by May 2022! Please update us on what happens. 

[dchip]

Well this makes me very unhappy. We are boarding the Ruby today and had planned to spend most of our time out on our aft balcony. Hoping they will come to a different decision. Closing off the Promenade deck stinks also for all the avid walkers. 

[HaveDogWillTravel]

@dchipplease post your experience on the Ruby. I board her for a total of 25 days  between November 22 and January 16. I am thinking I will have to talk to my PVP about moving my cabins. The problem is my category on 15 of those days is not available mid ships. 
Yes I am bummed the full promenade deck is not available.  
while I really struggled to find a full route on the Majestic upper decks, the grand actually has a nice full ship route on the upper decks. It includes more stairs than the promenade route which I consider a bonus. 

Sheila said that only one other person has brought up the smoke/lack of promenade issue on the grand since they’ve restarted. So if you are on board a ship and this is a concern for you I would voice it to the guest relations manager. 

sunrise right now from my aft balcony. Unfortunately with a backdrop of cigarette smoke 😿

Edited October 31, 2021 by HaveDogWillTravel

[dchip]

@HaveDogWillTravelI will certainly report back on the Ruby. I was a bit concerned about smell from the dreaded vent. Adding cigarette smoke will not make for a fun time. Disrupting the walk ability of the Promenade Deck makes no sense to me. 
Denise

[HaveDogWillTravel]

Thank you @dchip I am hoping that the Aloha deck will be high enough up that the smoke won’t be noticed. 

[2 cruises a year]

2 hours ago, dchip said:

@HaveDogWillTravelI will certainly report back on the Ruby. I was a bit concerned about smell from the dreaded vent. Adding cigarette smoke will not make for a fun time. Disrupting the walk ability of the Promenade Deck makes no sense to me. 
Denise

Most Princess ships no longer have a Promenade Deck.  Someone probably thinks that they won't be missed if they cut them off on the rest of their ships.

I heartily disagree.

Edited October 31, 2021 by 2 cruises a year

[dchip]

27 minutes ago, 2 cruises a year said:

Most Princess ships no longer have a Promenade Deck.  Someone probably thinks that they won't be missed if they cut them off on the rest of their ships.

I heartily disagree.

Unfortunately! At least the Grand and Ruby have an almost Promenade deck. I understand what they are doing and why. New cruisers won’t miss it.
 

Our last two cruises were on HAL Maasdam and Amsterdam where there were still old fashion promenade decks. Sadly both ships have been sold. 😢

[dchip]

57 minutes ago, HaveDogWillTravel said:

Thank you @dchip I am hoping that the Aloha deck will be high enough up that the smoke won’t be noticed. 

We are on Baja. Hoping for the same. Dealing with smoke in California is bad enough. We don’t even use our fireplace anymore. ☹️

[HaveDogWillTravel]

Last day and a sea day. Trying to nap on the balcony but the cigarette smoke is intrusive. 

[Cruise Raider]

9 hours ago, HaveDogWillTravel said:

@dchipplease post your experience on the Ruby. I board her for a total of 25 days  between November 22 and January 16. I am thinking I will have to talk to my PVP about moving my cabins. The problem is my category on 15 of those days is not available mid ships. 
Yes I am bummed the full promenade deck is not available.  
while I really struggled to find a full route on the Majestic upper decks, the grand actually has a nice full ship route on the upper decks. It includes more stairs than the promenade route which I consider a bonus. 

Sheila said that only one other person has brought up the smoke/lack of promenade issue on the grand since they’ve restarted. So if you are on board a ship and this is a concern for you I would voice it to the guest relations manager. 

sunrise right now from my aft balcony. Unfortunately with a backdrop of cigarette smoke 😿

 

I believe that one person was me that complained about the smoke on our lovely aft balcony on the Grand.  It was so bad one day that I finally had to call about it.  They sent someone up to check on it and they noticed it as well.  I could hardly complain after being given such a wonderful cabin.  

We actually encountered it on the Majestic as well but not until the last day so we just ignored it.  I love those aft facing cabins but dang, I also cannot tolerate the smoking.  

I agree, Sheila is complete sweetheart.  Say hi to her from us when you talk to her again!!  Hope you are able to enjoy the rest of your cruise.  

 

[CruzDayz]

I was in C742 on the Grand and the days that we were in Cabo it was so bad it was also coming through my air vent. The balcony was unusable. I called down at 7:00 am and asked what was going on? At first she tried telling me it was the public smoking area, then she changed it to the crew smoking area. Once we left Cabo and the air was moving it got better. Very poor business. I never did get a call back to ask if it was better. I try to be understanding but I’m losing my fondness for Princess. I don’t understand the air vent unless the corner suite had their balcony door open and the smoke went from their vent to mine. I have another cruise with Princess and then I’ll start rotating lines again. 
Also, before you even get off of the ship they send you a 30-45 minute survey and they never get back to you to discuss your comments. 

[pms4104]

Don't know which is worse ...

 

Having a cabin in the middle of an ashtray ...

 

or having staff lie about the source of the smoke.

[PrincessLuver]

Does anyone know if you were in cabins E 727 or E 729 on the Ruby Princess if smoking would be a problem you would be concerned about in that area of the ship.....any info appreciated....thank you.

[Triptkr]

15 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

 

I believe that one person was me that complained about the smoke on our lovely aft balcony on the Grand.  It was so bad one day that I finally had to call about it.  They sent someone up to check on it and they noticed it as well.  I could hardly complain after being given such a wonderful cabin.  

We actually encountered it on the Majestic as well but not until the last day so we just ignored it.  I love those aft facing cabins but dang, I also cannot tolerate the smoking.  

I agree, Sheila is complete sweetheart.  Say hi to her from us when you talk to her again!!  Hope you are able to enjoy the rest of your cruise.  

 

You got this cruise for free?  Or did you mean you were given a complimentry upgrade?

[marden1970]

We are on the Ruby in March, cabins D736 and D737 (B2B) and will be really really annoyed if I can't use my balcony, for which we are paying a lot, because of the smoke smell.

Please, if you are in one of cabins effected please complain loud and long, both in person and on the after cruise survey.  Also will not be happy if they take away the (sort of) full promanade.  Thanks 

[Cruise Raider]

28 minutes ago, Triptkr said:

You got this cruise for free?  Or did you mean you were given a complimentry upgrade?

 

It was a complimentary upgrade.  

[Triptkr]

1 minute ago, Cruise Raider said:

 

It was a complimentary upgrade.  

Nice!!  

[Cruise Raider]

10 hours ago, CruzDayz said:

I was in C742 on the Grand and the days that we were in Cabo it was so bad it was also coming through my air vent. The balcony was unusable. I called down at 7:00 am and asked what was going on? At first she tried telling me it was the public smoking area, then she changed it to the crew smoking area. Once we left Cabo and the air was moving it got better. Very poor business. I never did get a call back to ask if it was better. I try to be understanding but I’m losing my fondness for Princess. I don’t understand the air vent unless the corner suite had their balcony door open and the smoke went from their vent to mine. I have another cruise with Princess and then I’ll start rotating lines again. 
Also, before you even get off of the ship they send you a 30-45 minute survey and they never get back to you to discuss your comments. 

 

We were in C743 on the Grand back in Sept ... we never noticed even a hint of smoke and we spent a lot of time out on our balcony.  When we cruised in an aft facing cabin in Oct (on the Grand as well), the day we were in Ensenada, the smell of smoke was really strong.  I thought it might be the guests up on the top deck.  I remember also thinking it must be a  group of smokers because the smell was nearly nonstop.  No one person could smoke that many cigarettes in a row like that.  It does make more sense that it was an area for the crew.  Now that is more clear, I do actually have a better understanding for the situation they are facing.  So many people from other countries do smoke and where else could they possibly allow them to smoke?  I don't have an answer for that.  

 

 

[Cruise Raider]

3 hours ago, PrincessLuver said:

Does anyone know if you were in cabins E 727 or E 729 on the Ruby Princess if smoking would be a problem you would be concerned about in that area of the ship.....any info appreciated....thank you.

 

It's interesting you asked that question as I now realize that based on the complaint from CruzDayz, the smoking is probably on the port side.  As I mentioned above, I never even smelled a hint of smoke when in cabin C743.  It seems like E727 would be a better choice, although, the balcony on E729 is so incredible!!  

[CruzDayz]

5 minutes ago, Cruise Raider said:

 

It's interesting you asked that question as I now realize that based on the complaint from CruzDayz, the smoking is probably on the port side.  As I mentioned above, I never even smelled a hint of smoke when in cabin C743.  It seems like E727 would be a better choice, although, the balcony on E729 is so incredible!!  

It is on port side. After lunch on Cabo day my steward was still cleaning my cabin so I sat in the Vista lounge to call my daughter. I sat in the left side by the windows. I looked out of the window and there were at least 12 crew out there smoking. It was a total accident that I saw them as I really didn't know where the smoking area was and I wasn't looking for it. They go out of the door where the bingo cards are sold. This was three decks below my cabin. I agree they need a place to go but not below my balcony please. Also below me on 9 and 8 are those nice cabins that are hanging on the side. 8 looked like it is an accessible cabin and I'm sure they wouldn't want to deal with the smoke. I'm think that Princess is trying to learn how to deal with things since COVID. 

[Cruise Raider]

18 minutes ago, CruzDayz said:

It is on port side. After lunch on Cabo day my steward was still cleaning my cabin so I sat in the Vista lounge to call my daughter. I sat in the left side by the windows. I looked out of the window and there were at least 12 crew out there smoking. It was a total accident that I saw them as I really didn't know where the smoking area was and I wasn't looking for it. They go out of the door where the bingo cards are sold. This was three decks below my cabin. I agree they need a place to go but not below my balcony please. Also below me on 9 and 8 are those nice cabins that are hanging on the side. 8 looked like it is an accessible cabin and I'm sure they wouldn't want to deal with the smoke. I'm think that Princess is trying to learn how to deal with things since COVID. 

 

Aha!!  Sherlock couldn't have done that better. 

That sure explains the amount of smoke we all have been smelling and as we've deduced,  on the port side only.  I wonder if it's always been like that.  We've stayed in those very aft mini's on the Emerald Deck (8) but come to think of it, it's always been on the Starboard side.  Again, never any issue with the smoke.  I'm sure they have a lot of issues to deal with due to CoVid.  I agree, not under my cabin.  I think the only time we really noticed it is when we were docked while in port.  The way the wind blows is also a determining factor.  I honestly thought it was coming from above but couldn't figure out how it was pretty much nonstop that day we were in port.  

I've also wondered why in the world they put the full suites right under the pool deck on the Crown Class ships.  I'll never put myself in that situation again ... I look for very quiet room, one that isn't above or below a smoking section.  I was once in one of the Window Suites and this really strong smell of turpentine infiltrated my room.  They cleared us out of our cabin for about an hour or two, gave us a nice bottle of wine and cheese plate to enjoy to keep us busy in Vines.  Bingo ... they had it all cleared out by the time we returned to our room.   Evidently, they were refurbishing the furniture upstairs and then just had them stop in their tracks.   When it's a problem caused by the crew or staff, it's much easier for them to control when and where it takes place.  Not trying to pile it on thick, I do believe that the more they understand the problem at hand, the more they will do to fix the issue.