Smoking question

[ColoradoJuli]

I am currently booked on a HAL cruise for May. I have been talking on the board and found out the HAL ships are very smokey. Their smoking policy is apparently very liberal and lends itself to smoke all over the ships. I am considering changing my cruise to an RCCL cruise and wanted to know from some non-smokers what the ship 'air' is like.

 

I am a severe asthmatic and my husband's throat closes up when he smells smoke. We have sailed previously on the Paradise (smoke free until September 2004) and in January will sail on my first smoking ship. Just wondering what the ships are like and if the smoke is in the air or smoking is limited.

[Blizzard54]

Smoking is pretty limited on RCL ships.

 

The one exception is the casino, it can get smokey.

[beachchick]

Smoking is allowed in cabins, on cabin balconies, and in specified parts of bars/lounges, most (if not all of?) the casino, and on one side of the outdoor decks. It is also allowed in the cigar lounges (if the ship has one), which have excellent ventilation. We went with my sister and BIL on Mariner (BIL really wanted to have one cigar and a port). DH has asthma and I have health issues as well. Neither of us were bothered by the air in the cigar lounge--really wish they had that kind of ventilation in the other indoor smoking areas. I could not believe how well it was filtered.

 

Smoking is not allowed in the dining venues (except part of the outdoor area of Windjammer), the theaters, the spa, the gym, the Solarium, and places like the lobbies, main walkway of the promenade, etc.

 

We have never been particularly bothered by smoke on RCI ships. DH has not had a severe asthma reaction while onboard. However, we avoid the casino. It really does get bad. Of course this means they don't get much of our money that way. LOL. The problem with the casino (as I see it) is that it is part of the passageway from the fore to the aft on that deck. So you have to either get through it as fast as possible or go to another deck and then back.

 

Two things that always set people off are when non-smokers complain about smoke while they are in the smoking-allowed areas and smokers disregarding the non-smoking areas and smoking there anyway.

 

beachchick

[Rubia_Boricua_PR]

I was on Radiance in march and you can smoke in any outside area/deck. Nothing indoor except the casino and in cabins of course. I work in a casino and it was such a relief not having to smell the freaking cigarettes all over the place. And when gambling we felt like at work. Smoke should not be allowed in any cruise while indoors, i have no problem with doing it outside since the breeze will take care of it but who are we to complaint about it ....

[ColoradoJuli]

Thank you all for the information. I think I am going to need to wait until our NCL cruise is over and see how smokey it is before I decide to take HAL or RCI. I am not really sure what to do. I absolutely love cruising and hate to give it up, but I can't be around smoke without an asthma attack.

[Married on Enchantment]

I have found that the smoking policies are the same with HAL and RCCL. It is usually just one side of the ship outside that you can smoke on. There are some smoking and non smoking lounges, or only one side you can smoke.

Don't change you HAL vacation I find that HAL is a better cruising experience, although it is hit and miss with every cruise.

 

Jarrad