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OPEN LETTER to Mr Stein Kruse, CEO, HAL concerning recent changes in policies

JimVrhovac

By JimVrhovac,
in Holland America Line

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marle7

marle7

Posted
Posted

 

I'm amazed at the arrogance of the smoking set, flaunting their ability to "vote with their wallets", trying to browbeat HAL into submission (ala the OP's passive-aggressive "open letter"). I've never seen any evidence to suggest that smokers have fatter wallets than non-smokers.

 

Marc

Call it arrogance if you want. And if non smokers do spend as much, then that's great, it will be a wash for HAL which will please them. I simply said, "if they don't" there's a loss for HAL coming. For me, it's just a statement of fact. As I said, HAL can do what it wants and will. As can I. I don't really have to cruise.

 

Well, occupational health and safety? Its the law in some countries - more and more actually. :)

 

Smooth sailing to you...

I am a certified Health and Safety officer in Ontario, so I know the law, thanks. I'm simply saying that if most of them smoke anyway, their health isn't being protected since as soon as they leave a public area, they light up.

 

Thank you for the information about Sandals. It will actually cost less there than on a cruise.

 

Ruth & Jim

 

You're very welcome. I just came back from Bahamas and toured Sandals. It is very very nice, and the higher suites come with conceirge and butler service. For us, it will be more than $10,000 less than we would spend with HAL or any other line.

 

There are also two casinos in the Bahamas and most places provide free shuttles. And, they have some really really great restaurants, Cafe Martinique and Greycliff being just two of them, if you wanted to venture off resort.

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KAYEF

KAYEF

Posted
Posted
Can I please get my Soap Box Out!!!!!!

 

WAY TO GO HOLLAND AMERICA!!!! You listened to your survey!!!

 

 

Over time the US will become less and less attached to smoking, if you want to talk about economics, Smokers you have to lay out $8.50 for a cartoon of cigarettes. I love how smokers complain on how much it cost, the government is given you way out. =]quote

 

 

 

WHERE in this country do you get a carton of cigarettes for $8.50? I hope you mean a package. ;) As for economics............our health system is being stretched due to nicotine caused diseases and diabetes.........again a preventable disease.

 

it's no fun having to walk through cigarette smoke but it's not fun being assigned a smoke-smelling cabin, either.:(

 

Remember when we HAD to breathe cigarette smoke on airplanes?:eek:

 

Somewhere in here the powers that be will have to find some solutions. Once we were on a ship (was it a Princess?) where they had a cigar smoking room but lots of other smokers were in there as well. Well, if you had the bad luck to walk by that room there was smoke all over the hallway and if they opened the door, you were in a cloud. Of course we learned to avoid that area; problem solved once we learned the ship.

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marle7

marle7

Posted
Posted
Oh I agree restaurants have thrived since the non smoking ban went into effect in non-gaming areas but that is NOT Casinos. Somehow Casinos and smoking go hand in hand at least here in Las Vegas. :D Kind of takes you back to the Rat Pack Days. I guess my question to you is how many Casinos does Ontario have? I can tell you that many bars in Vegas did hurt financially when this went into effect while the restaurants flourished. It has been tried in Las Vegas before to have Non-smoking Casinos or sections of Casinos and it did not work.

All the ships have Casinos. The question then is How Much revenue does the Casino on any given ship bring in? Could we be seeing Casinos on ships vanishing? It would definitely not effect my cruise but does it effect the profits of the ship? If it would the price of the cruise would definitely go up and worse cruise lines could go under? How many non-smokers would not cruise because of NO Casino? I do not know these answers. Maybe someone should start a Poll :confused:

 

Lisa, I think this is correct. the Lottery Corp in Ontario is one of my husband's clients and I know for a fact their revenue is down since the ban went into effect. I suspect the Casinos on board ships bring in huge revenue for the ships, which is possibly why they are trying to balance smoking and non smoking nights in them.

 

I have deliberately not taken a Hawaii cruise due to the fact that the casinos must be closed while in Hawaii or sailing in Hawaiian waters.

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lettienets

lettienets

Posted
Posted
You miss the point. The fact remains that on five HAL ships there is no reason that non-smokers need to be in the vicinity of smoke in the Ocean Bar, even if it is allowed. The two camps can live in peaceful co-existance, with the Atrium acting as the demilitarized zone. ...........

That's not true Ruth. If you are a non smoker and want to dance in the Ocean Bar , you have to go to the smoking section to dance where the band is. The dance floor is on the smoking side and when on the Noordam in Jan, I noticed it was very smoky there.

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marle7

marle7

Posted
Posted
That's not true Ruth. If you are a non smoker and want to dance in the Ocean Bar , you have to go to the smoking section to dance where the band is. The dance floor is on the smoking side and when on the Noordam in Jan, I noticed it was very smoky there.

 

It should be simple enough to make the side with the dance floor the non smoking side.

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world~citizen

world~citizen

Posted
Posted

...I am a certified Health and Safety officer in Ontario, so I know the law, thanks. I'm simply saying that if most of them smoke anyway, their health isn't being protected since as soon as they leave a public area, they light up.

 

I don't know where the crew can and cannot smoke. I have seen galley workers smoke outside.

 

As a Health and Safety officer you should know more than most the danger of secondary smoke and the motivation one might have to support the extension of smoke free zones.

 

Neither Health Canada nor the Ministry of Health legislate the laws you help to administer just to irritate people - though it does at times seem the primary purpose of legislators. :)

 

Smooth sailing to you...

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MadManOfBethesda

MadManOfBethesda

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I have deliberately not taken a Hawaii cruise due to the fact that the casinos must be closed while in Hawaii or sailing in Hawaiian waters.

 

When I was on the Ryndam Hawaii/South Pacific cruise in January, the only time that the casino was closed during the week we spent in the Hawaiian Islands was when the ship was actually in port. When we sailed from island to island, and even when we just sailed from one side of the Big Island to the other (Hilo to Kona), the casino was open for business.

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Sleepladypalmdesert

Sleepladypalmdesert

Posted
Posted

Quote:

Originally Posted by Host Joe viewpost.gif

Hi folks, please answer the original posters question only in your responses. Thanks!

 

"Last chance! The next person to go off topic and/or rant about the evils of smoking risk the loss of posting privileges.

 

If you still want to discuss the health aspects of smoking and not cruising, here are two forums that should satisfy your interests."

SMOKING FORUM

 

NO SMOKING FORUM

__________________

Walt Tuthill

Cruise Board Moderator

 

Isn't it about time we got a message something like this?? I keep waiting....and waiting....and waiting. ;)

 

 

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marle7

marle7

Posted
Posted
When I was on the Ryndam Hawaii/South Pacific cruise in January, the only time that the casino was closed during the week we spent in the Hawaiian Islands was when the ship was actually in port. When we sailed from island to island, and even when we just sailed from one side of the Big Island to the other (Hilo to Kona), the casino was open for business.

 

 

Ah, well that's good to know.:D I was told that it was closed during the entire time we were in Hawaii.

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bepsf

bepsf

Posted
Posted
...The dance floor is on the smoking side and when on the Noordam in Jan, I noticed it was very smoky there.

 

I was there every single evening on that same cruise and I wasn't bothered in the least by cigarette smoke...

 

...what bothered me was that they had removed 2-3 tables and 8-12 chairs to make more room for the dancers.

 

What about my rights as a non-dancer to have a seat near the bar?

;)

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