The Hated Smoking Question

[sail7seas]

Who's on the 'inside' except for DutchByAssociation? :) Not me, that's for sure.

[Zappa Fan]

Who's on the 'inside' except for DutchByAssociation? :) Not me, that's for sure.

 

Didn't mean to offend you, kiddo... it's just with all of your posts, I assumed that you were a Holland America "insider"..... happy sails, honey. :)

[sail7seas]

No sweetie ..... :D

 

I'm just an avid HAL cruiser who loves the ships and crews and I have lots of free time. :)

 

No problem. ;)

 

[Zappa Fan]

Never thought there was a problem, baby! :) I wish you all of the best.;)

[Kiwi Kruzer]

I just love Holiday time...

 

the Moderators give us so much leeway:D

[waunabcruizin]

I have been trying to decide on a cruise to Alaska this summer. After looking at Princess, HAL, Celebrity, RCCL the choice has come down to either HAL or Celebrity. Princess' ships are too large for Alaska in my opinion, as are the ships from RCCL. They dump too many people into these small towns all at once. And the itineraries are extremely uninspired. I think HAL ships are perfect for this destination and they have the most wonderful Alaskan itineraries, but......I will be booking with Celebrity. I do not want to deal with smokers everywhere I turn. I have sailed HAL once on a charter and really loved the Zuiderdam. I have very much wanted to sail on other HAL ships, but until their smoking policy becomes more restrictive I will not do so. Thanks for the very informative discussion thread. Regards to all.

Carol Hoffman

Gig Harbor, WA

[Zappa Fan]

It sounds as though you made the right choice in cruise lines, Carol.

 

Life's too short to fret over silly stuff. Enjoy your cruise.:)

[HWY 101]

got them, by the rules of course...;)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUyuGFoiWJ0

 

We are actually centrists. we accept everyone, and then respond by saluting the flag and our soldiers and their families who make this a cool a Country to live in...

 

 

Happy Holidays and Happy Sailings.. or so it seems.. see ya in the elevator..

[usha]

I was wondering what you'd be doing for the New Year decoration. Very nice.:)

Thanks, Suse! :)

[mechcc]

First off, I am a closet smoker. I don't smoke around family because they hate it. They know I smoke when not around them. I love to smoke and I hate the smell of smoking. So I can see both sides to the argument. I really think that smoking should not be allowed in staterooms as the smell seeps into the corridors and it is gross (and smokers seem to leave their cabin doors open to air the cabin out). Smoking on individual balconies should be allowed while the ship is moving. While the smell of smoke ignites my desire to smoke, the faint smell from the balcony forward to me is not bothersome. Then again I am in favor of smoking allowed on balconies on one side and not the other.

 

Smoking in the Casino - mixed feelings. Most smokers gamble more when allowed to smoke. Smoking is an addictvie behavior. So is gambling. Having a non smoking night or two at the casino doesn't solve the problem as the smoke lingers. That area needs some engineering to please both smokers and nonsmokers to maximize profits.

 

There should be at least one indoor area where smoking is allowed, and again, the engineers need to be involved to get the correct ventalation so the smoke doesn't seep to non-smoking areas. Besides no smoker wants to go into an interior smoking area and walk out after one smoke smelling like they rolled in an ashtray. And non-smoking friends and families want to be with their smoking friends/families.

 

At best, there has to be engineering improvements to accomodate both smokers and nonsmokers.

 

I honestly think there are modifications that can be made to ventalation that will help both sides of this argument.

[jghllnd1]

Are people really having that much of a problem on HAL with smokers?

Like I have stated before, I have been on 3 HAL cruises and have not had any problems. I have asthma and still no problems. I do avoid the areas that are smoke filled, like the casino and if a bar seems smokey, I leave, but rarely have had to do that.

[usha]

Besides no smoker wants to go into an interior smoking area and walk out after one smoke smelling like they rolled in an ashtray.

By virtue of having smoked one, you're going to walk out smelling as though you've rolled in an ashtray.

That's just the physics of the whole smoking activity, I'm afraid.

[RevNeal]

the bright spot ahead is the separate cabin for you. It's hard, these addictions. Is any family without? I think not. I tend to lift it up to the Lord if I can think of it. Usually, I go crazy and worry myself sick over family members but that's just plain silly. Yikes, it's hard.

Hope you have a fantastic cruise. Thinking of you.:)

 

You are correct; Mom and I having the luxury of separate cabins, instead of having to share, is a fantastic consolation. Still, it's expensive. But ... hey ... I won't be able to cruise with my mother for that many more years, so in the long-run it's worth it.

[HWY 101]

You are correct; Mom can we all pray now.. and smoke.. yep..:D

[RevNeal]

Since the survey started some 3 (?) years ago, I think the only change in smoking policy has been to no longer allow it in Ocean Bar. They had already stopped permitting it in Lido Pool under the dome, had they not? When we sailed together on Noordam, no smoking was permitted there.

 

In addition to the discontinuation of a smoking area in the Ocean Lounge (at and around the Bar itself), the new policy has also removed smoking areas from the Explorer's Lounge, the Piano Bar, and the Dolphin Bar, while reducing the area in or near the Crows Nest where one may smoke (the reconfiguration of the Vistas, removing the smoking room on the Starboard side just abaft the Crows Nest to make room for the Explorations Cafe, is yet another major impact).

 

I FULLY support there have to be interior areas where smokers can enjoy their cigarette.

I by no means want it banned entirely but casino, sports bar (on ships that have one), casino bar and Crows Nest (where permitted) really seem to be enough choices IMO Of course, we can go back and forth about adequate and I totally understand what you are saying but really don't want any more exposure to smoke than that. I really am uncomfortable and have to leave an area if someone is smoking. That has not always been the case but it very much is now.

 

I don't disagree and I totally understand. My point is simply that there has already been a major restriction of smoking areas aboard HAL ships; claims to the contrary are simply wrong.

 

I am sure you have priced the least costly veranda cabin vs getting two cabins for you and your Mom. Any chance the cost is close? Would that be a solution to your situation?

 

No. The cost is close, yes, but I wouldn't want to subject neighbors to my mothers smoking out on a Verandah. After all the bellyaching we see on this board, I'm too considerate to inflict her habit on others that way. And, frankly, I'm of the opinion that, for safety reasons, smoking shouldn't be permitted on verandas.

 

Greg, I truly am sorry the smoke bothers you so much that two cabins are necessary. Some folks here have said they get that sort of reaction if they are around only one cigarette being smoked.

 

I thought I could tolerate it because I don't normally have trouble going over to her house and stay for hours or even over night. However, being in an enclosed cabin aboard ship is significantly different from being in a large house. In my case it was the daily concentration of my mother's smoking in-cabin, for two 7-day cruises back-to-back, that did it to me. The resulting sinusitis took 5 weeks to clear up. It was after that that I determined to get us two separate cabins.

 

 

I hope you and your Mom have another outstanding cruise together. Of course, you treasure these times you spend with her.

 

Oh, we will! The privacy we'll have from each other in two separate cabins will add significant value to our cruise, too.

[RevNeal]

I was wondering what it would be like on the decks during Glacier Bay viewing on my Alaskan cruise. Even though we have a balcony I thought I may take the kids up for the hot chocolate and more expansive views, but I kind of thought there would be people smoking here and there. Does anyone else have any experiences on deck during the glacier viewing days on HAL?

 

I was out-and-about, all over the ship, while in glacier bay. I never noticed, nor was I ever bothered by, people smoking. I know some people were, but it never bothered me.

[HWY 101]

in the lido. large talker? Happy Holiday and smooth sailings.

[riverdees05]

Yes, I would be interested in the current smoking policy on HAL? We are looking to take a 14 day Panama Canal Cruise on the Amsterdam and considering getting cabins with balconies.

[GmaPajama]

You are correct; Mom and I having the luxury of separate cabins, instead of having to share, is a fantastic consolation. Still, it's expensive. But ... hey ... I won't be able to cruise with my mother for that many more years, so in the long-run it's worth it.

I don't often jump into these controversial smoking threads, but want to say how much I admire RevNeal's attitude towards his mother's smoking. Rather than rag at her to quit (and all the bad feelings, both ways, that comes with that) - he simply loves her for who she is and makes whatever accomodations are necessary to enjoy being with her. Whether she smokes or not isn't going to have a major impact on her lifespan at this point - but having a son who loves her unconditionally will make whatever years she has left really good ones. I'm certain he is her hero.

[GeriatricNurse]

Yes, I would be interested in the current smoking policy on HAL? We are looking to take a 14 day Panama Canal Cruise on the Amsterdam and considering getting cabins with balconies.

 

 

Well, if you are considering getting cabins with balconies, I hope that you are a smoker because you will probably appreciate and enjoy the use of your balconies as a smoker rather than as a non smoker!

If you are a non smoker, then I would strongly recommend booking oceanview cabins until HAL revises their smoking policy to prohibit smoking on the balconies!

[m steve]

perfume as it irritates others. No one would think of smoking inside so no sign needed. Yes perfume in quantity is much more annoying than smoke as it lingers in hallways and indoor venues on a ship. Possibly the smoke erradicates the perfume in the casino?

As for the surveys, we sailed Celebrity and they didn't ask about smoke, they just changed the rules. HAL asks and I am sure they get lots of responses from passengers that they wouldn't sail with them again if they changed to rules. The smoke haters really love to complain and I bet that no one ever had a chain smoker next to them who sat on the balcony for 7 or more days just puffing away. They just love to exagerate to prove their prejudice.

Finally, since only 20% of the population smokes, no one is going to find smoke everywhere they go on a ship. Get real!

I don't smoke but it doesn't bother me. I've survived for 72 years having parents, grandparents and even doctors who smoked.

[Randyk47]

OK....I'll admit it....we're smokers. Yep, know all the reasons we shouldn't but we do. To that end we've slowly but surely been squeezed, and I'm not necessarily complaining, to HAL. We have canceled our automatic email updates from Celebrity and Azamara and even canceled an Azamara cruise because of their smoking policies. Will we eventually be squeezed out of all cruise lines as we have with numerous hotel chains? Probably. As long as threads don't get judgemental I don't mind a discussion of existing policies but when the mud starts flying then I'm out of here. :)

[Travalerie]

I was out-and-about, all over the ship, while in glacier bay. I never noticed, nor was I ever bothered by, people smoking. I know some people were, but it never bothered me.

Yeah, I am not that worried about it...I figured we could just walk somewhere else, I mean its a big ship! As I mentioned earlier, I knew what I was getting into, but this being my first time in Alaska I wanted to see Glacier Bay so it was HAL or Princess-both smoking lines. I really just hope we don't have a smoker nearby who smokes in the cabin-that gets in the halls. That happened on my first Princess cruise. BUT it did not get in our cabin which was good. Not to down play the irritation of second hand smoke, but it did not ruin my cruise.

[Travalerie]

I don't smoke but it doesn't bother me. I've survived for 72 years having parents, grandparents and even doctors who smoked.

As an MD....I can tell you that doctors do a lot of things they know they should not do...as do professors, preachers, etc. I mean people are people. Every year I go to renew my license I have to attest that I do not use illegal drugs and have not been arrested for drunk driving. Nobody would imply that because a doctor does those things it makes it ok.

[sail7seas]

I don't often jump into these controversial smoking threads, but want to say how much I admire RevNeal's attitude towards his mother's smoking. Rather than rag at her to quit (and all the bad feelings, both ways, that comes with that) - he simply loves her for who she is and makes whatever accomodations are necessary to enjoy being with her. Whether she smokes or not isn't going to have a major impact on her lifespan at this point - but having a son who loves her unconditionally will make whatever years she has left really good ones. I'm certain he is her hero.

 

 

Donna,

This is one of the most caring, beautiful, loving posts I have ever read on this board.

 

Thank you for it.

It certainly is in the spirit of the season. :)