This Thread Is To Be Used For All Discussions About HAL's On Board Smoking Policies

[Aquahound]

Carnival curtailed balcony smoking in Oct. of 2014. Trust me, as a smoker, I KNOW this.

 

That sounds much more accurate. Balcony smoking was eradicated from CCL, RCI and NCL all within the last 1-2 years. I'm pretty sure that was the motivation behind this thread.

[Host Walt]

From our guidelines,

 

"If you disagree with someone, respond to the subject, not the person. Postings of this nature will be removed from the boards."

PLEASE comply.

 

Thanks.

[Host Walt]

From our guidelines,

 

"If you disagree with someone, respond to the subject, not the person. Postings of this nature will be removed from the boards."

PLEASE comply.

 

Thanks.

Apparently no one read this post, based on several subsequent posts which have been removed.

 

Accordingly the thread is being closed temporarily to provide everyone with sufficient time to read and digest our posting guidelines. Fair warning. Posting privileges may be removed in some cases if violations continue to occur when the thread is reopened..

[Host Walt]

This thread has been restored after a 9 hour hiatus.

Edited August 25, 2015 by Host Walt

[retiredkid]

LOL. I think we were scared off, Host Walt. I'll start it off again.

 

We have a cabana club cabana on the NA. I know that they are non-smoking in themselves. Is the dedicated sun deck (or whatever it is called) for the cabanas also non-smoking?

[taxmantoo]

Is the dedicated sun deck (or whatever it is called) for the cabanas also non-smoking?

 

Absolutely :D

[Fouremco]

LOL. I think we were scared off, Host Walt. I'll start it off again.

 

We have a cabana club cabana on the NA. I know that they are non-smoking in themselves. Is the dedicated sun deck (or whatever it is called) for the cabanas also non-smoking?

The Observation Deck is one of the designated smoking locations, and the Cabana Club is on the Observation Deck if I recall correctly, so maybe so. The policy predates the cabanas, I believe, so whether it remains a designated smoking area I'm unsure, but the policy certainly suggests it.

Edited August 25, 2015 by Fouremco

[cruz chic]

LOL. I think we were scared off, Host Walt. I'll start it off again.

 

We have a cabana club cabana on the NA. I know that they are non-smoking in themselves. Is the dedicated sun deck (or whatever it is called) for the cabanas also non-smoking?

 

I've never been bothered by smoke near the cabana area. Not sure if that addresses your concerns.

[kennicott]

LOL. We have a cabana club cabana on the NA. I know that they are non-smoking in themselves. Is the dedicated sun deck (or whatever it is called) for the cabanas also non-smoking?

 

This might help, but it is four years old:

 

 

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by English_in_Spain View Post

There have been a few threads recently about retreat cabanas. We are looking at booking one on Eurodam for next April and had a few questions.

 

I emailed HAL Ship’s Services and have received a reply email from them so I thought I would post a summary here as it answers a lot of people’s recent queries.

 

1. The correct email address of Ship Services is HAL_Ship_Services@HollandAmerica.com (there are 2 underscores not a hyphen)

 

2. The retreat cabanas on the Eurodam are slightly smaller than those on the Nieuw Amsterdam.

Nieuw Amsterdam 13’ x 8’; Eurodam 11’-5” x 8’.

For the family cabanas Nieuw Amsterdam 17’ x 12’-6”; Eurodam 15’3” x 12’-6”

 

3. Current (2011/2012) pricing

 

Cabana Club/Retreat Cabanas

Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana per day — port day $45.00

Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana per day — sea day $75.00

Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana Package — up to 7 days $299.00

Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana Package — up to 10 days $399.00

Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana Package — up to 15 days $499.00

Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana Package — up to 20 days $599.00

Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana Package — over 20 days call for pricing

 

Cabana Club/Retreat Family Cabanas

Family Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana per day — port day $65.00

Family Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana per day — sea day $115.00

Family Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana Package — up to 7 days $449.00

Family Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana Package — up to 10 days $599.00

Family Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana Package — up to 15 days $749.00

Family Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana Package — up to 20 days $899.00

Family Cabana Club/Retreat Cabana Package — over 20 days call for pricing

 

4. The Retreat Cabanas have lounge chairs not table and chairs. The public retreat area does have regular chairs.

 

5. All cabanas are wheelchair accessible and non-smoking.

 

6. Family retreat Cabanas can hold up to 4 adults but any guests can reserve them.

 

I have sent them another email to confirm a couple of points

 

If there are only loungers in the cabanas, why do some photos of the cabanas show table and chairs?

 

If we book the cabana for the entire cruise can we ask for table and chairs and one lounger instead of 2 loungers?

 

You say the cabanas are non-smoking. What about the retreat area in general (ie outside the cabanas). Are there non-smoking signs up there? Is the non-smoking strictly enforced by the staff?

 

I will post again when I get answers on these

 

It is great news that all cabanas are non-smoking!

[cruz chic]

A lot of the info contained in that post is not really accurate anymore. My last cabana was in April 2015. For sure, there is no smoking.

[kennicott]

A lot of the info contained in that post is not really accurate anymore. My last cabana was in April 2015. For sure, there is no smoking.

 

So? "5. All cabanas are wheelchair accessible and non-smoking."

[IRL_Joanie]

So? "5. All cabanas are wheelchair accessible and non-smoking."

 

Wheelchair accessible? YES, with a BUT...It is hard to get over the lip from inside the ship out to the cabanas. Kind of like the Lip from inside the ship to outside on the Promenade Deck. But yes, the Cabanas are wheel chair accessible.

 

Smoking is allowed in only one section of the Observation deck and that is Port Side (I believe it is Port Side) just outside the Crows Nest. It is semi covered (netting as opposed to canvas) with large furniture and ashtrays.

 

As far as I am aware that is the only Observation Deck smoking area and it is no where near the cabanas.

 

Joanie

Edited August 26, 2015 by IRL_Joanie

[april_tiffany]

I can't stand smoking and my boyfriend has asthma, so I'd like to know if the smoking on balconies is really an issue? We are looking at an Alaska cruise on the Westerdam next year as it has the exact itinierary we want, but are hesitant because of the policy. Is it pretty bad when others smoke around you, or does the speed of the ship allow it to disperse pretty rapidly?

[OVgirl]

If you are concerned about smoking on surrounding verandas, I would tell you not to sail on a HAL ship. Your other option would be to book an oceanview or inside cabin.

 

Many people will say that smoking has never bothered them and if you are a gambler, then the odds are in your favour. But, if you have a smoking neighbour, you will smell the smoke and there will be nothing you can really do about it.

 

Again, if it's a major issue, don't book a veranda on a HAL ship.

 

Hope you find a cruise that suits your needs.

[bellalisa]

I agree, Celebrity also sails to Alaska and they have a much stricter smoking policy. Book on the Starboard side of the ship as there is a smoking outdoor lounge on the Port side and there have been cases of people on balconies smelling it. To be safe just dont book a cabin on the port side and you will be fine. Also the Celebrity casino is non-smoking, one of the few.

[sammiedawg]

I can't stand smoking and my boyfriend has asthma, so I'd like to know if the smoking on balconies is really an issue? We are looking at an Alaska cruise on the Westerdam next year as it has the exact itinierary we want, but are hesitant because of the policy. Is it pretty bad when others smoke around you, or does the speed of the ship allow it to disperse pretty rapidly?

 

This thread size attests to the fact balcony smoking is a huge issue on HAL, 117 pages and counting. It replaced countless other threads on the same topic. We've been smoked off the balcony more than once and no longer book them on Holland America. Don't let anyone tell you not to worry about it.

Do not book a HAL balcony, book outside cabin or go to another line. Princess has a better Alaska program than Celebrity. Celebrity does not have the Alaska infrastructure or Glacier bay permits that Princess and HAL have. Princess does not allow balcony smoking.

[SydneyD'Augstralia]

The smoking issue is far more pronounced on these boards that it is onboard.

 

117 pages of comments from the same posters over and over is not indicative of real life situations.

[Hlitner]

I can't stand smoking and my boyfriend has asthma, so I'd like to know if the smoking on balconies is really an issue? We are looking at an Alaska cruise on the Westerdam next year as it has the exact itinierary we want, but are hesitant because of the policy. Is it pretty bad when others smoke around you, or does the speed of the ship allow it to disperse pretty rapidly?

 

If you book a balcony cabin on HAL you are simply rolling the dice that you will be lucky and not have any smokers in the area that bother you when on the balcony. The air currents move in mysterious ways around a ship and can sometimes quickly disperse any smoke, but other times the smoke can actually be sucked-in to balconies. My advice is that if smoke is an issue...choose a line (just about every other line) that does not allow smoking on balconies. Princess and Celebrity are both decent choices for Alaska.

 

Also consider that HAL does allow some smoking in their Casinos (and this smoke sometimes can be smelled in other nearby venues. Celebrity does not allow any smoking inside their ships! And another consideration is that HAL does not only allow cigarette smoking on balconies...but also permits cigar smoking.

 

Hank

Edited September 16, 2015 by Hlitner

[Joanandjoe]

We had three cruises on HAL, two in balcony rooms, between 1998 and 2008, and had some problems with smoking in the casino (which we had to pass to get to our rooms) and other public areas, but not on our balconies. In the 7+ years since our HAL cruise, we've become older (of course) and much more sensitive to smoke. There's perhaps a 10% chance that a nearby smoker would make our balcony unusable; but that's 10% too much. Therefore, reluctantly, we will almost certainly cancel our March cruise on the Oosterdam.

 

Carnival Corp. has apparently made a conscious decision to have one mainstream line that will attract smokers, presumably with the thought that nonsmokers will go to Princess. That won't work for us. The HAL ships are huge by our standards, since we usually sail on the 490 to 700 passenger ships of Regent Seven Seas. The even larger Princess ships are much too large for us, the average staterooms are too small, they don't have the wonderful HAL artwork, and they don't have the itineraries we want.

 

If anyone from Carnival is reading this, please reconsider the HAL "smoking on balconies is allowed" policy. You may be losing more nonsmokers than the number of smokers you are gaining. HAL and Princess have quite different products; so people you lose on HAL will not necessarily become Princess cruisers. As for Seabourn, the Carnival Corp. luxury line, which also allows smoking on balconies, your smoking policy (allowed on most balconies) removes you from consideration by us and may other "luxury cruisers". Think again, Carnival Corp.!

[richwmn]

The smoking issue is far more pronounced on these boards that it is onboard.

 

117 pages of comments from the same posters over and over is not indicative of real life situations.

 

Not exactly. There are 316 different posters on this thread.

 

At the risk of these three posts being deleted, 3 of those 316 posters account for 26% or the posts. 37% of the posters (119) have only 1 post, 17% have 2 and 9% have 3.

 

In addition, at any given time HAL currently has 13 ships with close to 20,000 passengers aboard which means that those 316 posters represent about 1.5%

[mommyto2girls]

We came back to HAL along with many friends. We only sail in suites and so I think the HAL is picking up smokers for all they lose. There are at least 20 couples I know that now cruise HAL because if we choose to we can have a cigarette on the balcony. We are not chain smokers and enjoy a smoke now and then while out to sea.

[sevigny]

This last post unfortunately may well make us change our minds about sailing on the Rotterdam next summer in a suite. I find it very disheartening that Carnival has decided to have Hal be their "smoking line". Same with Seabourn, looks wonderful to sail on, but the smoking policy stops our booking right away. I am one who does not want to move tonPrincess, instead. Loved being on Celebrity, but really wanted the Hal itinerary, and now I just don't see that happening.

[SS Exeter]

We came back to HAL along with many friends. We only sail in suites and so I think the HAL is picking up smokers for all they lose. There are at least 20 couples I know that now cruise HAL because if we choose to we can have a cigarette on the balcony. We are not chain smokers and enjoy a smoke now and then while out to sea.

 

I totally agree with you. We also only sail in suites. We also enjoy a cigarette on the balcony. We no longer sail with lines that do not allow this.

At the same time we try to be polite to veranda neighbors - when we hear people eating out on the next veranda, we will not smoke. On our last cruise we did this only to find out that our neighbors were smokers themselves.

 

By the way - there must be something especially nice and reasonable about people in Fort Lee, NJ. I lived there for 20 years. Great place to live.:cool:

[erewhon]

We had three cruises on HAL, two in balcony rooms, between 1998 and 2008, and had some problems with smoking in the casino (which we had to pass to get to our rooms) and other public areas, but not on our balconies. In the 7+ years since our HAL cruise, we've become older (of course) and much more sensitive to smoke. There's perhaps a 10% chance that a nearby smoker would make our balcony unusable; but that's 10% too much. Therefore, reluctantly, we will almost certainly cancel our March cruise on the Oosterdam.

 

Carnival Corp. has apparently made a conscious decision to have one mainstream line that will attract smokers, presumably with the thought that nonsmokers will go to Princess. That won't work for us. The HAL ships are huge by our standards, since we usually sail on the 490 to 700 passenger ships of Regent Seven Seas. The even larger Princess ships are much too large for us, the average staterooms are too small, they don't have the wonderful HAL artwork, and they don't have the itineraries we want.

 

If anyone from Carnival is reading this, please reconsider the HAL "smoking on balconies is allowed" policy. You may be losing more nonsmokers than the number of smokers you are gaining. HAL and Princess have quite different products; so people you lose on HAL will not necessarily become Princess cruisers. As for Seabourn, the Carnival Corp. luxury line, which also allows smoking on balconies, your smoking policy (allowed on most balconies) removes you from consideration by us and may other "luxury cruisers". Think again, Carnival Corp.!

 

Have you communicated your concerns to HAL?

[Lizzie68]

The smoking issue is far more pronounced on these boards that it is onboard.

 

117 pages of comments from the same posters over and over is not indicative of real life situations.

 

Hardly. There have been posts by over 350 different CC members. It shows the level of interest, both sides.