Smoking On Your Balcony But Our Vacation!!

[travelgoddess1]

Yes, another thread about smoking! But I wanted to let people know what can and did happen when we had neighbors smoking on their balcony.

 

We just returned last night from a short (5 day) cruise on the Independence. This was a cruise I had booked for my partners birthday as a surprise. To make extra special I had booked a GS.

 

The cabin was beautiful and I may have made a mistake because Jim is always going to want a suite now and I can't afford to cruise like that on every cruise.

 

Anyway. We are experienced cruisers and know the things to make our cruises great. The first day on board we got to our cabin about 1:00 and went out on our balcony to watch the work being done on the dock. Immediately we notice someone smoking one deck down and one cabin forward and someone in the suite next to us (forward). We have had people smoking on boarding day before and know what to do so we left our balcony closed the door and I called Guest Services and complained. In the past this always solved the problem. Not so lucky this time.

 

Later that evening we went out to find our next door neighbors smoking again. I said something about smoking not being allowed on balconies to my partner loud enough for our neighbors to hear and left our balcony but had a smell of smoke in our cabin. We got ready for dinner and left to go the CL and DL before dinner. As we were leaving we told our cabin steward about the smoking. He assured us he would tell the deck supervisor and someone would talk the smokers.

 

The next day was a sea and we spent the day around the ship and enjoying our down time. I did notice a smoke smell outside the couple of time we were on our balcony. I wasn't sure where it was coming from, next door or the cabin below us who had been smoking the day before. We decided to just let it ride but did mention to the concierge someone in our area was smoking but not sure exactly sure where.

 

The next morning at 6:00am I smelled smoke when I went out on our balcony again. I wasn't sure if it was our next door neighbors or the people below. Closed the balcony again and stopped at Guest Services to report the problem on the way to my workout. They noted that I had complained before and our neighbors had been warned. Guest services promised they would address the problem. Later at breakfast we meet the people two cabins forward of us and found out they had also complained about the smoking by our neighbors. I felt reassured that I wasn't just being "one of those people" who constantly complains. We left the ship for our day in Cozumel and enjoy a beach day. I did notice that Jim seemed tired and his breathing was a little labored. Yes, Jim has some pulmonary problems that usually are not a problem but can go bad quickly so I kept a close eye on him. Jim only ate salad and fruit and had no alcohol on our beach day because we know salt and alcohol can make things worse if thing start going south for him. By the end of our beach day Jim seemed better as we headed back to the ship. Back in our room out on our balcony the smell of smoke again! We got off the balcony and decided to go to the DL to spend time on the balcony there to get away from the smoke. I stopped at the CL to complain yet again. The concierge, Felix, again noted there had been numerous complainants by people about the smoking and they would talk to our neighbor again. At the end of our night again the smell of smoke on our balcony and in our room from us opening our door with the smoke outside. That night I noticed Jim's breathing becoming more labored but he assured me he was okay and upped some of his meds.

 

The next morning at 6:00 am I'm out on the balcony and hear our neighbors come out and light up. I look around the divider and confirm that yes they are smoking. Really, still! I checked on Jim who is still sleeping and sounding more rattled with his breathing. I'm off to my workout and then stopped at the CL after to talk to Felix about the smoking problem. He checks and tells me our smokers have been warned by phone, by the deck supervisor, and by letter. Said he would let Guest Service know yet again. Back at the cabin I wake Jim, who never sleeps this late. Worried about him I ask if he wants to cancel our beach day in Costa Maya. He says he is tired but want go ahead and pushes some extra meds again. At breakfast we ran into our now friend, 2 door forward of us, and they relate that they also smelled the smoke and complained to Guest Services. We are off to our beach day at Maya Chan. Jim is still tired but seem to be getting better as the day goes on although he only sat on the beach. Another day of fruit and salad for lunch and no alcohol. Back on our balcony after our beach day our smoker came out again and lights up. Jim start coughing and the rattles with his breathing are back. I get Jim to take more meds, lay down to rest for awhile, and I'm worried. I'm off to Guest Service and upset. I tell guest service we STILL having problems with smoking and it is affecting Jim's health. They again checked the record and many phone calls are made to the deck supervisor, hotel director, and security while I'm standing there. After 20 minutes they tell me are setting up a meeting with security and our neighbors and they are so sorry. Back at the cabin Jim is starting to struggle with his breathing and I know there is no way we are making it to Chef's Table tonight. I get Jim to again take more meds. I don't want to upset Jim so I run down to talk to Felix about not being able to make it to our dinner. Felix is worried and asks if he should call medical. I tell him I'll let him know. Back at the room Jim is worse and agrees it is time to go to medical. I called Felix and told him to meet us, we are going to medical. He met us at the elevators and expressed down to medical but Jim collapses before we can get off. Medical rushed us in and know this is serious! Quick tests prove what I already knew, Jim's lungs were filling up with fluid and there was fluid around his heart. We are now in a life threatening event. They needed to start IV drugs to try to stop the cascade that Jim was having. Calls were made to bridge to tell them there may be a possible evacuation. I'm now panicked but trying hard not to show it. Bottom line: Luckily the IV drugs worked along with the oxygen Jim they put Jim on. We spend 6 hours in medical and they agree to let us go back to our room only if we promise to come back first thing in the morning for more tests and Jim stays on the oxygen they supplied us with. The doctor told me what saved Jim's life is that we had started the extra drugs before we went to medical. I spent the rest of the night staying awake listening to make sure Jim's breathing was okay.

 

Our last day is a sea day and we were sure to get back to medical to make sure Jim is going to be okay. I am relieved to know the drugs have worked amazing well and Jim will be alright but he needs to spend the day just resting. Not the day we had hoped but I am just glad the crisis has passed. I run into our room steward who is very worried and tells me the whole crew knows what happened and everyone is mad. Our neighbors have been charged a $500 cleaning fee. They don't care, they are smoking! What can RCI do? Our next day we are back in FLL and getting off the ship. He asks us to please not open the balcony door so Mr. Jim does not get sick again. So now Jim needs to rest and we can't even use our balcony.

 

I do find out from Felix that we can get in to Chef's Table on the last night to make up for the night we had to cancel. I ran into our friends on the other side of the smokers and Find out that they ended up canceling the whole Chef's Table Tuesday night because without us there wasn't enough people. So how many people have been affected by these rude smokers?

 

I did talk to the doctor on Wednesday about everything that happened. He told me that even though Jim's problems were most likely caused or contributed by the smoking he couldn't prove it and he has to charge us for the medical treatment. So now we have a $1800 on board medical bill. Not something I planned on. Luckily we have cruise insurance but we still needed to pay and will have to wait to be reimbursed. He did tell me he sent an email to Miami about the whole situation and RCI needs to do something more about the smoking policy. He told me corporate was going to meet with him on Thursday when we got back to port. Who knows what will happen.

 

I do have to say everyone we talked to tried to help and I can't fault the crew. Jim received excellent medical care and I have no doubt they saved his life. The medical crew treated not only Jim but myself great. The doctor spent much time talking to me and even gave me his email so I can report back to him how Jim is doing. He wants to know what Jim regular doctor has to say when he sees Jim today. The doctor let me use his phone to call Jim's regular doctor to make appointment with him before we even left the ship.

 

One last thing. Thursday morning as we were docking I went out on balcony again and there was smoke! As we were leaving one of smoking neighbors was out in the hall railing on our poor room steward about the cleaning fees they had been hit with. No doubt RCI will remove them.

 

First, my sympathy to you for what you and your partner went through. (While we had a similar episode in January, it was not due to smoking, but rather to bronchitis and then pneumonia that my husband contracted the end of our 3rd week on Oasis. I know how scary it is to see a loved one suffering. We spent most of week 4 in the medical facility getting breathing treatments.)

 

Second, do not let this go. I'm sure it has already been suggested (apologies for not reading back 8 pages), but you should speak to both Resolutions and Corporate Relations about your experience. I would ask for reimbursement of your medical fee and a Future Cruise Credit for what you endured, through no fault of your own.

 

Third, RCI bears their share of the blame here. The smokers should have been warned once and put off the ship the second time it happened. And it is NOT your responsibility to police the smokers. We all know what can happen.

 

Best wishes to your partner for a speedy recovery, and congratulations to you for taking good care of him, under very trying circumstances.

Edited December 10, 2016 by travelgoddess1

[sammee]

Please don't crucify me but...

 

I do think that if there is a non-smoking policy on balconies, that it should be enforced.

 

But...

 

I am a smoker that does not smoke on our balconies, and do understand that cigarette smoke is not pleasant to most non-smokers. But just because there is the smell of smoke coming from somewhere, I have to wonder just how much of that smell actually carries the carcinogenics that hurt people. If you smell cigarette smoke on me doesn't mean carcinogens will jump off me. :p

 

I feel bad that the OP's husband has such a critical health problem that is set off by just the smell of smoke.

 

Smoking is not illegal, and we pay good money, therefore feel we should have an area to smoke in decent out of the elements designated areas.

 

I used to think like this too, but when you have lung problems, that smell can kick your butt in. For me, the cigarette doesn't trigger it, but perfume/cologne does. The same can be asked about both when it comes to lung problems.

[Ski-Lady]

I don't usually quote entire long posts, but I wanted to this time.

 

Ski-Lady, this is exceptionally well-written.

 

I strongly suggest that you send the entire thing to

 

mbayley@rccl.com

 

Thank you for your kind words Merion _Mom. There are some posters on the RCCL board that I really pay attention to because of their concise, accurate, knowable information, and you are one of them.

 

I will be sure to email my post to Mr Bayley per your suggestion.

 

As I said we have cruised a fair amount and have sailed almost exclusively on Royal. We have another cruise booked in March. After that I'm not sure we can risk another episode like this. We may have to change to non-smoking line. That would be to bad because I believe Royal has provided a good value for the dollar and we have finally reach a loyalty level to be worth while.

[Arizona Cruz Chic]

First, glad Jim is better and had good care from ships medical....and glad you had insurance!

 

Second, shame on RC for not putting these people off the ship. Multiple complaints form several others? Nothing done except a fine....unacceptable.

 

***

[postmeome]

Another anti smoking thread, well done. Don't believe a word,people on here are so gullible.

[sparks1093]

Another anti smoking thread, well done. Don't believe a word,people on here are so gullible.

 

No, it's an anti-smoking in a non-smoking area thread. BIG difference.

[MISTER 67]

Why wasn't RCCL more forceful with the smokers?

I know they can't shoot them or throw them in the brig but maybe they should have been escorted off the ship at one of the ports, this was a life threatening situation plus a dangerous situation to the ship itself as fires have started on balconies.

Shame on RCCL for not enforcing the smoking rules

[Bookster99]

Wow. What a horrible experience! I am so glad he is doing better.

 

We had smokers below us when we cruised on the Navigator. We did not suffer any serious effects, and didn't complain. We still used the balcony, and just put up with it when it happened. I imagine that happens a lot.

 

On an unrelated but related note, we avoid the casino because of the smoke. I wonder how much more gambling would take place on the ship if it were a smoke-free environment?

[Roce48]

There is no "if"

 

Smoking is banned in all cabins and on all cabin balconies on all Royal Caribbean ships.

 

That is the relevant point.

 

I was not being curt, so why must you be. Even if you don't like my statement, you should still show some class. Thank you.:)

[marci22]

I was not being curt, so why must you be. Even if you don't like my statement, you should still show some class. Thank you.:)

 

You bolded and underlined the word 'if'. It seemed like you did not know the rules, and were adding complication to the thread. She was being direct and to the point, not curt.

[ONECRUISER]

Please don't crucify me but...

 

I do think that if there is a non-smoking policy on balconies, that it should be enforced.

 

But...

 

I am a smoker that does not smoke on our balconies, and do understand that cigarette smoke is not pleasant to most non-smokers. But just because there is the smell of smoke coming from somewhere, I have to wonder just how much of that smell actually carries the carcinogenics that hurt people. If you smell cigarette smoke on me doesn't mean carcinogens will jump off me. :p

 

I feel bad that the OP's husband has such a critical health problem that is set off by just the smell of smoke.

 

Smoking is not illegal, and we pay good money, therefore feel we should have an area to smoke in decent out of the elements designated areas.

 

If you smell smoke from cigarettes it contains Carcinogens, that's what second hand smoke is. My daughter has bad Asthma and a history or that second hand smoke causing an attack. I have no problems with having smoking areas but the one time I had a connecting cabin people in the other cabin would smoke, opened their balcony door and the smoke blew under connecting door into my room. I was fortunate that when I complained to customer service it ended. Thank you Roce48 for not smoking on your balcony...

[ducklite]

No, it's an anti-smoking in a non-smoking area thread. BIG difference.

 

 

 

Exactly. If people want to smoke in a designated area (which the ship should make sure it is an area others don't need to pass through or smell smoke drifting from) and dispose of butts in a safe manner, it's not my problem. But when it does affect me, particularly when they are breaking written policy, it becomes my business.

 

The Wind Surf had a smoking area in the top deck at the rear of the ship. No one needed to go up there for any reason except to smoke. The smoke drifted off into the breeze behind the ship. They supplied an adequate place to dispose of butts. It was a win-win. For the two smokers among the 212 passengers, it worked.

 

If smokers would follow the rules and be considerate, we could all generally get on. Of course some heavy smokers leave a PigPen like trail of stench all around them. I was in CVS an hour ago and could smell the stench of stale smoke over six feet from the guy at the counter. It was disgusting. But that type of odor on a smoker is usually the exception to the rule.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Ski-Lady]

Another anti smoking thread, well done. Don't believe a word,people on here are so gullible.

 

As others stated, this is not an anti-smoking thread. I respect the rights of others to smoke. This is about the unintended consequences of people smoking in a non-smoking area.

 

This is not my first post. I am a long time member of CC with a fair numbers of posts. I don't post frivolously.

 

This post was a factual report of what happened to us. And to make people think about the effect of their actions.

[akcruz]

First, glad Jim is better and had good care from ships medical....and glad you had insurance!

 

Second, shame on RC for not putting these people off the ship. Multiple complaints form several others? Nothing done except a fine....unacceptable.

 

***

And I am betting they whined and made a scene until the fine was taken off. Agree totally unacceptable, but what I have found is royal is very lax in enforcing most of their rules. Very unfortunate.

 

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

[Ski-Lady]

I was not being curt, so why must you be. Even if you don't like my statement, you should still show some class. Thank you.:)

 

Merion_Mom is right, smoking is banned on all Royal cabins and balconies. If smoking was allowed, trust me, I would not have spent so much time complaining.

 

When we started cruising in 2007 smoking was allowed on the balconies and I respected people's right to smoke there.

Edited December 10, 2016 by Ski-Lady

[scopewest]

So sorry to hear what happened on your cruise. I must say I like the idea of the ice bucket :)

[davekathy]

.... I do think that if there is a non-smoking policy on balconies, that it should be enforced...Smoking is not illegal, and we pay good money, therefore feel we should have an area to smoke in decent out of the elements designated areas...

 

There is an area out of the elements on RCI ships you are allowed to smoke. The casino.Here's what is posted on RCI website under FAQ. Agree that the no smoking policy needs to be enforced and just about everyone that has posted on this thread will agree with you.

 

...Smoking is not permitted inside any stateroom and any stateroom balcony. This applies to all stateroom categories onboard. If a guest is in violation of this stateroom policy, a cleaning fee of $250 USD will be applied to their SeaPass® account and may be subject to further action pursuant to the "Consequences Section" of the Guest Conduct Policy...

Edited December 10, 2016 by davekathy

[troykahack]

.... I do think that if there is a non-smoking policy on balconies, that it should be enforced....

 

There is an area out of the elements on RCI ships you are allowed to smoke. The casino.Here's what is posted on RCI website under FAQ. Agree that the no smoking policy needs to be enforced and just about everyone that has posted on this thread will agree with you.

 

 

I agree with Merion Mom, there is no IF

 

Smoking should be banned at the Casino Bar. IF your not playing, NO SMOKING. Nobody needs to provide any smokers with any area out of the elements. The pool deck area for smokers is plenty.

Edited December 10, 2016 by troykahack

[davekathy]

 

I agree with Merion Mom, there is no IF

 

Smoking should be banned at the Casino Bar. IF your not playing, NO SMOKING. Nobody needs to provide any smokers with any area out of the elements. The pool deck area for smokers is plenty.

 

As a nonsmoker I agree and we don't gamble. But currently RCI allows Cruisers to smoke in the Casino whether they are gambling or not. So deal with it. You have a choice. I'm sure some smokers complain about not being able to smoke in the lounges/bars but they deal with it.

Edited December 10, 2016 by davekathy

[troykahack]

 

As a nonsmoker I agree and we don't gamble. But currently RCI allows it so deal with it. You have a choice. I'm sure some smokers complain about not being able to smoke in the lounges/bars but they deal with it.

 

We currently deal with it by letting everyone know. I talked to the Casino Host and Club Royale when they called me this week. Each time I talk to them I complain. First thing is to eliminate smoking at the bar, they are not playing.

 

After that... who knows... tackle something one at a time....

[davekathy]

 

We currently deal with it by letting everyone know. I talked to the Casino Host and Club Royale when they called me this week. Each time I talk to them I complain. First thing is to eliminate smoking at the bar, they are not playing.

 

After that... who knows... tackle something one at a time....

 

Perfect...sometimes the squeaky wheel gets the grease. I hope you're successful with your crusade. Hopefully RCI will follow Celebrity's lead and ban all inside smoking.

[ducklite]

 

 

 

We currently deal with it by letting everyone know. I talked to the Casino Host and Club Royale when they called me this week. Each time I talk to them I complain. First thing is to eliminate smoking at the bar, they are not playing.

 

 

 

After that... who knows... tackle something one at a time....

 

 

 

Best way to deal with it is by taking your money to another cruise line. There are 10 times the number of non smokers to smokers. Money talks, we all know what walks.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[davekathy]

 

 

 

Best way to deal with it is by taking your money to another cruise line. There are 10 times the number of non smokers to smokers. Money talks, we all know what walks.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

Agree but I don't think all nonsmokers will unite and do that. We won't. We just try to avoid any smoking area and even then you can't always get away from the smell. So we deal with it. Celebrity has been very successful at not allowing any indoor smoking and that's one of many reasons we enjoy Cruising with Celebrity.

Edited December 10, 2016 by davekathy

[troykahack]

 

Agree but I don't think all nonsmokers will unite and do that. We won't. We just try to avoid any smoking area and even then you can't always get away from the smell. So we deal with it. Celebrity has been very successful at not allowing any indoor smoking and that's one of many reasons we enjoy Cruising with Celebrity.

 

It is hard to avoid the Casino when sometimes one must walk through it to get somewhere else. People use it as an indoor smoking area and then run and hop on the elevator with a cloud of stench cigarette smoke on them and polute the entire elevator.

[forkcreek]

If anything this post points out that RCCL has shipboard rules that they seldom enforce.