Disappointed in balcony smoking on Solstice

[terp4life]

I just returned from Solstice 1/16 to 1/23. I was thrilled in the lack of smoke throughout the interior of the ship. Never went to the Sky lounge, since I knew it was allowed there. However, I was disappointed in the amount of smoke I was able to smell on my balcony. Unfortunately, it seems smokers are getting wise to being reported. Only once in 7 days was I able to determine where the smoke was coming from. There was a group three balconies forward from us who I reported, but they continued to smoke I believe. I never saw them again, but I heard them and smelt smoke on a few more occasions. On many other occasions I was able to smell smoke, but despite staying at the edge of my 8th floor hump balcony with a decent view to all sides, I could never see the sources, and therefore could not report anything. Sadly although we continued to use our balcony throughout the cruise, I would say more often than not we could smell smoke. It would be easier to count the times we did not smell smoke than the times we did. :mad:

 

I think X need to remove the confusing placard by the slider that says extinguish all cigarettes and replace it with one that says no smoking is allowed on the balconies.

[ORV]

How sad that you weren't able to enjoy your vacation more.

[Gonzo70]

That is too bad that some rude people caused you to not be able to fully enjoy your balcony. I agree that X needs to remove the outdated signs and place a clear sign about smoking on balconies being strictly prohibited. They also need to have strict consequences for somebody making a second violation; if someone is busted once by ship security and makes a second violation IMHO they should be debarked at the next port.

[terp4life]

I hope that is not the way my message read, it certainly not the case. I had an immensely enjoyable vacation. I loved every minute, in spite of the smoking. However, a large part of the reason we did not try a different line was the no smoking on balconies rule. I have respiratory issues and have personal experience with family members with lung cancer. As a result I was really looking forward to enjoying my balcony smoke free. Was not able to. Just wanted to let others know, so they would not have to be as disappointed in that aspect as I was.

 

The staff was sympathetic but unable to do much when there was no one in particular to "remind" of the rules.

[bhughey]

On our recent Eclipse cruise, I would say 8 out of 10 times we were on our balcony, we smelled smoke.

[Onessa]

Unfortunately most smokers simply do not understand just how offensive the smell is. Most think that they are not hurting anyone and that the people who complain are just being nasty.

 

I have a friend who quit smoking and who only now fessed up and apologized for a time ten years ago when she borrowed my car -- I told her no smoking in my car, she smoked but she thought that because she had the window cracked open that I "wouldn't know" -- she got really offended and defensive when I confronted her with it immediately afterward. Only now that she has been smoke-free does she realize that, yes, a non-smoker CAN tell when a smoker has been smoking; and that yes, it is THAT bad!

[goofysmom99]

Unfortunately most smokers simply do not understand just how offensive the smell is. Most think that they are not hurting anyone and that the people who complain are just being nasty.

 

I have a friend who quit smoking and who only now fessed up and apologized for a time ten years ago when she borrowed my car -- I told her no smoking in my car, she smoked but she thought that because she had the window cracked open that I "wouldn't know" -- she got really offended and defensive when I confronted her with it immediately afterward. Only now that she has been smoke-free does she realize that, yes, a non-smoker CAN tell when a smoker has been smoking; and that yes, it is THAT bad!

 

After I quit smoking 20+ years ago, I couldn't believe how horrible the clothes in my closet smelled. Ewwww. ;)

[Longtonian]

There was often a smell of smoke on our balcony on the Equinox back in November. Impossible to trace. Not a particularly big issue for us as the smell was faint, but still a little annoying. Smoking near the pool was much more of an irritation.

[cynbar]

We were on Eclipse for the 1/15 cruise, starboard side, and we also often smelled smoke when out on our balcony. It wasn't strong enough to really bother us, but it was definitely there. We looked around and tried to find where it was coming from, but couldn't tell, so there was no one to report. I agree that smokers may be getting smarter about avoiding detection!

[Winters in NZ]

We had balconies on some of our previous cruise on various lines, but finally gave up on them because of the smoke issue. No point in paying extra for something that you cannot enjoy.

[jackdiamond]

Interestingly, we have had a couple of ten night cruises in AQ on the Equinox; and, I have never detected any smoke on the balconies. Additionally, I have never been disturbed by smoke elsewhere on the ship; and, I am a non smoker.

[jd1966]

You can smell smoke from hump stateroom balconies if there is no breeze. The smokers in the designated area on deck five are right below you. I've had two trips on the Solstice and one on the Equinox and have never smelled smoke while the ship was moving. Guess I'm lucky.

[CruisinManiac]

:eek: Which side of Deck 5?

[Wine-O]

:eek: Which side of Deck 5?

 

Smoking is on the Port side of the ship.

[MEcruzr]

You can smell smoke from hump stateroom balconies if there is no breeze. The smokers in the designated area on deck five are right below you. I've had two trips on the Solstice and one on the Equinox and have never smelled smoke while the ship was moving. Guess I'm lucky.

 

From X's website:

 

"Smoking is permitted in many of our lounges and on open air decks on the port side of the ship."

 

Book your balcony stateroom on the starboard side!

[CruisinManiac]

Thank you, I have! ;)

[MEcruzr]

Me, too! :)

 

Being on the starboard side doesn't protect you from anyone smoking on their balcony... but at least you can call and complain about that. LOL

[kitty9]

Being starboard makes no difference. We were surrounded by smokers on our December Solstice cruise. Complaining did nothing, even after being hit on the head by a lit butt, thrown from the balcony above mine. I think X needs to make all passengers sign a statement, at the time of embarkation, that they know there's no smoking on balconies or in cabins, and make clear the punishment for being caught. They also need to remove those signs next to the balcony door and replace them with a sign right on the glass that says no smoking.

 

What's interesting is that when the security man came to my cabin after the butt incident, he collected the butts that were on my balcony floor and they were all from cigarettes not available in the US. Not saying that Americans aren't flaunting the rule, but at least all around my cabin, it appeared to be non North Americans.

[Dena]

This is very disturbing. It seems more prevalent on the Solstice class ships. Perhaps they are having a harder time filling these ships and have told the crew not to alienate passengers by enforcing the rules. After the fire on the Star Princess, Princess installed cameras to monitor the balconies. Doesn't Celebrity have such cameras. If so, surely they can review the tapes, identify the smokers, and enforce the rules....if they want to.

[LAH718]

I just returned from Solstice 1/16 to 1/23. I was thrilled in the lack of smoke throughout the interior of the ship. Never went to the Sky lounge, since I knew it was allowed there. However, I was disappointed in the amount of smoke I was able to smell on my balcony. Unfortunately, it seems smokers are getting wise to being reported. Only once in 7 days was I able to determine where the smoke was coming from. There was a group three balconies forward from us who I reported, but they continued to smoke I believe. I never saw them again, but I heard them and smelt smoke on a few more occasions. On many other occasions I was able to smell smoke, but despite staying at the edge of my 8th floor hump balcony with a decent view to all sides, I could never see the sources, and therefore could not report anything. Sadly although we continued to use our balcony throughout the cruise, I would say more often than not we could smell smoke. It would be easier to count the times we did not smell smoke than the times we did. :mad:

 

I think X need to remove the confusing placard by the slider that says extinguish all cigarettes and replace it with one that says no smoking is allowed on the balconies.

 

On my last 2 Celebrity cruises (Eclipse 10/2010 and Century 01/2011) there were smokers on the balcony right next to mine. When I leaned over the balcony and politely reminded the first neighbor on a 16-night cruise of the smoking policy and my allergy, she said she was going to smoke on the balcony. At that point I said, 'thank you' and called Guest Relations. Within an hour housekeeping presented a letter outlining the smoking policy and penalties. The reason I know is because I heard the women telling her husband about the letter.

 

When I leaned over the balcony on the January Century cruise and told the woman smoking about my allergy, she said she didn't know I was out on my balcony and placed her cigarette on the deck!

 

Fortunately, I was able to identify the smokers and both neighbors did not smoke on their balcony the rest of the cruise.

 

The cabin attendant on the Eclipse told us it's policy for the attendant's not to report violations to the smoking policy; guests must be the ones to report smoking violations.

 

Linda

[SynapticFire]

I am an occasional smoker, really only when out drinking.

I decided to buy an electric cigarette for my cruise next week.

That way I can satisfy my smoking while drinking urge without offending anyone.

Electric cigarettes emit no smoke, and dont smell. You inhale flavored water vapor with nicotine in it.

Seems like the perfect alternative for such close quarters.

Any social drinking smokers should check them out.

[Dena]

 

The cabin attendant on the Eclipse told us it's policy for the attendant's not to report violations to the smoking policy; guests must be the ones to report smoking violations.

 

Linda

 

That is a very bad policy which may lead to confrontations between guests. If Celebrity is serious about this, they should be proactive.

[MEcruzr]

The time I reported someone smoking on the balcony next to me they thanked me for calling... sent someone up but the woman had a "do not disturb" sign on the door. They knocked but she didn't answer. They said they could NOT enter her cabin with that sign on the door. BUT, they did warn her and she didn't smoke on the balcony again. Our butler told us that both of them were smokers... the husband seemed willing to go smoke in the allowed areas, but she was very vocal about not wanting to do that. He told us to call HIM if she smoked on her balcony again. I know she knew it was me who called... I looked around the divider and looked right at her. Within minutes someone was knocking on her door. I did NOT speak to her about it. I left that up to Celebrity.

 

If you value the "no smoking on the balcony" rule... call, call, call if you smell smoke. Call Guest Relations every single time.

 

Kitty... you're right, being on the starboard side won't prevent smoke from people smoking on their balcony from bothering you. But it will prevent you from smelling smoke from the outside venues where it IS allowed. We were on the port side just under the pool once... the smoke was very noticeable when the air flow around and over the ship was just right. Or just wrong. ;)

[librarylady19]

Allowing smoking in various areas around the ship (the worst being Sky Lounge) is one rule I'd like to X, that's for sure.

[Wineart]

We just returned from a Caribbean cruise on Solstice, and we could smell cigarette (and other!) smoke on our AQ balcony. Since we couldn't tell where it was coming from, we didn't report it, but I was definitely surprised by the pot smoke!